^ - ; fflii-i*!*-^ Vol. 58 No. 21 Philadelphia, January 27, 1912 Price 5 Cents WARNING TO PLAYERS! Ball Players Under Contract or Reservation to Clubs in Organized Ball Should Not Permit Themselves to Be Blinded or Cajoled By the Specious Promises of Promoters of Shadowy Outlaw Leagues. INCINNATI, O., January 15. booths by which they may comfortably Ball players of class are be settle a piece of business that slipped coming too intelligent to take their minds is another bqon to the twen any stock in rumors and talks tieth century. There are a vscore of of outlaw leagues. They want other features in the modern base ball to be shown something before plant for the convenience and comfort of casting in their lot with ventures which patrons that were lacking in the old have little, if any, visible substantial days. Every park in the country has, or backing. With regard to the proposed will have next season, an up-to-date United States League, every competent plant, with the exception of the Chicago base ball man knows that it has Nationals, and they will build in time. not a possible chance of success along This present lines. A league containing two IMPROVEMENT BEGAN IN 1909 such diverse cities as New York and Reading. Pa., is an absurdity to start with Shibe Park here, and rapidly extend with. Few outsiders understand the ed to other cities in the two big league large cost of starting a league in modern circuits. Now, four years later, the fana of America have become educated to the cities where land is very expensive and de luxe base ball stadium. The outlaw it is almost impossible to secure suitable leagues now being projected will never be grounds without going able at the start to build concrete stands TO AN ENORMOUS OUTLAY. at their parks. In the first place, they This will be the first great expense, and wouldn©t have the money, and if they so far the alleged new league has shown had the money no sane man would risk spending so much for a permanent im nothing to lead the public to infer that it provement on a hazardous proposition. has the financial resources to secure the Therefore, the outlaws will have to build grounds needed in the various cities wooden stands, which become dingy and named. Not a move involving expense dirty in a few weeks, on their circuit. has yet been made, though some of the It has been said the fans will go to a officials of the league have been free with stone quarry to see a game of ball, pro their interviews and promises, which viding the team is a winner. This may they can usually find some green report- have been true some years ago., but will ter to fall for. As to getting ball play the banker, broker, business man, pro ers, it will be an easy thing to secure fessional man or clerk pass up the well- appointed modern plants and go to a PLENTY OF AMATEUR distant dump and run splinters in hia and semi-pro, athletes and a few profes clothes when he sits down? No, it sionals who have failed to make good in WOULD BE GOING BACKWARD, faster company. But there is not a and an outlaw league to succeed will have chance in the world for an outlaw league to have every bit as good accommoda to get any real stars, and without first- tions as the club with which it is com class players it will be hopeless to at peting. This is what is going to make tempt to draw crowds in opposition to it so difficult for any coterie of base ball the organized clubs which are playing the owners, detached from the ranks of or best brand of base ball day after day, ganized base ball, to make a success of in large, commodious and comfortable such an undertaking. Look at the suc parks. It would be a cess of the American League. At the GOOD THING FOR CINCINNATI start it had the advantage of fairly good plants at the time in Detroit, Balti to have continuous base ball, and any more and Cleveland. Wooden plants plan which will insure such a result to were erected in Philadelphia, Washing the city will be welcomed and boosted. ton, New York, Chicago and Boston. But there is no use in fooling a lot of The American League was good enough players into thinking they are going to to fight "the National League to a stand get big salaries and long contracts, when, FRANK L. BODIE, still and force it to give it so far, there is not the slightest reason Outfielder of the Chicago American League Club. A PLACE IN ORGANIZED BASE BALL. to suppose that they will be so favored. To do this it had to be a success from This is something that the athletes will Frank L. ("Ping") Bodic, the fast and hard-hitting outfielder of the Chicago Whit* Rox, Is a native of California. He was born in San © Francisco, October 8, 1SS7. the start, yet not until 1909, or eight do well to ponder before building castles He started base ball playing as a pitcher when a mere boy, and in five years acquired years after the league expanded, was a in the empty air. JACK RYDER. quite a reputation in semi-professional ranks. He began his professional career in member of the circuit able to build a 1907 with the Vallejo Club, of the Ceatral California League. In September, 1908, he was signed by Manager Danny Long, of the San Francisco Club, of the powerful modern stand. The Athletics were the League-Building Ten-Fold Difficult Now. Pacific Coast League. In 1910 he gave up pitching and became a regular outfielder. pioneers in base ball improvement, and In discussing the proposed outlaw He developed fast and in 1910 he did sensational batting, making 30 home runs, the only reason they were able to do it which excelled the major league record of "Buck" Freeman, 25; and almost equalled was because the Mackmeu won pennants leagues with the high-sounding titles of the world©s record, 36, made by Frank Roth in 1901. In the FaU of 1910 the United States League and Columbian Chicago Club purchased his release, and last Spring lie was placed in centre field, in 1902 and 1905, and were in the race supplanting Parent, and has been there ever since. He is oue of the hardest ajjd every other year. If it took the Ameri League, and with neither circuit nor play surest hitters in the American League and his fielding, throwing and base running can League, which was backed with un ers in sight to correspond, base ball edi are on a par with his batting thus making him one of the finds of the 1911 season. There is no truth in th» report that hie real name is P©izzola, that being tha name of limited capital, eight to nine years to tor. James A. Isaminger, of the Philadel make such improvement, phia "North American," well says: "Pro his step-father. jectors of a now league at the present WHAT CHANCE IS THERE time have a far more difficult task than for the outlaws, who have no Ban John the outlaws of a decade or more ago. son, Connie Mack, Ben Shibe, Jimmy McAleer, Frank Farrell or Charles Som- When $100 was needed to finance a com courtesy a grandstand, is done in base aisles that can be flushed with water petitive circuit at the©time of the expan er to start their project much more sion of the American League, $1000 is ball. Fans now demand luxurious and ev$.©y day and clean seats that will not hazardous than the American League©s necessary now. ©Major league owners COMFORTABLE SURROUNDINGS. soil their clothes or the toilettes of tlie 11 years ago with modern plantsV The have educated the fans to bigger things They don©t want any long waits getting women who might be with them. Com question of the grandstand is going to than they enjoyed 12 or 20 years ago. into a park or any long waits, getting fort rooms, well lighted, modern and cut a, big figure in the fortunes or tha The day of the wooden shed, called by out. They want concrete steps and sanitary, are also necessary. Telephone Continued on the second pane. SPORTING LIFE JANTTARY 27, 191 a on the 19th, but says he will try to have these arrangements set back one day. Connie is a personal friend of Governor THIS COUPON SEND ONE Tener, who is to be the guest of honor IS ONLY GOOD COUPON FOR that evening, and he will endeavor to ar FOR 30 DAYS Philadelphia, Jan. 27, *12 EACH SERIES range his plans so that he can be present FROM DATE. DES IRED/ SOME NEW STATISTICS ISSUED at the banquet. Murphy and Oldring BY SECRETARY HEYDLER, have also sent in their signed Contracts. :• THIS COUPON WITH 4 CTS. |j Getting the Chillies in Line. President Fogel, of the Phillies, during Senf to SPORTING LIFE, Philadelphia, entitles Data Relating to Total Bases on the past week made a trip to personally the Sender to One Series (12) of Picture Cards confer with some of his hold-out players Balls, Total Strike-Outs By and with Manager Dooin at Pittsburgh. of Base Ball Players, as described below: Upon his return on Friday President Players* and Total Players Fogel reported that, with Manager ; Doo- < J Send to.