Barons Lose Out of Heart of Vintage Base Ball Tournament

Special-The Barons played, and unfortunately lost both matches played today in the Heart of Vintage Base Ball Tournament. Losing 15-12 to Losantiville and to Moscow in the consolation game.

The Barons struck hard in the first match, but so too did the Black Stockings as the lead went back and forth throughout the contest. At the end of the time match, the scoreboard favored the gentlemen of Eden Park. 

Both sides played sharp ball, but Losantiville managed to bunch their hits just a bit better than did the Barons, which really decided the game.

In the consolation game, a determined late-game rally seemed to put the Barons ahead, but unfortunately they couldn't hold it against the hard-hitting Moscowites. Once again, the mighty men on the banks of the Ohio managed to hold off the brave Baron club.

The Cincinnati Vintage Base Ball Club, an aggregate of Red Stockings, Buckeyes, with a dash of Springfield Reapers added took home the winners honors for the 2018 edition of this tournament. Our hearty cheers go to them for their signal triumph. 

We also must thank our esteemed, honorable hosts, the Blackbottom Nine, for once again putting on a delightful tournament. Any day on the grass is a day well-spent.

Photos of Today's Contests

The 1888 Colonels-Defeat, Discord, and Disarray

As May 1888 turned to June, the Democratic National Convention convened to nominate its pick for the Presidential Election, with their party holding the incumbent, Grover Cleveland, it seemed safe he'd be their man. But nothing was certain, as politics, both then and now is a tricky thing to predict.

Elsewhere, the U.S. Army's Commanding General, the hero of Stones River, Third Winchester, and Cedar Creek, and the savior of Yellowstone National Park, General Phillip Sheridan suffered a massive heart attack. "Little Phil" the pugnacious fighter and terror of rebel soldiers opened June fighting his biggest battle, one just to live.

Amidst those headlines, the Louisville Colonels made their own news, none of it good. By this point, the bad tidings didn't simply confine themselves to the diamond, but off of it as well. On June 1, the Baltimore Sun reported "Certain members of the Louisville Club have entered into a combination to oust John Kelly from the management," the paper went on to say, "they refuse to play for him and always lose the game when is well in hand."

When asked about this article, Louisville President William L. Lyons stated he'd heard these rumors, but could find no evidence of their truth. He said the biggest problem facing the club was the debilitating injuries at catcher and the subpar performance of his infield. The Colonels were simply not as good as he, or anyone else, thought they'd be when the season began.

He said, "if some of our players were released they would not be able to hold positions in any but minor league clubs." Which indicated he thought it a talent rather than moral issue, and also did a great job of publicly trashing the men who took the field every day for his team. He went on to say he'd suspend any player he suspected of deliberately subpar play.

Pete Browning, when asked, stated there was no truth to the reports of a conspiracy against John Kelly.

The same day, the Courier-Journal reported there was no substance to the story of a conspiracy and they'd found no evidence to back it up. The players, according to the article regretted something like this getting out as they felt worse for him than themselves over the streak of recent poor results.

According to the Courier-Journal, the fact that many of the recent losses suffered occurred in the later innings made it appear the Colonels were deliberately trying to lose, or not giving their best efforts. Kelly himself didn't see anything which indicated the club played in any way dishonestly.

For the Derby City faithful, this must've invoked painful memories of the 1877 Louisville Grays, who had a commanding lead in the National League, until some of their best players conspired to throw crucial games, thereby losing the pennant. Rumors of gambling players weren't uncommon in this era, so news like this always tended to go to the darker end of the spectrum.

Kelly, realizing his job may well be on the line, and to reset the season, had a meeting with his players prior to the June 1 match against Baltimore. He stated he'd start fining players for mental miscues in the field and on the bases. He also warned his players against eating heavy dinners (in this instance I believe this is the colloquial use of "dinner" for lunch, with what's commonly referred to as dinner being "supper.") as "a loaded stomach clouds the eye and you can't see the ball." (Don't laugh, as even well into the 20th Century, baseball people thought strange medical notions could deliver diamond results. I seem to recall reading about front offices telling pitchers with arm troubles to have their tonsils removed to help their gimpy arms).

