The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-04-18
COST ONE MILLION DOLLARS
TO IGNORE THE EX-PRESIDENT'S
ADVICE REGARDING BLACK.
LISTED PLAYERS,
THE NEW COACHING RUI
Already a Hint That 1t Is to Be-
come u Dead
Letter.

I
lions which President Young, Of the
National league, has sent out to his
umpires, preparatory to the opening Of
the championship season, have a ten
dency to temporize the new coaching
rules. He tells his umpires in the same
| sentence to strictly enforce the rules,
| but not to be too aggressive about it.
If the rules are to be strictly enforced,
aggressiveness on the part Of the UNI
pire is absolutely necessary. There
| fore 1 am inclined to believe that the
umpires will lean strongly to the latter
part of the Instructions and not make
radical departure from their policy of
last season, which was tinctured with
great deal Of leniency.
| Probably Mr.. Young has hearkened
| to the voices Of the captains and of the
rooters which have gone up in grand
chorus since the Baltimore meeting.
protesting against the literal enforce
| forcement of the revised coaching rule.
The almost universal cry is, do not
make Quaker meetings out of base ball
games or you'll kill off interest" If a
plan could be devised whereby happy
medium would be reached between
just enough chatter to keep up the
excitement it would be a happy day
for the national league.
AS 1T, there is bound to be trouble
on the umpire's hands during the first
few weeks Of the season: He will be
placed betwiXt Scylla and Charybdis,
and only the patient, more experienced
and conservative members Of the staff
will pass through safely.
The ante-season months of this year
Will go on record as noted for the large
number Of ridiculous base ball stories
which have been spread broadcast
through the land. Two parties are
blamable for this state of affairs-viz,
the advertisement seeking magnate and
the grab-all space writer's who stand
ready to make a story out of any
thing which may be given to them.
The most silly of all these fakes was
the report that the Brooklyn club had
offered the Cleveland club 500 900 cash
for its players and franchise The
story on it's face was absurd. In the
first place, the money would represent
nothing but the Cleveland team. The
Cleveland franchise without a first
class team would not fetch a dollar
under the hammer, because it's owners
nave time and again declared that even
with q second-place team the CITY
would not support the club.
In the next place, the Brooklyn's
thfrd-base man, center fielder and
! right fielder are far superior to the men
| who cover those three positions for
| Tebeau's nine. That leaves the 500 600
/ to represent the release of Tebeau,
Childs, Mexican, Burkett, thinner.
Young. Cuppy, O'Connor, Wilson and
Wallace-ten players, two of whom are
at least second class. The days of S1O,-
COO payments for a players release
/ have passed forever Especially has
the time gone by when any one club
will pay that price for each Of ten
| players, including men like Wilson and
! Wallace. In the third place, the Brook
! lyn club has repeatedly announced
/ that, on account of the negative action
| of the minority stockholders, it was
| not in position to expend a dollar in
/ strengthening its team. In spite of
! these three patent arguments against
! the truth of that story it was given
| Widespread credence, and thereby the
parties who started it off attained some
! secret end.
A similar story was set floating in
! Which eleven league clubs were going
| to pay Rusies last years salary and
| thus compromise his case against the
| New York club, this, too, in the face
of the leagues action at Baltimore,
| where the body pledged itself by vote
| of eleven to one to aid the New York
| club in resisting Rusie's suit for re-
| lease
Should the court order the rebellious
| pitchers release from reservation there
J is not club Of the twelve which, if it
| consulted no outside interest. would
! RI Gil Vot ho+
coupled with Rusies subsequent en-
| sagement by another club, would so
seriously effect the future interests of
the other clubs that it is very doubtful
| If his triumph in court would restore
the player to the National league
The magnates have learned the lesson of
| what selffshness costs and learned 1t well.
1t has lately been published that former Pres
| ident A. G. Mills resigned from the league
| In 1885 on account OF a pressure of business.
| That is mistake. He resigned for principle,
and the story has never been told. 1 will
here add it to base ball history.
! In 1884 the Union association was organ
| lied for the avowed purpose of breaking III
| the National league and the reserve rule.
One of its acts was to use large cash bonuses
and exorbitant salaries to tempt League play
ers to break contracts. The only players to
| succumb to the temptation were Mccormick
Briody and Glasscock, of the National league
club at Cleveland. They jumped in mid
season, and as consequence the Cleveland
| club was bankrupted.
The Union association failed at the end
of its first season. and the treacherous Cleve-
land trio were backlisted. At the spring
| meeting in 1885 several League teams We're
| found to be weak, and a proposition was
made to reinstate the blacklisted trio and dis
| tribute them where they would do the most
good. A. G. Mills was the leagues president
| and he had originated the reserve rule as
well as the national agreement Against the
| proposition to reinstate he earnestly protest.
ed, and warned the magnates that such a
| mistake would some day cost them dear Il
they made it. Over his protest and against
his warning the players were reinstated. All
the close OF the session Mr.. Mills resigned
and declared before all the cubs that so ione
| as one OF those three players was recognized
IN professional base ball he would never en-
| ter the leagues council chambers Thas was
twelve years ago. Glasscock is stiff PLAYING
and although Mr.. Mills is one of the leagues
hve honorary members, he has faithfully kept
his pledge.
How well his warning was fulfilled the
| National league magnates can attest Had
those three men not been forgiven there
would have been no Players league in 1890
That Players league cost more than 81 600 OOc
and almost killed the great Protested a