The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-04-30
TOUCHING SECOND
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: ming team, and it is of pennant win
before it begins to retrograde. Occa-
sionally after reaching its highest form
a tenn collapses entirely in one season
and the work must be begun all over
again. The New York Highlanders,
after coming within game of the
season to nothingness. The st. Louis
Browns. with strong pennant possibili.
ties, fell two games short Of the 1905
American league championship. and the
following year was the most wretched
team in either major league.
No team of young players ever has
won a major league pennant. although
Boston and Philadelphia In 1909 came
near upsetting baseball tradition In that
respect
Teams are built on various theories
Comiskey, who has led more pennant-
winning teams than any other man,
works on the theory that pitchers and
are kept in top condition throughout the
season and he will go to any lengths
TO get "air tight" pitchers Detroit
and Pittsburg both are teams built
with the idea of hitting power first
The Chicago Cubs are built on the
theory of team work. inside play and
running. The Boston American
team is an aggregation accumulated
with the idea that speed Of foot will
capture pennants. The solid founda
ton of n good and lasting team is rath-
er along the average in hitting, base
running, fielding and pitching and the
highest possible development of team
work. Harmony, united effort, brains
and condition will win over speed. indi-
vidual brilliancv and heavy hitting.
The first problem of the owner of
franchise is to get leader, for with
out leaders who can get the best work
out of every man, teams cannot win.
work. and having all these there re.
mains nothing to do but to pray for
luck and good umpiring.
Teams have been thrown together
that fitted perfectly. Pittsburg closed
the season of 1908 needing a second
baseman. a first baseman. either third
baseman or center fielder, and pitch.
ers. Jay Miller developed into sen
sational second baseman and two minor
leaguers, Abstein and Barbeau, played
like stars for more than half the year.
Barbeau was first to explode, but his
place Immediately was filed by Byrne,
and Pittsbnrg won a lucky pennant, IL
was the first team in baseball history
10 win after starting 10 'go back. y
The three veterans of the team, Clarke,
Leach and Wagner, each played the
greatest game of their careers. Phia-
delphia, in the National league, has not
won the pennant since 1871. Cincin.
natl never has won the championship.
Chicago. which monopolized baseball in
the early eighties, was twenty years
i getting together another pennant-win-
ming team. Perhaps the best way TO
show how hard II is to get together
championship team is 10 take some one
club and relate its struggles before final
triumph.
The colo of CIarLso, ,rJ E.1lo,- 10
Boston destroyed Arson S championship
club. The cause OF that sale never was
made public, but the real reason was a
woman, and the club was compelled to
sell the men. although the act brought
down the wrath of the city upon them.
The remnant of the team fell into rut.
When James a. Hart became president
he saw that the first step necessary WAS
TO get rid of all the old stars-even An
son-and begin making new team. He
could not get rid of Anson until 1898,
when he brought back Tom Burns, who
proved a failure in two years. Tom Lof-
tus was tried for two years-and failed
Frank Selee, adopting Hart s ideas be.
gan at the bottom 10 create an entirely
new club. 1t is extremely doubtful
whether Selee ever would have made
the team a pennant winner, on account
OF preludlces against certain players.
Selee s health failed, and Charles w
Murphy, who had Just purchased the
club, discovered a leader.
The real beginning of the Chicago
Cubs was in March, 1898. when big,
bow-legged, rather awkward young play
er came from the Pacific coast TO be
tried as catcher Quiet, good .natured.
in deadly earnest while playing. hon
est and sincere In everything, Frank
Leroy Chance reported at training quar-.
tiers at West Baden, Ind, carrying
bunch of gnarled and wrecked fingers
at the end of each hand. Anyone who
at that time had predicted that Chance
was to become the leader of the great
est club ever organized would have
earned a laugh. He had no experience
except the little gained in amateur
games in California. He played with
the Fresno high school team in 1898,
for two years with Washington uni
Nerslty at Jrvington, Cal. and he par
tlclpated in the great amateur tourua-
ment played between all the school
teams OF California, catching for Fresno>
which team finished close TO Oakland
and Stockton. Bill Lange, then with
the Chicago club, saw Chance and rec.
commended him for trial.
While awkward and unfinished, pitch.
ers who worked with him declare that
Chance from the first showed his genius
for leadership and great skill in hand.
ling pitchers and watching batters. His
fearless recklessness brought him many
injuries as catcher and twice he was
nearly killed.
There was not much sion of promise
OF championship team in Chicago then,
| tor Hart, IN spite of his theories, still
had his old stars: and it WAS not until
1900 that the club. with al lis scouts
ITS purchases and trades. made another
rich strike. This lucky find was John
King, who was born Knowing baseball
IN Kansas City He was manager pitch
er and first batter Of .he Sthmeltzers
from 1898 TO 1895, when lie went TO
Rockford, Ill.,, as catcher and lasted
one pay day, being released AS a fail
ure- Returning to Kansas City. he
led the Schmeltzers three more years
In 1898 he Joined Houston, Tex, un
der the name Of Klein, and quit be
| cause the ieam would not nay h i'm his