The talk seemed to give new energy to the slumping Louisville club as they defeated Baltimore 14-2 that afternoon. Guy Hecker started, giving up seven hits. Louisville banged out 19 of their own, as every Colonel in the lineup got at least one hit. Chicken Wolf went 3-5 as did shortstop Bill White.

The next day, Louisville and Baltimore closed out the series by playing two. The Orioles swept the day and made "the most of every opportunity which Louisville this year has been offering every club with which it comes in contact." They batted around Scott Stratton in the first match, winning 11-5.

Louisville did better in the second contest, losing 5-4, as Toad Ramsey pitched well until the eighth inning, when he left the game after beginning to feel unwell.

After the double defeats, Louisville departed Baltimore for Cleveland, to begin a four game series there on June 4.

On the off-day, the Courier-Journal elaborated on the accusations the Colonels laid down to get John Kelly fired. "Nothing in the conduct of the men seem to indicate a conspiracy or even dissatisfaction." The article once again noted the Colonels were frankly, not a good team.

It had also been their misfortune to start their season playing against the strongest clubs in the league. Up to this point, they'd played 20 of their first 35 games against Brooklyn, St. Louis, and Cincinnati, the top three clubs in the standings. They'd gone 2-18 against such a formidable schedule. They'd not done much better against the rest of the Association, save Kansas City.

The biggest problem thus far centered around their infield. Second baseman George Mack, shortstop Bill White, and third baseman Joe Werrick committed many errors in the field, giving many good teams more outs than they may have otherwise had. To make matters worse, their batting did not make up for the defensive slack. For instance, George Mack slashed the following for 1888: .217/.320/.289 (that's batting average, on-base percentage, slugging average) with an offensive wins above replacement (WAR) of .5 (his fielding percentage stood at .907). The rest of the infield was little better.

First base had a revolving cast of characters, pitcher Guy Hecker played there on occasion, as did three other players throughout the season. The outfield and pitching staff for the most part could stand against any in the league, but the infield play killed the Colonels.

Back to the June 4 article, it identified Hecker as the potential source of discontent within the team, stating he had was an opinionated man who did not hesitate to share his ideas. He had some disagreements with Kelly, but the article said the two talked and everything seemed fine.

Louisville started it's series against Cleveland in losing fashion, losing the first two games 8-5 and 6-5. The Courier-Journal stated little about these games and I don't have access to a Cleveland paper from this era, so I don't have a whole lot to share about these contests. However, compared to the news of June 6, 1888, these games really didn't matter much.

On June 6, William L. Lyons, the President of the Louisville Club and three other board members sold their interest in the Colonels to Mordecai Davidson, the club secretary who'd been with the team since the beginning.

The discord of the on the field ineptitude the Colonels showed on their eastern trip came to a head this meeting. Lyons, as he'd stated to the Courier-Journal, wanted to release first baseman Skyrocket Smith, George Mack, Bill White, and Joe Werrick and purchase an entirely new infield. Davidson thought the idea reckless and firmly disagreed.

One must remember in 1888 baseball clubs didn't have farm teams from which they could call up young players. They had to find and sign talent from the many minor league clubs around the country and hope they panned out. If not, the club plopped down a lot of money and got had nothing in return for such an outlay.

With the leadership at an impasse, Lyons decided he'd had enough as President of the Louisville Club. With this Davidson took over the leadership of the Louisville Colonels. The Courier-Journal stated the young businessman was well-liked by the players.

He hoped to get the club back on track, stating baseball was "too firmly established in Louisville for the citizens to allow the club to go to pieces and interest in the game to die out." He said he'd look into the problems and make corrections, thereby improving Louisville's standing. The paper also said Kelly probably would be released as manager, something then as now is typical when new ownership takes over a club. They want their people, and if the club's not performing well, the axe falls sooner.

