The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1910-04-04

One Of the latest and one Of the in
evitable innovations in baseball was the
rule giving the club owners control Of
the players work in the game the year
around.
The primary object of that rule, so it
was declared. was q prevent barn
storming trips at the end of the regu-
lar season under the names Of the clubs.
| FREQUENTLY an aggregation consisting of
two or three stars, tie minor members
of team. the substitutes and several
outsiders would 20 through the land
( for a month or so, calling themselves
the club which had won d championship.
or had otherwise come TO be d good
drawing card Managed by themselves,
under an extremely loose discipline. and
often neglecting obligations supposed to
have been incurred IN good faith, the
transformers tended 10 bring the game
! into disrepute and were becoming a
menace to the integrity Of the sport.
Magnates Do, Players Mustn't.
But. having squashed the independent
tours of the men, the magnates have
not thought il necessary 10 limit them
elves in the same matter. and thereby
hangs another tale. The roast admins
tered by the Memphis fans TO the So
| called Detroit club because it did not
| furnish as good an article Of baseball as
was expected. probably had considerable
| justification and deserves serious stten-
! zion.
The habit Of dividing a major squad
| into two separate teams and sending
them through the country under the
same name has in il the germ Of a very
neat little scandal. While some owners
publicly differentiate between the first"
and second" teams, they do not dwell
Oh the second" any more than is nee
essary. and are willing that the fans
should pay entrance money under the
| impression that they are TO see the
real thing.
Catch-Penny Policy.
As an evidence of the catch-penny
policy involved in the splitting of forces
10 form two teams. the star performers
are generally divided in sue a manner
that there will be enough wi n each 10
/ act as d nucleus for free Advertising
Such an aggregation may have enough
I individuals in it's ranks TO justify the
price of admission, but a hodge podEe
of young and old men. some Of whom
have not the slightest chance Of making
good in fast company, is not the Detroit
or Chicago or New York team. and does
not play the same as the simon-pure
Original.
| Naturally, the answer of the magnates
/ is that the fans are perfectly well aware
that they are not going 10 see a mid
| season contest, but an exhibition game,
| but il is fact that these exhibitions
are often touted along the same lines
and in the same language as a special
engagement in the championship series,
and the fans are more or less misled.
Commission Should Act.
The whole subject Of exhibitions is
becoming more important every year:
and must eventually demand the most
careful consideration from the national
commission. The charge that the man
layers do not. take them seriously is
not only true, but they do not intend
that II should he otherwise. The pro-
fessed object Is 10 get practice. and
the players are instructed to attempt
lfeats in the way Of place hitting. base
running, fielding tricks, etc, that they
would not try except In a great emer-
] genCy IN championship contest The
result is that the fans are usually
4 watching something they do not under
lstand,- because the batterS and helders