El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-01-21
Deal For Braves Pleases Boston
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Fans Like Home Men For Owners
Braves
Deal For
By SAM CRANE.

TrADDOCK. Ca. Jan. 21.-Jim Gaff-
ney's sale Of the Boston Braves
L L TO the Boston syndicate headed
by Percy Haughton viii suit Boston
fans to a ct" The lovers Of baseball
in the Hub never took kindly to alien
ownership of either the Braves or the
Red SOx. although the winning league
and worlds pennants somewhat salTed
over the dicOntenL
Now that Joseph Lannin and Percy
HaughtOn both Bostonians, will head
their respective clubs. the national
game in the metropolis Of New Eng
land ought to have a big boom, as
doubtless it viii Boston has always
been one of the best baseball cities
in the country, and the chief reason
for il is because the fans there are
the stanchest Of rOoters for the home
clubs through thick and thin. ups and
downs, win or lose
Arran gementss too, are being made
for spring series between the Red
Sox and Braves this year, and II they
are completed. as now seems likely, IL
VIII be the first time SUCH series
viii have been played. The rivalry
occasiOned by the games will be Of i'm
mense benefit locally to baseball. and
in the majority OF games they would
lose no prestige. as has been proved
by the experience gained in other cities
where spring series are annual events.
Would own Yankees.
Mr. Gaffney did not find things ex-
actly cOngenial in Boston and he will
no doubt welcome the change that
viii allow him 10 have a permanent
residence in New York City. but ] do
not look for him to sever connection
with baseball for good and all j
have an idea that Jim has become
fascinated with baseball as a magnate
and viii make play for one Of the
New York clubs. Even when he was
owner OF the Braves and after the
latter had won the worlds champion
ship. I heard him say The Yankees
are the club I want to own" and that
was just a year ago
I do not pretend to know that Col
Rupert and Capt Huston would be in
a receptive mood il they were ap-
reached to dispose OF their baseball
holdings. but il they should so happen
to be, why not Jim Gaffney as the new
owner OF the Yankees
There have been so many senSa-
tional shifts Of late in the ownership
of clubs that the one have mentioned
would not be so very strange.
! feel sure too. that II the present
owners Of the Yankees are thrown
down in their efforts 10 secure GER
tain players they want through any
double dealing on the part OF any OF
their associates in the American
league, there viii be blood on the
moon" in the Yankees headquarters
and that something vii drop with a
startling thud-
Realize situation.
But I think that Ban Johnson AMI
American league magnates have ben
mide wise TO the New York situation
and Will govern themselves accord
ingly.
And then. if that is So how about
Jim Gaffney and the Giants And that
query may not be so very much Hot
Stove league stuff at that
When Gaffney first broke into base
HaHnn he Hra 1HHn
CARDS the game itself. but he was the
real business man just the same. His
recent sale Of the Braves proved that.
But he had many, many wordy tus-
sles with manager Stallings during
his ownership in regard TO the make
up Of the Braves and Stailings had
tough job to bring Jim around to his
way OF thinking.
Nearly Lost Neff.
It was only last season that Gaffney
Omenal pitcher, Neff. who was the SEN
sation of the National league the lat
ter part Of the season.
Stallings was tipped off TO Neff by
a close friend and entered into nego-
tiations 10 secure the youngster. The
manager Of the Terre Haute club with
which Neff was playing met Stallings
in Chicago on one Of the Braves trips
to that city. and Stallings agreed on
a price of $4,000 for the pitcher stall
ings wired Gaffney about the deal. but
the latter absolutely refused to enter
tain it. His managers pleadings did
not influence the Braves owner.
StaIIinEs Paid for Pitcher.
Stallings then decided to take things
into his own hands and secured Neff
by paying $1,000 of his own money to
the Terre Haute manager and agree
ing to pay $1,000 more in one month II
the pitcher made good.
Neffs record as a Brave is mat
ter of baseball history. His first three
games were shut-Outs- He allowed
his opponents but two safe hits in his
first game and but one in his second
Gaffney, who had refused TO sanction
Stallingss deal and even refused TO
reimburse Stallings for his outlay Of
the $1,000 dollars by having his con-
tract promulgated when Neff showed
came through and across in short or
der. and Neff is now one Of the Braves
star boxmen and worth five times what
he cost the Boston club. But Gaffney
was not always so dense to his own
interests. He engineered the deal
whereby Johnny Evers became a Brave
and that was n teu-trike.
Gaffney. too. made himself a power
in National Taarrtro a