The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-19

Athletic association and there are many
members of that organization today who
say that Spalding saved 1t from dissolu-
ton during the panic of 1898. His stand
in behalf of the club has never heretofore
been made public and in view or his re-
cent attitude toward purer baseball it
forms a timely instance of his disregard
for money when he starts out to accom-
plish something.
Everything that he has touched has
turned, so to speak, into gold. He has
| never been known to fail in any of his
undertakings. Without APPARENTLY count
ing the cost he has plunged into ventures
that seemed almost beyond reason, and
has come out OF them crowned with sue
| cess. A glance at his life shows him to
| be an American athlete with a business
| career that has no parallel. His history
also is directly allied with that of base
ball, so that the details of his younger
! days include the beginning of profession
alism on the diamond.
SpaIding's Baseball Record.
Albert G. Spalding was born at Byron,
| Ogle county, Illinois, on Sept. 2. 1850. He
| attended school at Byron, and later in
! Rockford, where his parents made their
! home in 1853. While a mere lad he bee
| came devoted to baseball. The game was
then in process of development and 50
| largely have the methods he then work
| ed out become the rules Of the game
| that it may be fairly said he is the
father of baseball" Spalding's first eX-
| with the famous Forest City club, of
| Rockford. When he was only sixteen
! years old he began pitching for that or
ganizaton, and year later, in 1867. when
| the Forest CityS defeated the famous
| Nationals, of Washington, by the score
of 20 to %, young Spaldings name be-
| came a byWord.
The old Boston club offered him $500
a year to pitch for it. and the youth had
all but accepted the offer when his
mother interfered. She wanted to have
him enter some profession that involved
| less physical eXertion, but despite her
| protests he firmly announced his inten-
| ton of sticking to baseball. The family
| dispute was finally settled by young
| Spalding's agreeing to reject the Boston
! offer, with the understanding that he
would be permitted to play with the
Forest Citys. Professional baseball was
| officially established in America in 1853.
| when the National association recognized
it by dividing. players into two classes.
The first regular professional team was
was organized and captained by Harry
| Wright, one of Spalding's famous contem-
| poraries. The other foremost mines of
that period were the Forest Citys, the
Haymakers. of Troy; the Atlanucs and
| Eckfords, of Brooklyn; the Athletics Of
| Philadelphia. and the Nationals.
The wonderful success of the Red
Stockings, who completed the entire sea-
| son without being defeated, led to the es-
| Enlistment of other teams throughout
the country, and in 1870 there was at least
a score of purely professional teams,
| among them being the first nine organ
| lied in Chicago. This aggregation was
a laughing stock rather than credit to
| the city. and it was during the existence
| of the first team that the term Chicago
for shutting out a team, was used. The
! MutualS went to Chicago and defeated
| the local players by the score of 9 to O.,
| and this gave rise to the expression ''they
! Chicagoed the Chicagees.,. 1t spread ev-
erywhere,. and a shut-out was called a
Chicago"
Start of National League.
In 1871 mick Young, Spaldings pred
! ecessor as president of the National
| league, appeared as a prominent factor in
the baseball world. Young was then sec
| rotary Of the Olympic Club of Washing
/ ton. He suggested that the professionals
form a league of their own and the plan
| was doomed by Harry Wright. The result
Il was the organization of the National as
ISOLATION of professional ball players.
Here is where the pennant first entered
into baseball The association author
lied a companionship title and provided
for a pennant, or as it was then termed,
a championship Streamer."
About the time that Young was fOrmu-
lating heavy ideas concerning baseball,
Spalding, having overcome the objections
of his mother, accepted flatterng offer
from the Boston team, and became it's
pitcher and captain. After Spalding left
! the Forest CityS they gradually went to
| pieces w hon ne joined the BOSrOnS tney
became pennant winners. Up to this pc
riOd pitchers had not been permitted to
use an underhand throw in delivering the
ball, but through Spalding's efforts the
fossiliZed rule was abandoned.
| In 1874 the BOStons and the Athletics
visited England where they introduced
baseball to the astonished Britishers, and
then defeated them at cricket, Spalding
was then regarded as one of the most
successful of the strategic class of pitch
ers. In Judgment, command of the ball,
pluck: endurance and nerve he had no
superior. AS batter he equaled the
best of what were then termed "scien-
! tif1C' hitters-men who used their heads
more than their muscles in. handling the
ash. His strong point in delivery was the
success with which he disguised a change
of pace from swift to medium, which was
then considered great essential in sue
cessful pitching.
William A Hubert engaged Spalding
for the Chicago team in the fall of 1915
and these two men began formulating
| plans for the establishment of the pres
ent National league. Spalding, Hubert
Charles A. Fowle, of st. Louis; John A
Joyce, of Cincinnati; William E. Chase
} of Louisville, met in December, and de.
cided to break away from the National
association. The Eastern clubs were
communicated with, and on Feb. 2, 1876
the National league was regularly or
ganized, with Ex-Gov. Morgan G. BulI1e-
ley, of Connecticut, as president, and
N. e. Young as secretary.
ChicagOs the First Champions.
One of the noteworthy changes follow
ing the organization of the new league
was the transfer of Boston's "big four
-Spalding. White. Barnes and McVey--
to the Chicago club Spalding made q
great squirt with his new team, and wo
the initial championship of the leagu,
In the following year, however, it wa
at the tail end of the league; in 1878
, fourth; in 1879, third, and in 1850 ii
again appeared at the top From then
: until 1883 it held the pennant and then
in 1885 the really glorious days of pase-
ball in Chic8 go daWned
After his team had made q abo7,,,, =
that was not entirely satisfactory in
1879 Spalding began doing some reorgan
IzIng. Seven men We're released, and
most of the Indianapolis team of 1878 was
absorbed. 1t was then that the present