The Evening standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1910-1913, 1910-11-04
NEW LEAGUE TO
BE ORGANIZED
Salt Lake City Will Be Headquarters
Of Big Baseball Aseo-
ciation

| lucas, for several years president OF
| the Northwestern league. and l. F.
| Thiel OF Chicago. Thursday night an
nounced that arrangements were
I practically completed for the organiza-
lion OF the Union association a base
ball league composed of Salt Lake,
Ogden, Butte, Helena, Great Falls and
Mlssoula. II was also announced that
Mr.. Thiel had secured tenryear
lease on the property facing south on
Eighth South street, between Main
and State streets. and that new
baseball park would be built on these
grounds.
The new league. both gentlemen in
sist will be a god and will not be
Fourth of July league. Mr.. Thie!,
who will own the Salt Lake franchise,
says he does not propose To noat
stock or TO tako up collection 10
guarantee the continuance OF the
league. He said his permanent 10
vestmcnt in n new baseball park
would be the guarantee for his sin
cerity in the matter,
Mr. Lucas and Mr.. Thiel have been
in the city several days incog, trying
to arrange for a suitable location for
a baseball park Negotiations were
begun for Walkers field, but a long
term lease such as the promoters
wished was denied, and finally ar
rangemcnts were made Of the lease of
the Eighth South site,
Plans Are Announced.
Although the new league has not
vet been formally organized, 1t is un-
derstood that Mr.. Lucas will be Its
president and that the league head
quarters will be in Salt Lake City.
The plan is to have six games every
week, with weekly rest day every
Monday. Ladies' days and children's
days are a part of the plan OF the
new league.
Mr. Thiel announces that work on
the now Salt Lake baseball park will
he begun within two weeks. His
plans include grand stand that will
seat 5000 people, a ladies' parlor,
club house for tho players, a grass
diamond and field, with parking both
inside and outside of the enclosure.
He said that he would remain per
manently in Salt Lake from now on.
Mr. Lucas emphaically denies that
the new league will be an outlaw af-
fair He says that on October 81 he
secured protection for the territory
covered by the proposed league. On
Sunday he leaves Salt Lake TO attend
the meeting of the National Associa-
ton OF Professional Baseball clubs, TO
be held in Chicago on November 15.
AS soon as he returns the first annual
meeting of the Union association will
be held in Salt Lake.
At present, Mr. Lucas said, the or
ganization OF baseball clubs in all of
the cities proposed for membership
except in Ogden has been begun.
Within the next few days the organ
ization of club in ogden will be
started, and 1t is believed that the
club will be organized there.
Salt Lake and Butte.
The promoters of the league were
chiefly concerned about the organiza.
tion OF clubs in Butte and Salt Lake,
believing that with these two cities
the future OF the league rests. In
Butte, John j. McCloskey, the former
well known big league star is to
have charge of the team He has the
Butte franchise and has secured a
downtown park. Mr.. Thiel, as has
been stated, has already secured the
Salt Lake franchise and will finance
the club He denies that he has ar
ranged with Cliff Blanker5hip to man
age the Salt Lake team, He says he
has not vet secured a manager for
the Salt Lake club, but is in corre-
spondence with several big league
players and that he will Ire sure To
have a competent manager for the
local team
Helena and Great Falls have both
good down town parks, and the organ
izatlon Of these two clubs is well un-
der way Missoula is stu flirting
with the Northwestern league. and
has raised $4,000 for a Northwestern
league franchise. However, there is
little likelihood OF Missoula breaking
into the Northwest league so the
club already organized Will be trans
ferred TO the Union association
History Oiscouraeine.
The history of Salt Lake as a mem
Der of an interstate league is some
what dlscourasing. In almost every
case the league has been n failure.
However, nothing succeeds like per-
severance. and If things are as bright
for baseball in Utah and Montana as
the statements Of the promoters ap-
pear TO indicate, the league should be
a success, The trouble has been I'm
The past that the railroad fares in the