Los Angeles herald., 1892-04-02
An ERA EXPERIMENT
That's What Rem Mulford Calls
the Baseball Situation.
THE SEASONS EARLY OPENING.

May Day Used to Be the Time, but
We've Grown Too Rapid for That-The
California Leagues Big Schedule.
General Gossip Of the Game.
''The era of experiment" would be a
proper classification for baseball as it pro-
fessionally exists today. Leaves in new
books are already to turn, and the outcome
Of the several campaigns will be awaited
with universal interest. The enthusiasts
in the north are growing restless, for out of
New Orleans have come several scores that
told OF games Of that sort which make the
cranks rise in their seats and stir their pal
ates with mighty shouts. The Louisville
contingent that ventured into the home of
the old flock of Pelicans found whitewash
prominently listed, and in two contests
blanks were drawn. The last score, to
0. has attracted attention to Lecourage,
who is booked to pitch for New Orleans in
the new Southern league. He will be eyed
from this time forward unless there is
premature explosion.
Outside the circle there are pessimistic
guerrillas ready to charge the moment there
is q wavering in the ranks. The spirit for
more mischief seems willing, but the pock-
etbook, it is to be hoped, is weak New
York's internal squabble is one pin upon
which those who opine that there will be
further trouble now hang their hope
There is one truth that cannot be ques-
toned The metropolitan press seems to
be unanimously dusting the jacket of
Walter Spalding. Their victim has been
goaded into writing card-a dangerous
symptom of unrest. John B. Day has the
call with the scribes, who seem to take de-
light. however, in picturing his grand slide
down the chute and out of the game. This
quarrel is not healthy one
There are those who dream of another
revolution, and they gloat over the broil
in the camp of the Giants. A. L. johnson
mysteriously hints of another uprising in
1893. Rumors, however are not very dan
gerous now. If the League conducts its
affairs with adroitness the drafts of ali
these advance agents of disaster will never
be honored.
The eLeague-Association has mission
Discipline will and should be enforced in
the ranks and roisterers banished from
the field. That salaries were boosted far
beyond the limit Of reason is fact, but
there has never been any call for the scare
about a sweeping and farreaching reduc-
tion. Talent will always command a good
figure, and if there is a boom all along the
line this year the future need not be
dreaded by the ball player.
If "Old Probs" is SO disposed he can do
much mischief, during Aprils showery
days The season opens unusually early
''The 18th" is really too early. In the
olden time May Day was considered the
proper time for crowning the queen and
incidentally placing King Baseball on his
throne. Last season the Association began
on the 9Th of the month, and snowfakes
were offered as souvenirs at several parks
to cranks who didn't appreciate the inter-
ference of the elements. The California
league will be the first to get down to
championship work The new schedule
calls for no less than 76S games and the
season stretches over eight months, begin
ming March 26 and ending on the 9th of
November. That is the longest schedule
ever framed by any league
It is rather amusing to note that the
North Pacific league, embracing the four
original cities in the circuit, has adopted
the double championship season idea Just
what call there is for such a departure
from the old method is not apparent. The
twelve club organization wanted to escape
from threatened mass convention of tail
enders, q danger that the Pacific people
The Western league proposes to start the
race the same day that the big one com.
mences. There is no especial call for such
action, however, and it might be better for
the Westerns health to knock around
among the little fellows for few weeks
longer and give the dandelions and the
spring beauties q chance to blossom.
The first drawing of the Western will
take place very soon at Chicago. No
blanks will be found in the hat Of Mr..
James A. Williams. The result of the
Westerns experiment is just as prob
lematical as the success of the double head
ed season. It will receive nearly if not
quite as much attention as the accepted
solution Of the question, "How can inter-
est in tail enders be revived in midseason?"
There are some very good men in the lists
Of players from which the eight clubs of
the Western are to be made up. Memories
of fights for pennants in the League and
Association are recalled by glance over
the names Veterans will touch elbows
with youngsters in that struggle.
The Eastern will lose one remarkable
figure from its councils this season-C. w.
Freeman, who carried the Lebanons along
while other magnates in larger cities were
painting for financial breath. Mr.. Freeman
Is credited with being wealthy enthusiast
who ran the Lebanon club just because he
loved the game He still dotes on it, but
not to the extent Of reducing his bank roll
at the rate of $125 day just for the sake
of seeing his pets tramped upon by the
opposition. There was gentleman at
jamestown who had the same sort of novel
experience of holding the bag for the ben
fit of his fellow tcwnsmen just because he
liked the game. He, too, has reformed
and Mr. lew and Mr.. Freeman drop out
together, mourned but not blamed for
turning from paths so hot that their feet
were blistered.
While the season of 1891 was in it's death
throes Scandal reared her head above the
Ncene Of battle and Officially coached by
thQse who should have known better,
breathed suspicion upon the game. That
was only last fall. How soon one forgets!
It would have been safer perhaps had
the rulemakers of the League thrown up
breastworks that would have made impos-
sible such attacks as emanated from Chi
cago last September, aimed at New York
and Boston.
The events of that month need not be
dwelt upon now, and may be dismissed
with the assertion that the dumping" of
so many games won by Boston gave Chi
cago the horrors, a state of fearful mind
that encompassed their downfall. 1t would
have been much better had the League
taken some action which would effectually
veto any more eleventh hour spurts built
upon postponements 1t is not too late to