, 1923-02-07
MAJORS CEASE
Being SUCKERS
FOR SMALL FRY
BY I. E. sANBORN

would be a logical as well as perfect
" natural reply for the major leagues
to make to those MINOR league pro-
motors who have become so het up
Gosce the to take players subject to
over the alleged attempt of the majors
to force them to take players subject
to the draft. against finch some Of
them have signed the pledge.
The National and American league
ansgnates simply agreed to stop being
Euckers to the extent of ~disposing Of
their surplus players Mt bargain prices
in the spring time n being forced
TO pay blue sky prices to recover any
of that surplus in the fall IL Il is
needed for the future strengthening
OF their own teams. They decline to
let the minor league fellows get theirs
both ways, going and coming.
The ruction. which among other
things sent President Mccarthy OF the
Pacific coast league into such n frenzy
that he proceeded 10 tell Commission
er Lands where he-the high commits
Honer-should allght. was caused by
the Joint resolution of the big leaEuers
against dIsposlng of n Of their
players to n minor league l unless
such players could be recovered, II
desired, by means of the draft,
Five Leagues Against System.
Now there are only five leagues
which adopted the Volstead act
against the draft system. and there
T more han twenty minor leagues
in the country. Only John H. Farrell
knows exactly 0 nan minors there
are at q given moment because they
vary so constantly. Anyhow. there
are at least a dozen or fifteen of them
who are perfectly willing their play
nrs shall be drafted II the big leagues
want them. Consequently there is no
attempt to force any manager, mag
nate or league to take players subject
TO the draft. If the five circuits in
which the draft Is prohibited don't
want to admit athletes tainted with
even one-half of ono per ent draft
they don't have to. Nobody has
asked them TO and nobody is going TO.
There are plenty of circuits that
aren't so fussy.
Naturally the five draft-proot minor
leagues don't stop to think OF that.
They are the three Glass Al and two
strong Class A circuits which have
bossed everything in the bush league
world so long that they have forgot
ten they are not the whole works.
From the day of their birth these
circuits have depended on the major
leagues for players with which TO FL
out their teams. For the last couple
of years they have been allowed to
obtain promising young players, not
quite ripe for the big time. at very
low prices, then demand their own
figures for the release of any young
ster who might develop real ability.
to press agent figures the
Pacific Coast league las year held
up one major league club for SIS, 900,
and another club for 800 ,0oO-not for
q franchise and ball park. but for one
single player.
Must Get Out and Dig Up Recruits.
Consequently the bush magnates
soc in the latest move by the majors
an attempt TO compel them to abrogato
their principles submit Ito the
draft. whereas It is only a move to
compel the anti-draft adherents to go
out and dig up their own recruits in
stead OF p~anhandllng them off their
friends, as heretofore.
The iaments teeth-Enashing of
Tho minors won't get them any sym.
-pathy from the fans who understand
what II is all about. The anti-draft
folks have a their chance in the
F4A5A Two NNAIb 10 tIoW "LleLftI or
not they were willing TO be reasonable
N taking advantage Of tho measures
of Independence granted them. In.
stead many OF them have shown a
disposition TO make the majors pay u
Gdeavy price for everything that even
hooked as II It could inlay ball. The
Big leaguers will continue to pay blue
HEy figures for any athletes they have
20 have, but they refuse any longer
70 feed their own surplus material
into the small end Of the coin mill.
There IS nothing in the major
minor agreement that. says the major
leagues shall, or shall not. sell their
players 20 tho minors. nor how. nor
where, nor when, nor 10 whom they
shall sell them. There is nothing in
chat agreement that compels n small
gr league 20 take n player from the
'hEhcr one unless Il wants to.
Bobby Wallace and Oscar DuRey.