The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-01-20
REVIVAL In BASEBALL
If There Is to Be a League Anaconda
Will Be in 1t.
TALK WITH A CRANK
He Says There Are Plenty of Good
Players In This City. II They
VIII Only Praotice-Dia-
mond Suggestions.

league for the coming summer. The
proposition is to form a league to in
clude Anaconda, Helena. Butte, Mis-
soula. Billings. Miles City, Bozeman,
Great Falls and Sheridan, Wyo. That
would be a nine-city league with
great many long jumps. While the
newspapers of the different cities that
want membership in the league are
very enthusiastic, and express the
greatest confidence in their city's abil-
fly to turn out a sufficient attendance,
yet the fact remains that 1t will re
quire a great deal of money to sustain
'aeteam under such a heavy expense &C
count. If the league starts out with
the nine members it will in all proba-
bility resolve itself, before many
months. into a five-city league, includ-
Ang Helena, Anaconda, Butte, Missoula
and Great Falls, on the west, and
four-member league of BoZeman, Bill
lings, Miles City and Sheridan on the
east. The last named cities. while their
enthusiasm runs high and would un-
Sdoubtedly loyalty support their teams,
could hardly be expected to put up as
good a team as the western cities OF
larger population.
' There have been some good ball
players and some good baseball finan-
ciers in Montana and they have all
come to the conclusion that the only
state is to fix a salary limit and strict
3y adhere to 1t. This has never been
alone. The salary limit was fixed all
right but as soon as one of the bigger
towns began to lose a few games they
began to hire more and better players,
and the consequence was that the
smaller towns were frozen out and the
directors in the big towns went in
debt 1t is quite safe to say that the
promoters and hackers of the Butte
league team, while they won the pen
nant, are still several hundred dollars
in debt, as a result of raising the sal
airy limit. A league to be successful
must nave teams of nearly equal
Strength, and to obtain this equality
each city must have just as much
money to hire players as any other.
The people of a small city may have
more enthusiasm and give their teams
better support than a larger city, yet
they get little discouraged in buck
ing 5000 team with $500 team.
Anaconda is ready to go into a league
with a fairly good team; there is no
doubt of that. All that is needed in
this city Is start and the rest will
follow. The business men will do their
duty Anaconda has never tried it on
as a member of a baseball league and
has only once seen baseball as she is
played. That was in 1894, and this city
had fairly good team-four of its
players were as good as they make
IL the QlScfeOlt OF the peO-
pie OF this city to say that the boys
were not given proper support, either
financially or morally. This support,
however, will not be lacking II Ana
fcollda becomes a member of the league
she would either have to support her
team up to the highest standard or
crawfsh, and Anaconda never was
known to crawfish.
A Standard reporter had a long talk
yesterday with gentleman who is
one OF the fanniest kind of fans, and
who was Intimately connected with the
team of 1894 AT first he spoke in a
very Disguised way. but as the pros
pect OF big baseball season began 10
float before his eyes he warmed up a
little.
"well, 1 don't know" said he, AN
aconda might go into a league, but
I'm afraid the people won't support
their team. When We had a fairly good
team two years ago, with Joe Werrick,
and the rest of the cracks, we couldn't
get $50 out of the town to save our
souls know this to be a fact, because
i handled the money. The Miles City
TEAM came over here and we took in
S45 the first day, the second ay not
that much. tell you, the people would
have to come to the games in better
shape than that II We were in a league.
OF course, the grounds weren't very
good and the boys didn't have any uni
form, but they could play ball just the
same Butte, Miles City and Missoula
had pretty good teams, but they
couldn't hold a candle to the Anacon-
das If we had been given half a show
Werrick has played the finest second
base and lift harder than any man in
the Middle West last summer, and ne
got credit for it, but when he was here
and made the finest kind of plays, what
did he get? Not even a hand. Amt
that enough to sour a baseball man
on the town?
Then there's another thing. There's
lots of good ball players in this town.
but there is also something that knocks
out the best chance in the world for a
nine, and that's jealousy-everybody
wants to be captain and pitcher. OF
course IL we went into league and
had three or four good salar1ed players
and the rest half salaried boys from
town, I think we could make them
hump to catch us. There would be a
head to II then, and there would be no
room for Jealousy. All the Anaconda
boys need is practice; not practice
alone. but team work. They've got to
start early In the spring and get in
shape, and when the league team is a
reality the best of them will have a
nice chance to make bali players of
themselves under men who know how
to play ball.
Last years team in this city had
lots of good players In IL. like young
Griffith and Frinke, and some more
that / can't remember. but l went to
see only one game. / could see jealousy
sticking out of every one but two or
three. OF course they are not what
you can call first-class ball players. but,
my friend. they've got the stuff in them
that makes Rusies and Van HaItrens
A little control over their temper and
a little coaching by man who knows
what he's coaching for will bring them
out all right.
Most of the boys Of Anaconda work
for a living. but that should not pre-
vent them from practicing. Those who
work nights can get together in the
afternoons, and those who work days
can play in the evening. There are
enough on each shift TO make as good