The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-10-18
NATIONAL LEAGUE IPLANNING INCREASE
 TO PLAYER LIMIT

New York, Oct. 18.-Far from the madding throng and perfectly con- tent with everything. one John J. Mc- Graw has no doubt caught an ear full of the criticism that is being heap ed on the National league these days l for the weakness it showed in the l post-season games, and we imagine ! ho enjoys it immensely. Not that he 1 is disloyal to his league, but the pres- ent condition of the old organization is a vindicationNof his judgment. Moreover, it is a fulfllment of jprophecy he made two years ago when 1 the National league put through the [ twenty-one player limit rule as tdirect thrust at John McGraw, and 1 put it through in the face of his pro- tests. And his present satisfaction arises from the fact the league is now preparing hastily to undo the damage and come around to the methods he favored at the start. 1 Ever and anon the National league has sought to curb and throttle down the leader of the Giants. Though he I has been the leagues big money maker ever since he took charge of the Giants it has acted as though it feared he would run away with the l league some night after office hours. and therefore should be kept within bounds.
 When two years ago, after McGraw had won three pennants and came up in. the spring with a great array of young talet to inject into a ball club that had slipped the season before the National league put the brakes on him by cutting down the player limit. | Clubs that would not spend money as lavish1y as New York did sought Ito bring the Giants back to their level Father than to elevate themselves. The result was they brought the whole league back from the standard it had been setting in previous years.
 McGraw made the statement at the 1 time it would not be long before the National league would have a lot of old men on, it's ball clubs, and it has come true.f The young talent has fbeen going into the American league. which wisely refused to follow the i example, of the National >
 The Johnson circuit has left room flor newcomers /The result is a sweep ing victory for the American league in the post-season games, with the certainty that the NdLlOnal ledS ue will now back right up to where it made it's. error.
 The twenty-one player limit was re- sponsible for one of the evils com plained oft even before the worlds series. It was responsible for the series of trades and purchases that were made in September by managers Iseeking to strengthen for the last lap of the pennant fight.
 The Brooklyn club needing a first :. basemen angled for and got Merkle. And John McGraw, taking advantage of the methods forced upon him, put new life in his club by trades and pur- lchases in the last month or six weeks of the race.
 The public cannot be expected to Itake the same interest in a pennant winner that has won only by taking bgood players from some other team, as 1t would in a club that went through the season with its original linen and proved therefore that it was Ithe best club over the whole distance And public sentiment on this point has Ibeen SO clearly indicated that the Ma tional league will no doubt take some faction at the annual meeting.