Omaha daily bee., 1919-09-21
new BIG LEAGUE
May BE FORMED
IF BAN STICKS
American League President
Must Be Forced Out or
Third Loop May Be
Organized.

New York, Sept. 20.-Threats
have been openly made that unless
Ban Johnson retires from the Amer
lean league, another base ballleague
! will be formed. Enough has de-
veloped in the Mays case to show
that johnson is unfit and disquali-
LIED on various counts from holding
office As president of the American
league. On his own admission Ben
Johnson is a part owner in the
Cleveland club. He had concealed
that fact until it was drawn from
him during an inquiry into the Mays
case, and the manner in which John
son has been conducting the affairs
of the American league.
During the fight with the Federal
league Johnson denounced the indie
pendent organization for just this
sort Of thing. He grilled the Fed
erals on the ground that the league
represented syndicate base ball. Now
it develops that the Cleveland club
is a syndicate club, and that Ban
Johnson is one Of the syndicate
owners.
Made Game Ridiculous.
One of the best-posted men in
base ball says. For years Ban
Johnson has been making the game
ridiculous because of his inordinate
vanity. He crowded himself into
the limelight that belonged to the
players. He assumed that the base
ball patrons were more interested
in the strutting and rawlings of a
stout old gentleman than they were
in the game itself. Colonies Rup-
pert and Huston ofthe New York
| Yankees have refused to Sompro-
mise with the old order that has
threatened the life and integrity of
base ball.
The developments in the Mays
case have shown that t here is no
truce with pouter pigeonism and
the backstairs methods of Johnson
and his ilk. The Mays case is not
the, primary cause of the battle to
Gust Johnson. 1t is merely an in
cident.
The political inside of base bali
always has been petty larceny stuff
more or less. The naudlin mutter-
ings of certain magnates have bored
the fans time and again. The mag
mates place is in the back of the
ground, but the average magnate
does not know his place. With the
removal of Johnson or the curtail-
ment of his powers there will be
more base ball and less maudlin
s, magnates, which is contamination
devoutly to be wished.
May Be Third League.
Unless organized base ball rids
itself of the stout octopus there is
more than a possibility that there
will be third big league. The men
behind the fight to Gust Ban John
son have the money and the courage
to enter upon this project. Also
they have some first-hand knowl-
edge of the Johnson methods in
trying to crush oppositions, which
coupled with a knowledge of base
ball and a sincerity of purpose
should augur success. And they
will have the base ball fans behind
them.
1t was Johnson who introduced
trust methods and trust talk into
base ball, making it more commerce
than sport. People are beginning
to distrust organized base ball as il
is being manipulated today. The
game itself is clean and has kept
free from scandal. There is no
reason why the management of base
bali should not be just as clean as
the game itself. The owners who
have thrown down the gauntlet to
Johnson will fight until it is. II
the old leagues cannot be cleansed
they will start new league.
Good Time for Reform.
This is as good a time as any to
reform base ball from the top. The
frequently discussed rehabilitation
of the National commission, the
ruling body in base ball, should be
brought about this year. The chair
man Of the National commission
should be man who is not inter
ested in any club or in any league
As the commission stands today il
cannot hope to have the confidence
of the fans.
People who go to see base bali
games are not particularly interested
in the personnel of the National
commission, but they want to know
that the National commission is
composed of men who will act not
for any particular interest or groups
of interests, but for the good Of
base ball. The body as it now stands
is not competent to make disin.
terested decisions for base ball. The
longer the reorganization of the
commission is delayed the worse il
will be for base ball.