The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-14


Lack of Local Enthusiasts Fatal
to the National Game.
That base ball is losing its grip upon the
public is. made. manifest by the attendance
atsthe games played the present season.
There is no need of going back to last
year to cite the falling off In patronage.
This season will suffice. One hundred and
fifty people saw the old Cleveland team,
now located in st. Louis, defeat the pres
ent mis.lt aggregation that Ttiisrepresents
the Ohio city, in a great game of ball.
The following day the crowd was swelled
to two hundred. OF that at least fifty
Were dead heads Thirty dollars would
cover the receipts at the Cleveland ball
grounds Friday for a game that lasted
ten innings, and was as exciting q cor
test as the most inveterate fan could
have desired. That would not pay the
expenses of the home team, to say moth
ing of the visitors. At Baltimore the
average attendance is hundreds-not
thousands-and few hundreds at that.
Even in st. Louis. which city now has
great team, the attendance is light, be-
cause the town was killed by misman-
agement
STAR PLAYERS POPULAR.
Andrew Freedman, of New York, ruined
the game in the metropolis by imagining
that he and not Rusie was the drawing
card there. Freedman put Rusie to sit
upon the bench or remain in his Hoosier
home idle, rather than treat him fairly.
The attendance at the New York ball
games fell off SO rapidly that Mr., Freed
man began to lose interest in the game
himself, and 1t is now given out that he
will retire from base ball. Mr.. Freedman
was In the game for the money there was
In 1T. That is all he cared for it, Now he
has killed the game he wants to get out
Chris Won der Abe Is another example
of the results of mismanagement in base
ball. Won der Ahes first mistake was
made when he permitted Charley Comis-
key to go to Cincinnati. The newspapers
of St. Louis then predicted what would
happen to Chris. 1t has happened. But
Chris did not stop at Comiskey. He let
them go whenever and wherever they
would bring him the cash. lie sold Bro
die when that popular fielder was the
idol of the st. Louis fans. He disposed
of Joe Quinn, who is a st. Louis boy
when Joe could draw more money to the
ball park than any other member of the
team. He let others go. including the
dude Latham, who made life merry
at Sportsman's park.
FIFTEEN THOUSAND BUNCH.
In one job lot Won der Abe disposed of
$4,000 worth of players who had earned
for him a fortune. The stars of the bunch
were Caruthers, Foutz and Bushong St.
Louis cried Hold! Enough" but Chris
was not to be deferred. He next disposed
of the famous Goose HiH Battery-the
pride and joy of ali ST. Louis-Breiten-
ctn md ~ H1aot ~
straw. The camel bent double and Chris
was the back. He is as completely
broke" as any camefs back could be-
In those days St. Louis turned out crowds
of fifteen to twenty thousand on special
occasions and five to ten thousand on
regular days Chris wore diamonds. Now
he wears a sad look, and, try as they
may, Messrs. Robson and Becker will
find 1t difficult to revive the st. Louis
base ball corpse. All the old enthusiasm
is dead. 1t may be revived should the
Tebeau gang win the pennant. But that
they must do to bring the dead to life.
Base ball in st. Louis was killed by the
manager thinking the public went out to
the ball park to see him, whereas the fact
was that the real attraction was the team
of real ball players that the city was for
tunate enough to possess.
WAGNERS' WAY.
When you get a star player sell him.
was the motto of the Wagners, of Wash
ington, in the palzny days of base ball
in the capital city. The Wagners are
butchers. They buy and sell beef on the
sirloin, tenderlofn and porterhouse COM
putation. That is the plan they also apply
to ball players. A porterhouse player is
supposed to be worth more in comparison
than is a sirloin player. The beefsteak
idea is uppermost In the Wagnerian base
ball mind 1t was one of the Wagners
who advised the sale of the famous St
Louis players, and the disciplining of
Rusie by Mr.. Freedman. The average at