The evening times., 1897-08-30
|DRAFTING system EVILS
Minor League Teams Are Broken
Up by the Process.
DISADVANTAGES ARE MANY
Abuses and Inequalities Under the
Present Methods Which Should
Be Reformed-A Proposition From
Columbus, Ohio, Which Is Well
Thought OF. -

While the owners OF the National League
teams are having their own troubles, they
are at the same time causing the pro-
prietors OF minor league clubs lots OF Woe.
The system of drafting the best players Of
the minor organizations plays hob with
the clubs which compose them, since the
people who support the teams by their
admissions at the gate become provoked
and stay away when favorite players are
allowed to 60. The following wall from
Columbus, Ohio, published In the Sporting
News, explains the situation:
As the season grows on apace, and the
players OF the Western League develop
their strength, and the people grow TO love
the team and its members, to take pride
in it's present achievements and nope for
greater things In the future, the ghost of
the draft rises to spread CONSERVATION and
this Year es the greater res danger ' we are In
and the more certainly viii we be called
upon to pay tribute to the .srasping greed
or the League octopus, which mas spread
such havoc and financial ruin nd distres 8
among some OF our clubs in years gone by.
Is there not some way by which this
one-sided and discriminating law can be
set aside? Is there not some way To con-
vince the major league that the policy
OF might making right is not profitable
one? The robbing OF clubs representing
|
clubs do, of their best players and giving
them probably less than they have paid
for their men, sayors very much tf the
stand and-deliyer spirit.
The disadvantages TO the minor league
clubs are many. Everybody Is familiar
with such instances as Minnea polls, ~'hlch
from great baseball town has fallen SO
low in Its atronage that Its n.1n1yers have
been compelled TO tran sfer games to other
cities. Its management has lost thousands
of dollars; but not only that, every other
club has lost a coDside IA BILE sum on account
of the weakness of that club this year. So
all.
There were several other clubs in the
Western League that suffered to a greater
or less extent by the draft In the loss OF
valua bic pla ayers, whose places the managers
have found it hard to fill and have failed to
satisfactorily to this day.
There is one item OF expense that the
urait SYSTEM entails, and .hati the high
price paid to players to fill up the ranks.
The western League is very fast
league, and requires players Or caliher
second only to that of the National Ma
tionai League managers have frequently
expressed their astoniShmeat at the
strength OF the western lie agne 9lubs The
consequence Is that after the National
League mas gotten tnrongh vith the DIR aft,
there are but few men available in the
minor leagues SUBJECT 20 ,ir AFT by the West
ern. and, us a consequence, our clubs are not
only compelled to buy men frpin the National
League, but pay National League salaries
to them. This makes our salary lists un-
necessarily burdensonie. 1t costs ever Y club
In the western League today too much for
salaries. They cannot stand t, for their
business won't supportit.
The National Agreement is founded on
the right principles. and is necessary for
the perpetuity OF the game and the protec-
abuses and Inequalities under its operation
unat clearly should be reformed.
Tom Lotus idea of a man remaining
in league two years before he can be
L n nod AnP a
very advantageous not only to the draft
ing club, but TO the club from which he
Was VAS drafted, % ard also to the league to
additional restriction that should be put
In, and that is limiting each league TO
the number. of men it should have under
reserve and contract. This would make
every club drafting players much more
careful and prevent the wholesale draft
ing resorted to by some of the National
League Clubs. Why, some of them have
every spring from twenty-five to forty
players.
Everybody know they cannot use them.
1t works a great injustice to other clubs,
aud also to the players, manyof Whom never
get an oppOTtunit to show what they can
do. This engaging of so many players bulls
the market and compels managers in minor
leagues to pay excessive salaries to get
men.
1T mas even been charged that the Lea geu
clubs do quite brokerage business in sell
Ing out players TO minor league clubs when
the season opens, and they find themselves
weak. Whether this is true or not In in
tention, IL is true in operation. Nearly
every club in the Western League had TO
purchase National League players last
spring. This is certainly not as 1t should
De.
1t is not advantageous to anybody, the
National, minor leagues or the players
themselves. III club in the National were
confined to twenty layers, it would be very
careful whom it took. If it wanted extra
men,it would make room for them by re-
leasing Others. Twenty men are enough.
A good manager can get a good a team out
unwieldy. He don't get chance TO see
what they can do. A large ma iority of the
players cannot do good work unless worked
regularly. We see dozens of instances every
year where men are let go from one club
and on getting regular work in another
make very superior men.
Cannot something be done in this matter
before the draft, with all its attendant in
justice, is upon us?