The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-07
AMATEUR BASEBALL
 FOR BIRMINGHAM IS
 MEETING APPROVAL
The Recreation Department Launches Movement to Organize Several Anna
 teur Leagues

A banner year for amateur baseball in Birmingham is the goal toward which z. 1 Nespor director of Birminghams Recre- ation league, is working at present. Fol lowing his policy of keeping something for the youth of the city all the time, MT Nespor has launched the amateur base ball movement, and from present indica- tions this movement bids fair to over shadow all others heretofore championed by the recreation department
 With the departure of the basketball season, MT. Nespor turned his attention | to other sporting fields that might offer | opportunity for fun and physical develop ment of the city's young manhood Nat urally the direcs5r turn-t to the nations national pastime. Those who enjoyed the instruction of Mir Nespor during the basketball season immediately focked to | his standard, and many who had not heretofore participated in the city's sport
 ing organization augmented the throng | The amateur baseball movement is hum-
 ming merrily along, and hundreds are expected to take part in the games which are to be arranged during the summer months.
 Conduct Own Sports
 l What we want to do,'' declared Mr. 1 Nespos in discussing the situation last night. lis to train the young men and
 women of Birmingham to conduct their 1 own sports. We realize that this can
 come only in time, but we are going to
 have to plant the germ. However, oui success with sports this winter has ex- l cee0pl think that l speak assuredly when I say | that the outlook for the summer months | is even more assuring.
 l Tt is the plan of the Recreation league | to establish several amateur baseball 1 leagues Throughout the city and to stage Tn addition to the regular anna teur league games interleague contests. What we want to do is to give the young men who have to devote most of their time to work an opportunity for physical recre- ation Amateur baseball seems the solu- ton of the problems during the summer months at least.
 "As regards amateur baseball, the rec reation department has its own definition | Of the word amateur.' We are out for the sport, and the fun of the thing, and | the good resultant therefrom The 1 leagues are not designed as financial en- | terprises. If later on it is decided to charge a small admission for the inter- league games 'e.lis sum will go toward bettering the general athletic associa- | tion of the city. Therefore, we can be | rather lenient with our definition of an 1 amateur We do not care if some of 1 the fellows have played professional ball. l We real lize that there are. many fellows ] in Birmingham who have played profess sional ball, and who are now otherwise employed, and we do not intend to say | that they shall not enjoy the fruit of the | n tfn rac bot We merely emphasize the fact that the | sport is for sports sake, and not for De- cuniary benefit. No player will be paved | for their services. Then let every healthy young man who desires to participate in the enterprise come out and we are ready l to receive him.
 Make-Up of League
 | "As regards the makeup of the leagues this will not be decided definitely until following of representatives of the diff ferent organizations interested This meeting will be held at my office in the city hall Wednesday, and details of the plan will be worked out. Our idea in the rough is to have the young men form leagues according to localities. We would | prefer not to have different associations compose the makeup of the league as we think that this sometimes forces the fel- l lows to make big sacrifices to be able to
 
 get one or two teams at Ensley, Wylam, Pratt City, Five Points, East Lake, Nor wood Lakeview, and other places, too numerous to mention. And then we hope to organize what you might call a com- mercial league. This is to be composed of the working men of the city who may find time to play during the late after noon. Such games would be confined 1 to five innings and would give the fel- | lows just long enough to get good aft e1noons exercise.
 After the meeting Wednesday we ex- pect to have everything in shape for the actual formation of the leagues, and we are going to give Birmingham it's live Hest amateur baseball season that it has ever seen Already hundreds Of young fellows have declared their intention of supporting the movement. sre want all these young men to be with us Wednes- day night. Whether player, rooter boos- ter promoter or knocker, we are asking | all to attend. We want to hear their views on the subject, and if they object 1 to it why, we want to hear those objec- tions. The recreation department is de- tcrmined to make Birmingham the great est sport city in the south, and if the young men and women of the city CO., operate with us in the future as they have in the past we are sure that our ' goal will be reached"