Apparently, rumblings of a change had occurred for the days proceeding the sale. The Courier-Journal reported Guy Hecker's wife mentioned in a letter to him which he received when the team played in Brooklyn and stated Davidson looked as if he'd take control of the club. Hecker showed the letter to the other players and they told Kelly. The Courier-Journal intimated this may have been what caused the insinuation of player dissatisfaction.

Louisville celebrated the change in ownership on June 6, by losing a 23-19 defense/pitching optional match with Cleveland. Hecker started and Cleveland hit him hard. His defense didn't back him up, as the Falls City nine committed 13 errors on the day, and if not for the scorer's "charitable scoring" the total could've been much higher. Hecker did with the bat what he couldn't get done in the box, going 5-6 with three doubles. Pete Browning went 4-6 with a triple. All-in-all a sloppy day.

While the Democratic National Convention unanimously nominated President Grover Cleveland in St. Louis The John Kelly Era for the Colonels came to an end the next day as he submitted his resignation. The Colonels got swept by Cleveland (not the president) that day 13-4.

In his letter, he told Louisville's outgoing president Lyons "my request for new blood has been urgent, but the directory does not seem inclined to expend money to strengthen the nine." He went on by saying, "very naturally it is not my wish to be at the head of a losing club, when a comparatively small outlay, judiciously made would, I do not hesitate to say accomplish the end we all have in view, namely to win games."

The Courier-Journal stated rumors had Guy Hecker taking over the club, but he shot down such ideas. Other players said they didn't like Hecker and would not play for him if he became the manager. It appears most of the dissent on the Colonels came from Hecker, but to the degree we saw earlier in my post is difficult to surmise, he seemed a clubhouse cancer for sure.

Despite what many fans think, managers don't have total control over the outcome of games. They do have influence, don't get me wrong. They can mismanage certain elements of the game (calling for bunts, underutilizing young players, playing marginal talent, poorly constructing batting orders, and pitching staffs, for more evidence, reference Bryan Price), but for the most part, they put out the lineups the front office gives them. If the club puts together a talented, competent roster, they have better odds of winning than if they don't. Managers as I said, can negatively impact the team's play to a degree, but even a Sparky Anderson or Joe Maddon can only coax so much out of a club. It's difficult to tell simply from reading articles from 130 years ago, but John Kelly apparently did the best he could to produce a competitive ball club with little in the way of resources at his disposal.

The Louisville club on paper had some real assets, it had the nonpareil Pete Browning, a talented Chicken Wolf, and a capable pitching staff for sure. It also had some glaring holes, namely the infield and a terribly depleted crop of catchers. Good clubs cannot have many holes and it is the job of the front office to fill them. If the management is unable or unwilling to do so, no manager or no team will win. This is the case so far with the 1888 Colonels.

I liken it to the start of the 2018 season for the Cincinnati Reds. They too have some talented pieces (more than the '88 Colonels did for sure), but there were holes that injury to key players and front office inertia exposed to start the season. These issues contributed to a horrific 3-18 start for the club. Reds manager Bryan Price lost his job over the horrendous stretch of ball, and he did bear some of that blame for reasons mentioned above, but he wasn't solely to blame. The front office made glaringly bad roster decisions (Yovani Gallardo anyone?) which really caused the bulk of the Reds troubles.

A new manager in Jim Riggleman so far has shown a much better club, and so far he's been more innovative in roster management for sure, but can you lay the vast improvement at his feet? Some of it, sure, but it's talent which made the difference. The return from the DL of important pieces (Eugenio Suarez, Scott Schebler, Michael Lorenzen, and Anthony DeSclafani) and the improvement of young talent made the Reds better. A more talented roster makes all the difference.

In short, winning is a product of function and loss of dysfunction, always has, always will. A squared away front office makes the moves to put a winner on the field, it's energetic, and innovative. A dysfunctional front office doesn't do those things, the club suffers, and so too do the fans. A Pete Browning (or a Joey Votto) can only do so much.

