Spalding's Baseball Guide and Official League Book for 1895
History
Spalding's Baseball Guide and Official League Book for 1895
Baseball -- Periodicals
There is something to fight for in the winning of a State league's
championship honors, while there is little or nothing at stake in a trio
or duo State league. Suppose each State had a four or six club circuit,
and at the close of its season, each August or September, what a paying
series of October games could be arranged in the Southern section of the
country in October for a grand championship series for the prize of
leading all the State leagues of the country for the honors of the
champion pennant of State league organizations? By all means let State
leagues be organized, until every State in the Union--North, South, East
and West--has its representative State league.
The fickle nature of base ball "rooters" was conspicuously shown at the
Polo Grounds in 1894. At the end of the June campaign, when the New York
"Giants" stood sixth in the race, Ward's stock among the local "cranks"
and "rooters," stood below par; at the close of the July campaign,
however, that same stock was at a premium; and yet it was the same John
M. Ward at the head of the "Giants." In May there were "none so poor to
do him reverence." In August, John was carried off the field a hero. Of
such are the "cranks" and "rooters."
A Toronto paper says: "Spalding Brothers will present to the champion
club of all regularly organized base ball leagues, junior or senior, in
Canada, a valuable flag, 11x28, pennant shaped, made of serviceable
white bunting, red lettered, and valued at $20. The flags will be
forwarded, duty free, immediately after the season closes. Each league
must consist of four or more clubs, and each club must play not less
than 12 championship games." This is a good plan to encourage the game
on foreign soil. It has worked well in England and Australia, too.
Among the magnates of the League who could be seen at nearly all of the
home games of the twelve clubs during the past season were the Boston
triumvirate, Messrs. Soden, Conant and Billings; the irrepressible
Charley Byrne, of Brooklyn; the handsome Vonderhorst, of Baltimore; the
smiling Eddie Talcott, of New York; the noted "Philadelphia lawyer"
Rogers, of Philadelphia; the "Boss Manager" Von der Ahe, of St. Louis;
the energetic Kerr, of Pittsburgh, and Al Spalding's successor,
President Hart, of Chicago.
The Louisville team was a strong one as regards its individual players.
But it lacked harmony in its ranks and suffered from cliques. With two
ex-captains in its team, besides the one who ran it, but little else
could be expected. Ambitious ex-captains are obstacles in the way of
successful management of a team. One regular captain should be the rule,
with an acknowledged lieutenant--a pair like Comiskey and Latham, who
worked the old St. Louis "Browns" up to being four-time winners of
pennant honors.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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