South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-12-17
LOCAL BASEBALL
FATE IN CENTRAL
DECIDED TONIGHT
Interested Parties to Meet al
Chamber of Commerce -
City Said to be Favored
by DiCkerSOn.

A meeting 20 be held at the
Chamber OF Commerce tonight at
which a. number of men interested
in South Bends securing a franchise
in the Central league. will have
much 70 do with whether this city
will have a baseball team IN organ
lied ball next season or whether
local fans will have TO be content
with serni-pro ball as they were
during the last half Of last summer.
According to reports from Grand
Rapids, home OF Pres't r. W. Dick
erson OF the Contra! league, South
Bend and Springfield, Ohio, are the
two cities that are looked upon with
favor for the two vacant berths in
the league. The matter will be def
nitely settled at a meeting of the
league officials to be held within a
short time.
DickersOn Stirs Random.
Pres't Dickerson stirred up a
merry little ripple OF commotion
recently when he gave out an in
terview to the effect that he was
in favor of "scrappy" baseball.
The interview was syndicated
about the country and appeared in
a number of papers, without the
qualifying statement that what Dick
meant didn't include "rowdy" base
ball So various persons in various
sections Of the country began won
dering what kind Of armor plate
clothing Dick intended TO furnish
his umpires. and Dick received a
number OF letters from persons who
had made application for umpire S
jobs.
one writer declared Dick could
call of his application on the
grounds that he was slight Of build
and while he had a great deal OF
nerve he didn't intend to become a
punching bag for an umpire's salary.
And then, too, Dicks friends began
kidding him and asking him Il he
didn't want 70 hire lot Of expert
enced strikebreakers 10 handle the
indicators.
PugiIist Applies.
Somebody put a prize fighter
down in New Orleans up to write
Dick a letter offering to take an
umpire's job. and. on the whole,
Dick was up in the air" for a
minute.
But Dick stands by his assertion
that ne stands for ''scrappy" base
ball. This sort of baseball, he de-
fines. however, as the kind OF base
ball where a man is in the game
for his team every minute. and he
Pives the assurance that a player
isn't going to be fined when he does
not deserve il. Also he asserts that
an umpire is not engaged for the
purpose of taking a lot of uncalled
for talk from a player, and, on the
whole. the umpire is going TO get
Just as much protection as the play
er. and vice versa
This is the kind OF determination
that made Dick popular when ne
was president of the Michigan State
league. There were few fines in
that league and very little "rowdy
baseball in that league. and the
public got a mighty fine article OF
baseball. There was very little UNI
pire- batting, either. Dick always
-
the players and the umpires and
faded King Solomon in some Of the
decisions he made.
Wants Public Satisfied.
"Sure I'm in favor OF 'scrappy
baseball" said Pres't Dickerson
but that doesn't mean that an UNI
plre must stand for a lot of abuse
from a ball player without having a
comeback. I want 'scr2ppy' base
ball. with every man on the field or
his toes until the last man is out
The public. which pays it's money tc
see the game. is entitled 10 full
value. and 1 believe the public is
going to. get it In the Central league
next year.
From what I hear from the va
rious towns in the circuit. the man
ayers are lining up some mighty
GOOD material for 1915 and f7nder-