The next few days for Louisville would bring a new manager, and new hope. In the next post, we'll find out who that was and how he'd fare.

Once again the Courier-Journal, Baltimore Sun, newspapers.com, and baseball-reference.com all contributed the meat of this blog. I'm merely the interpreter/misinterpreter.

Plenty of Vintage Base Ball This Sunday

For those interested in watching base ball played circa 1869 rules, you have two big chances to see matches this weekend.

The Cincinnati Red Stockings and Cincinnati Buckeyes make the trip down the Ohio to meet in friendly strife at the Farnsley-Moreman Landing in Louisville this Sunday, July 8 starting at one o'clock.

The Red Stockings and Buckeyes are pillars of the Queen City vintage base ball community and those who go out to see them on Sunday are guaranteed a thrilling match.

The Bluegrass Barons, Kentucky's sole entrant in the Vintage Base Ball Association, make the trek north to Hamilton, Ohio for the Heart of Vintage Base Ball Tournament at Joyce Park this Sunday, July 8, with their first match at ten o'clock against the Losantiville Black Stockings.

The Backbottom 9, a stalwart aggregate of sluggers and sure-handed fielders based in Hamilton, graciously host this tournament each year and are the defending champions. Their hospitality, artistic creativity, and logistical brilliance ensure a good time for all.

If one wants to indeed see vintage base ball's heart, they need to see this tournament. It encapsulates all that is right in vintage base ball.

The Barons, Blackbottom 9, Losantiville Black Stockings, Rising Sun Belle Rivers, Cincinnati Vintage Base Ball Club, Eastwood Iron Horses, Moscow Monarchs, and Tippecanoe Canal Jumpers all vie for the honors of winning this tournament. All are strong clubs and sure contenders and the winning aggregate will have to go a long way in order to take the winner's laurels.

If you can get to either of these contests, you'll not regret in so doing. We in vintage base ball hope to see you there.

The 1888 Colonels- A Disastrous May Ends

When we left the Colonels, they'd just been swept handily by the Reds and limped out of the Queen City, on its way to the "City of Brotherly Love" to face the Athletics

On May 19, the Colonels opened the Athletic series with a 6-5 win. Louisville native Gus Weyhing took the box for the Athletics, Ramsey for the Colonels and both pitchers commenced to mow down each batting order. Ramsey struck out 11, Weyhing 13. Philadelphia took an early lead, but the Colonels promptly roared back, aided by two walks and a wild pitch by Weyhing that allowed three Louisville runs. The Courier-Journal, somewhat hyperbolically stated "All in all, the Louisvilles put up a game that was well-nigh invincible.

Falls City fans should've savored the win, they wouldn't see another the rest of the month.

The next game occurred Monday, May 21 as Philadelphia, like many cities east of the Alleghenies prohibited amusements of any kind on Sundays. These local "Blue Laws" determined to keep the Sabbath holy and had immense sticking power. Philadelphia clubs wouldn't play Sunday ball until the 1930s.

On that Monday, Louisville lost more than just 14-4. Catcher Lave Cross went down with a split finger that tore off his nail and opened it to the bone. The Courier-Journal reported Cross would be out a month and departed for Louisville to recuperate. John Kerins replaced him but was in no better condition. He had two sore fingers and a game leg.

The injuries forced a rash of position changes for the Colonels. Kerins disability contributed to the shellacking "Ice Box" Chamberlain and Scott Stratton took that afternoon. Descriptions of Louisville's effort that day varied depended on what city's paper one read. The Courier-Journal said the Colonels played "pluckily" while the Philadelphia Inquirer stated they "gave a wretched exhibition."

With Cross lamed and Kerins not at full tilt, Louisville determined to find a "first-class man" to sign as a fill-in. 

