New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1915-04-30
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ny GRAVY"
AMERICAN LEAGUE INVADED
NEW YORK IL YEARS
AGO
By "GRAVY."

to,.ny since the American league
puIlrd off it's first game in New York.
lnc metropolitan invasion of Ban
johnson marked the beginning of
the end of the bitter baseball war
which had been waged between the
National league and the interloper on
the major league preserves. The
baltimore club, which had been man.
aged by John MoGraw, was dropped
at the close of the 1902 season, to
make way for New York, just as Mil
wdukce. Minneapolis, Buffalo, Kan
%aH City and Indianapolis had previ-
ously been shunted out OF the new
league in order that the franchises
could be awarded to larger cities.
The entrance of New York in 1903
was the last of these changes, and
the Johnson organization has since
stood pat.
Joseph w. Gordon was the head of
The New York club when it played It's
first contest on the home grounds,
April so, 1903, and Clark Griffith was
the manager. The Highlanders, as
the New Workers were first called
because of the location of their home
plant on Washington Heights, were a
fairly classy bunch, but not quite
gccd enough to realize the fond hopes
of the metropolitan fans. They met
and defeated Washington in the first
pas ime on the home grounds, win
ming by score of to 2, with Jack
Chesbro pitching. Any club was good
days, however.
The Highlanders finished their first
year at the bottom of the fourth ,di-
vision, having been beat out by Jimmy
| Collins Bostonians, Connie Mack's
| Athletics and Armour's Cleveland
| club. Not a single member of the
| Highlanders aggregation Of 1908 is
now left in organized baseball of
major league calibre.
The Highlanders were long handi-
| capped financially, by the inaccessi-
bility of. their plant, which was To-
Gated at 165th street and Broadway.
| The subway station at that point was
something less than a mile under
| ground, and elevators were required
to carry the fans up and down. There
were only two lifts on the job. and
| sometimes from fifteen to thirty min
utes elapsed before the bugs could
be transported to the surface. This
obstacle to the success of the club
ment of the old park, and the club
played at the Polo Grounds. for which
the Yankee management paid the
| Giant owners the neat sum of $55,-
600 year. The old plant has been
dismantled and cut up into building
lots.
The Highlanders finished second to
Boston in their second year, but
| summed fn VT r11a in
| finished second to the White Sox in
1906, but in the next three years they
! were fifth, eighth and fifth, respec-
lively. In 1908, they returned to
second place, trailing the Athletics,
but were sixth in 1911, eighth in
| 1912, seventh in 1918, and sixth last
year.
Frank j. Farrell became the presi-
| dent of the club in 1907 and held that
post until this year, when the club
was sold to Col. Rupert, a wealthy
brewer, and Capt. Huston, a contrac-
tor who made his pile in Havana
Since 1903 the New York Ameri-
can league club has had eight man
ayers. Clark Griffith held the Job
until 1908, when he was succeeded by
Norman Elberfield. George Stallings,
the miracle man. of the Boston
Braves, held the reins in 1909 and
during a part of 1910. when Hal
Chase took his place. Harry Wolver-
ton assumed the management in 1912
and in 1913 Frank Chance; the former
Peerless Leader of the Cubs, took
a chance at the game. He threw
up the thankless job last year and
Roger Peckinpaugh finished out the
season. Now Bill Donovan is I'D
against it. If he can return the Yanks
winner Col Rupert will find his
investment better than a brewery, for
in spite of all discouragements the
New York fanatics have been a loyal
| bunch.