The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-04-29
TODAY MARKS 14TH START Of
ISLANDERS IN PENNANT RACE
~OF THREE-EYE ORGANIZATION
NH CITY Has Had Two Champion.
,hips and Finished with Lead.
err Five Other Times.

Todav marks the Start OF the lStn
casual remnant race Of the Three
=. league and its Goth year OF
.,,stence. The long string of sue
...siye championship campaign was
s,oten in 1918, when the clubs did
~ ooerate on account Of wartime
coalitions.
This is the 18th year OF Rock Is
,.nd's membership in the, Three
NE, II years having followed in
Consecutive order from the year OF
s,sauization in 1901 through the
Jason Of 1911. From 1912 through
is15 Rock Island was not repre-
.ented in organized baseball. In
isls the franchise returned. 1t was
attained during the shortened sea-
con Of 1917 and given up during
1910, when the Three-Eye operated
with only six clubs.
Two Pennants.
During these years Rock Island
las produced two pennant winners,
lack Tighe plotting the team to the
lob Of the heap in 1907 and again
IA 1909. The only other cities to
win more than one pennant are
Peoria and Springfield. The former
bu been out in front three times
md the latter occupied the top
rung four times.
The year of 1911 was the first
ind only year in which the Island
rs finished in the cellar position.
lack Tighe was gone from Rock
Island that season and the team
vas managed by Bill Carney. and
later by John Gonding. Interest
ubsided to an alarming extent,
and although there was some talk
It the conclusion of the race to be
in the field again the following
season, Rock Island stepped out in
hvor Of Quincy.
Besides the two pennants. the
islanders have finished FIVE other
!, seasons in the first division and
a1 times in the second division.
In 1901 the city made its bow to
professional ball by concluding in
seventh position, with percentage
Of .405. In the next two years the
team finished in fourth place, with
percentages of 800 and .542, re-
spectively. In 1904 the team fell
to sixth place in the standings,
with . percentage of .4S7. The
next year found them in second
place at the finish Of the face, with
a percentage of .553. That tins
Rock Island was just two games
behind Dubuque, the pennant win
ners. In 1906 they finished fifth,
and in 1907 brought the first pen
nant to the city. The champions
finished that year with a percent
age Of So. In 1908 things went
poorly and the team ended in sew
enth place, but in 1909 were out in
font once more al the season 5
end In 1910 the team wound up
IN second position, although the
averages showed the players weak
at bat and in the field. Tighe sur
rendered the reins that year for
bigger fields to conquer. and with
MN seemed to go much of Rock Is
lands enthusiasm. The year of
I'LL vas poor one for the local
club and the franchise was not
sought in 1912. In 1916 Rock Is
ljand again returned to the fold,
this time under the management of
Pete Lister. The season was not
success, but the officials stuck
ior 1911, the year in which the
lhree-Eye threw up the sponge in
lae middle of July on account of
The demands OF the war.
The Three-Eye league was or
sanized in the year 1901. Belden
hlll OF Cedar Rapids first started
NE ball rolling. He held a confer
enee with NJ. H. Sexton of Rock Is
land.
First Meeting in Peoria.
The two got busy, and in Janu-
ny OF 1901 called a meeting to be
ueia at the Hotel Fey in Peoria,
.nere the first steps were taken
,oF the completion of one of the
.astest minor leagues in the coun-
W. M. H. Sexton was elected
president. l.. D. Smith vice presi-
uehl, and the following towns were
santed franchises: Rock Island,
davenport. Bloomington, Decatur,
,eaar Rapids, Rockford, Peoria and
leffe Haute, The Peoria manage
leat differed with the league Off
rAiS over the disbursements of re-