South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1922-12-10
COAST LEAGUE NOW
HOLDS UPPER HAND
OYER Big LEAGUES
Occupies Strategic Position IN
Baseball Can Make Majors
PAY the Piper.
BY DAVIS =. WALSH.
IL y. :. Srrrts EditOr.l


NEW YORK Dec 9-Anticipat-
sears. perhaps Jess baseball men
declare that tho Gay ls not too dis
faut when the Pacific Coast League
wIu cut loose from It's present OBJ
legations and operate independent
.y ou the basis. 81 not the status. OF
"a third major league. This Is or
daired. inevitable. they say.
The coast league occupies a unique
r6siIon in organized baseball.
Rich .n playing strength and playing
10 daily crowds never seen I'm other
minor league ranks. u can string
along with the rest OF the field or
90 % alone any time the spirit so
moves it. just 1T the moment, 10
seems satisfied 90 string along un-
der the chaperonage Of the major
leagues. It's competence fed by the
fact that they have come 20 the
point where paying $4,000 for Coast
league players is, seemingly, quite
the accepted procedure.
Mack shaken Down"
II the majors do not care 70 pay
the tariff. it simply holds the play
or FOR another season and is just
as well satisfied This attitude was
never better emphasized than az
the recent meeting of the National
Association OF Professional Base
ball Leagues when Connie Mack. the
PhiladelThic. spendthrift. was shak-
en- down for a matter of $4,000 In
tho purchase OF sam Hale from
Portland. That is not being done by
Connie seven days in the week. Ho
thinks less OF his lengthy windpiDe
than he does Of $4,000 However,
three other clubs were in the field
for Hale and IL was necessary TO
outbid them or lose the player. In
either case. the coast league was
only mildly interested. It doesn't
have TO sell ball players 90 make
money
In many other ways during the
meeting. this league was the dom
inatins factor. Some few OF the
smaller leagues showed a tendency
10 waver every time the subject
or the draft was brought up. but
not the coast league The draft, SO
far as = is concerned. IS a very
falsettO laugh. and, OF right, should
be. III the draft was IN operation,
some fortunate major league club
would have fallen heir TO Willie
Kamm. the $4,000 baby for some
thing less than So 900. and the same
thing would apply to the cases OF
Jimmy O'Connen Hale and other
expensive individuals.
Further Fortified.
The league is further fortified by
the fact that its president William
H. Mccarthy. is one OF the biggest
men in baseball. His power Is su-
IRENE through the minor league
feld and even the majors lend an
attentive ear when he voices a de-
sire
They know that they cannot get
along without Mccarthy and his
league for IL is there that most OF
the big league recruits are de-
veloped. Occasionally, the American
association or the international
league may bob up with a list OF
good prospects but the coast league
outscores them fin this respect two
10 ono. Hence the tendency 10 han
de Mccarthy with diplomatic
gloves.
In vet another way they must re
Spcct this unusual man. They real
ize all too well that when no opens
the flood gates OF his eloquence he
can sway the sentiment OF any gath
erinE. juggling the flowers OF his
speech with the bric5bats in such a
way as 20 have his words carry abb
soIute conviction.
The Pacific Coast league is toe
big for its minor league colleagues
now. Ten years hence. IL Will almost
certainly have outgrown that
status altogether.