, 1923-01-14
HOUSE CLEANING
IN BASEBALL IS
NOT EASY TASK
Promoters Are Discovering
Process Is Not So Simple
as 1t Looked.
BY J.. E. SANBoRS.

Baseball promoters are discovering
pie and permanent task as they
thought when the FIRST batch Of play.
crs implicated in the worlds series
scandal OF 1919 were barred from or.
Ganized diamonds. Every little while
it crops out hat the men who Under
took the task CT cleaning up the game
did not make a thorough job of 1t
but neglected some OF the corners AMI
closets.
There are some, of course. who
think 1t a burning shame" to revive
the fact that Rube Benton, the vet.
eran pitcher. was implicated in that
scandal TO the extent OF having had
advance knowledge OF the plan to fix
the worlds series and of having
boasted that he won $500 on Gin
cinnati-reducing the sum to a mere
$40 before the Chicago grand jury
which investigated the. mess.
Benton probably would have been
allowed 10 wend his way toward the
setting sun unmolested by u~nfragrant
memories Il he had net staged such
a comeback with the ST. Paul team
last year that the Cincinnati clut
thought he might strengthen Pat
Moran's slab staff for 1923, so negoti-
ated 10 bring him bnck into fast COM.
pany. Garry Hermann might have
got away with it, too. II 1t had not
been for Ban J%ohnson's excellent
memory. His assertion that he would
not consider Benton a desirable player
for the American league apparently
reused National league club owners to
n realization Of the fact their selection
of Kenesaw Mountain Lands as off.
cial housecleaner was not all that is
necessary TO cover up the stains on
the national past mo escutcheon.
Soft Hearted Fans Argue.
Lots OF folks undoubtedly hin It
inhuman OF the promoters to punish
players by Punishment from the sport
morely for having n guilty knowledge
of n crooked deal, Let's OF them hin
II cruel that the eight White Sox who
were banned have net been reinstnted
after serving time in oblivion. the
soft hearted fan argues that those
players have had their lesson AMI
would be sure TO run straight II given
another chance. That is undoubtedly
true, because they would be afraid CT
being caught sgain. But the impor-
tant thing TO be considered is tina
effect on the other players. II the
eight banished White Sex, n the
others who went into the discard with
them were restored to good standing
after two years punishment others
would be willing TO risk Punishment
for that period IL the gamblers paid
them enough 10 make 1t worth while
to take the chance.
Only by making a lasting example
OF all those implicated in any wa
with the 1919 scandal the pro
motors convince all parties concerned
that nothing which even resembles
crookedness will be tolerated. When
one OF the Devl!n quartet went to
William A. Hubert, then president of
the National league, and begged TO
have the blacklist removed for tho
sake OF lis wife and children, Mr..
Hubert ave the player money nj OF
his Cwn pocket TO help take care OF
his family, but told the erring star
that the good name of baseball could
not be maintained II he were re-
instated.
incidentally, what n change there
has been in the kind OF men who "a
professional baseball in their keeping
since the days Of Hubert, OF James
a. Hart, and OF Harry PullIam!
Good OF Came No Longer Motto.
The good OF the game" no longer
is the motto OF h majority OF the
promoters. The good OF the league
still ~actuates some of them. but THE
good OF my club" is the only watch.
word known TO too many OF them.
Garry Hermann took Hal Chase
under his wing after h brilliant irst
baseman had been declared undesir-
able by the American league, Garry
was mighty sorry later on. but even
after Hermann uncovered evidence
that Chase had been mixed up with
gamblers on ball games, the New
York Giants whitewashed Hal because
they needed a first basemnn awfully.
They kept him, too, until the white
wash peeled of.
Now Hermann and NcGraw are
champ!onlnG Benton's cause and the
latter condoned Rube's offense by
sending him to St. Paul instead OF
outside the barrier. They are blam.
ing Ban johnson for reviying the
veteran pitchers record.
But baseball needs a watchdog
badly.