Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-12-28
Its Loss Would Sore|y
Disappoint the Fans,
Neither Big League Inclined
To Alter lis Schedule.
The Schedule Committees Of Both
Leagues Will Meet in January.

This doesn't look very much like
baseball weather. yet there is a whole
lot Of it in the air despite the fact that
the diamonds are buried beneath a
more than ordinarily liberal fall Of
snow.
Holiday week rather put damper
on active sports. as 1T always does.
For that reason there was little doing
in the world of baseball. The mag
uates who had fought and settled their
differences had opportunity to rest and
recover from their labors.
However. you Just can't keep Il base
bail man from talking baseball Some
do so in their sleep, 50 it is small
wonder that this schedule proposition,
which is far from settled. should be
among the chief topics for discussion.
There are two ways in which the
difficulty may be adjusted The Ameri-
can League, which decided upon q
schedule OF 1874 games, shut up shop
and disappeared from New York after
the meeting. leaving Il trail of doubt as
to the action of their older rival, may
think better of it's decision and add on
the necessary games to make it Il 16S-
game season. in this way making it
possible for you fans to sec u world $
championship series.
Then again, the National League
may listen to the storm of protests
that are heard upon this long schedule,
and decide to cut the list to the safe
and sane limit of 1874 games, schedule
the followers of baseball have become
familiar with.
Either way, the bugs will be salts
| fled, for to them the worlds series
means more than anything else in base
ball. They have taken Il lively inter-
est in the fate Of their home team. Let
that team drop out of the race and the
bugs" immediately take sides on some
ether team and pull as strongly as any
| locality in the home Of the possible
| champion.
There are also the fans who line up
| for and against the respective winners
| Of the races in both leagues. Tap these
| fans anywhere and you get q steady
| stream of dope to back up their con-
| tentiOn.
With all this~in mind the magnates
| of both leagues will hardly take any
chance which will tend toward dimin-
ishing the interest in the greatest of
all sports. baseball. Men with big sums
invested in baseball parks, with high
salaried men on their teams, will GER
tainly be in favor of this final test of
strength between the leagues. To be
sure but two clubs get in on the
money, yet all the clubs in a measure
feel the benefit. Take Pittsburg for in
stance. The Pirates always draw big
crowds, even though they are playing
a team hopelessly out of the race. Next
season the interest, while great, due
to the added title worlds Cham
pions." will not have that frantic
baseball flavor unless there is chance
that the present world heaters may
have an opportunity to battle, if they
win, with the team that captures the
flag in the American Leagues race.
Men who own ball clubs surely see
the danger in cutting off this grand Sc
ries, and it looks as if this talk of
neither side being willing to back
down savors whole lot of a bluff
The ideal schedule is the one of 15t
games. This number is surely great
enough to test the strength of the
teams in either league and it permits
a worlds series to be held at a time
when weather conditions, while not
ideal, are surely possible. Take sched-
ule of 16S games. the last regular
scheduled game being played on Oct.
is, and then figure the usual delay and
tack on the worlds series. This would
toward snow time.
To keep interest alive, to give the
fans what they want, the leagues
should certainly consider the 154-game
schedule as fixture.
If the National League refuses to
come down to 1874 games, and the
American League considers 1853 too
many, how can these gentlemen hope
to play a worlds championship series?
Some have been quoted as saying that
such a series would certainly be held.
Others have added that the 154- and
16S-game schedule would stand and still
permit of worlds series.
Next month the schedule committees
of both leagues are to meet, their eff
fort being to so arrange the dates as
to cause as little conflict as possible.
With both agreed upon like num-
Der of games. the task would not be
so great. With the schedules as at
present, this job will cause considerable
trouble.
By scheduling Ia double-headers, the
National League could play 1853 games
ana close its season at the same time
the American League schedule is COM
pleted. This bargain day harvest would
tend toward cheapening the game, but
it offers an avenue of escape for those
who fear "dictation."