The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-09-05
By FRANK G. MENKE

Jeff Tesreau is one of those citizens
who can turn his frontispiece in the
general direction of big league base
ball and laugh boisterously and glee-
fully.
Most bozos, cast loose from their
moorings under the big Tent" have
a rather tough time of it adding
skekels to the family exchequer. But
The Ozark Gear is somebody differ
ent. Departure from his $4,000 job as
a singer for the Giants made 1t pos
sible for him to triple his income.
Back in 1910 the huge singer from
the mountain district of Missouri,
was lassoed by the Giants and hauled
in for pitching duty a year later. Al
most Immediately he became one OF
the sensational moundsmen of the
game.
Made Quick Success.
Possessed of binding speed, armed
with splitter almost faultless IN de-
livery, and with great change or
pace, Tesreau promptly whirled HIM
self into fame and greatness.
! The big fellow was one of the might
/ lest factors in the Giants successful
| battle to the baseball championship of
| the world in 1912. Through the years
that followed-until 191S-he was an
| indispensable cog in the New York
machine-one of its most feared pitch
| ers.
| Soon after the outbreak of war
Tesreau quit the Giants to engage III
an essential industry. He was ex
empted from the draft because he has
wife and family. but, just the same
he determined to do his bit by labor
ing in one of the steel plants. On his
afternoons off he pitched for one OF
the Steel League clubs.
! Has Own Ideas About Baseball.
When the war ended, there was nc
big league job for Tesreau-at Least
not with the Giants. He might have
fingered around with some other out
fit for a while-or gone to the minors
But Jeffie had different ideas. He saw
possibilities in the semi-pro field il
New York that no one else had dis
covered-that is, not quite in the
Tesreau way.
Tesreau sensed a return of baseball
fever He figured that semipro com
bats between good clubs would draw
a regular patronage of its own ant
the overflow crowd from the poll
grounds.
So he organized the "Tesrea'
Bears" which was made up of forme
big and minor league stars and young
sters who might have gone into BIZ
league jobs if they hadn't been conten
to stay around the old town and ge
little sport-and money-playing OF
Saturdays and Sunday.
Builds Up Own Contests.
He then rented big field whicl
had been used occasionally for base
ball. He improved it and added to TIL
seating capacity of its stands. In thu
end. it was possible to accommodate
Iclose to 5000 with the field so arranged
that there was standing room for 5000
more.
Knowing that baseball combats thrill
only when evenly matched teams ar
competing. JEFF Influenced other folk
to organize teams to send against his
The result was about eight semi-prt
clubs. each with field of its own ant
each strong enough to give any groul
of ball players a stiff argument.
The games bristled with starr.
plays. Each was holly contested. En-
thusiaSm reached a fever pitch. And
as a result the parks were jammet
and the receipts for Sunday games
especially at Tesreau's park-frequent
ly went between $4,000 and 10000
Has "SIack Season" Job.
Even while he was making semi-pr
ball a prosperous proposition in New
York, Tesreau was offered a job a
coach of the Dartmouth college dia
mond performers. He accepted
under a long term contract. Tha
work keeps him busy through the lat
winter and early spring.
During the summer when Tesrea
isn't pitching or playing outfeld fo
his Bears" he jumps around til
country picking up 500, 5000 an
sometimes $3.50 for pitching a singl
game for some semi-pro team which i
involved in a titular clash in its ow
home town.
Tesreau was a fairly we'll paid att
lete when with the Giants. But i
this era, his profits, ownership of tn
Tesreau Bears, his salary as a co
legiate coach and his "pickups" ar