The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1915-04-11
stHOME RUN BAKER
TELLS or CONTRACT
DEALINGS WITH MACK
Baker Says That Mack Urged
Him to Sign a Three
Year Contract.

place. wish him all the luck IN the
world. Mack has always treated me-
fairly. but owe him no debt. ] have
treated him as fairly as he has treat
ed me.
There isn't anything to be gained
by such talk i don't know whether
or not Mack has said all the things
he has been reported as saying. But
there have been mistakes made some
where. sss3 IA 5
TT was reported In the press that
Mack made the sta tement that he had
to come down to Trappe every year to
sign me, and that the last time &has
told me- 1t was too much trouble to go
to that effort every season. and he
would like to avoid It by signing me-
for three years. don't believe MACE l1
made this statement. The only time
he ever came to Trappe In his Life
was when he came to sign me for
three years And he came then be-
cause he was afraid the Federal
league might be after me and In
wanted to forestal1 their eRorts.
There Is no mystery about that
guess, to anyone. M
signed One Year Contract.
IT had always signed q contract Tor
one year at time. This seemed the
fairest way to me. Then, II I had zaE
better season than expected, would
be IN position to ask for more mon
ey, while IL did no, I would never be
adverse to accepting a cut. That
statement will not be believed. but IT,
is true. would not willingly take:
more money than I thought was
worth II was a dub player and
by good fortune or luck had been able
to sign up for five thousand dollarsfa
year I Wouldn't have the face to take
my salary lie I knew 1t was all out Of
reason and more than / was worth.
This time Mack, however, wanted
me to sign for three years. Heitold mss
his reasons. tried to argue with
him and told him that he nsedn' It be
afraid Of my leaving him in the 1urch.
and jumping to the Federal League.
had no Intention OF going to the
Federal League. and In any case 81
would always be willing to work for
him for less money than would work
anywhere else. That was what III told
him then and still say 1t. would
work for the Athletics cheaper thansI
would work for anybody else.
IT told him that didn't want to
sign for more than one year. That
couldn't foresee what the cond itions8
would be at that time. AS long asscon-.
EDITIONS we're the same as when
i signedsi might be possibl to arrange
things. But these conditions might
4 change. And If they did, as was not
unlikely, they would change the ma
J ture OF the contract.
Baker Signs Contract.
e Mack pressed me. however. to-
sign. am easy-going, i guess. At
any rate. didn't refuse him.
Isigned the contract. But I#to1d him
when I did 30 that II would quit this
game at the end of the year. had
that right. II I was dissatisfied 81
had no right to go back an my CON
tract and demand a new agreementsif
the conditions we're unsat1sfactorys.
But i did have the light to quit &c 81
wanted to, especially as I reserved
that right at the time and told Mack
itiWaB my in tention to do so.
Later In the summer there vase
good deal Of trou BILE over the ten-days
CLAUSE. The Federal League was;
making capital out Of this clause ana
the owners were signing theEp1ayerss
all over againEto other
the clause omitted. Mack was doing
! the same thing. He had trou b1eSWitlt
collins and. McInnes and some OF the
rest IN getting them to agree to thas
change And he had to pay them
more money for their consent TO the
new arrangement. knew the trou-
lble he was having with some Or his
payers, and I felt rather sorry for
him. It Is an exasperating thing TOT
be 5a$manaEer. The player hasson1y
one man to deal with. but the man
aser. has twent y-tiyes or more. And ste
- E13tf II. fIV