The next day saw Louisville put up a fight with the Athletics, but still come up short 6-5. Louisville's shoddy defense undercut their effort and Pete Browning's offensive heroics (3-3 with a triple) and stellar defense (outfield assist to first for a double play) could not make up for it.

In spite of the lackluster field work, Louisville had the lead until the eighth inning, when a three-run Athletics rally doomed the Colonels.

The Falls City Nine departed Philadelphia to go to Brooklyn, to face the surging Bridegrooms (so called after a season where many of their players got married).

The first tilt (May 25) between the Colonels and Bridegrooms fell to the Brooklyn club, 4-1. The "Red Devils" as the Brooklyn Daily Eagle referred to the Louisville club in its crimson uniforms "played ball like a lot of cigar signs," according to the Courier-Journal. A steady rain fell throughout  the game, more than likely contributing to the defense's less-than-stellar support of Toad Ramsey.

The next day, Brooklyn pitcher William "Adonis" Terry added to Louisville's spring of woe, as he no-hit the flailing Colonels in front of 4,875 "intensely gratified spectators" as the Bridegrooms won 4-0.

Toad Ramsey pitched for the second time in two days for the Colonels, as he was the only man the hobbled John Kerins could catch effectively. Ramsey pitched well in the losing effort, but second baseman George Mack's error in the sixth inning gave Brooklyn a lead Terry wouldn't let them relinquish.

The Courier-Journal mentioned the no-hitter in passing, as no-hitters in that era didn't get a lot of publicity, though they were rare. The reporter with the Courier-Journal had to telegraph the game report back to Louisville, and he tried to keep it short and cheap. Also, with the malaise surrounding a 9-20 start, a no-hit loss was just one more misery for the Louisville fans.

The Brooklyn Daily Eagle gave the event more attention, and rejoiced in the win, but the hoopla that surrounds such doings in this modern age didn't avail itself in 1888.

Louisville performed much better the next day as a steady rain fell, but still came up short to the Bridegrooms 6-5. The Falls City contingent held a 5-1 lead going into the seventh, but a Brooklyn rally in the eighth cut the lead to 5-3. The rain fell harder in the ninth and made the ball difficult to grip, with Brooklyn taking advantage as they scored three runs and avoided a "signal defeat." The win propelled the Bridegrooms to second in the American Association standings.

According to the Courier-Journal, Ice Box Chamberlain pitched well, but the Colonel defense-as it had all year-looked poor, with Browning fielding "like a blind man" and Chicken Wolf not looking "lively enough" and allowing two pop flies to drop as hits.

Brooklyn swept Louisville the next day. Smelling blood in the water from the wounded Colonel nine, the Brooklyn manager refused to allow a Toad Ramsey for Guy Hecker substitution. Paul Cook, the Louisville catcher, who was hurt (of course!) had difficulty catching Hecker, but could catch Ramsey. Seeing how this could hurt his odds of winning, the Brooklyn manager didn't allow it, as was his prerogative. He did allow Kerins (hurt too) to replace Cook, but after one inning Kerins left the game as his injuries prohibited him from competently playing.

Chicken Wolf came in to catch, and pitcher Scott Stratton went to the outfield in his place. Stratton proved a bright spot on the day, going 3-3 with a walk. One of the few bright spots of the day for Louisville.

On the whole, this trip had been a nightmare so far for Louisville, Browning had gone hitless against Brooklyn and that was merely a symptom of the problems bedeviling the Louisville nine. No one knew exactly what was wrong, but the Courier-Journal stated "they seem, each and all, the pitchers excepted, to be listless before the game commences."

Defeats will do that, losses pile up and a previously confident team will go from optimism and pessimism in short order. Add injuries and slumps into the mix and the ingredients are all too perfect for a horrendous stretch of play, as evidenced by the record up to this time. However, that alone couldn't explain what was going on, the team did seem dissatisfied.

Louisville happily put Brooklyn, with its bridge, Navy Yard, and overwhelming ballclub (but no hipsters at this time) behind them as they rode the rails south to Baltimore, where they'd face the Orioles.

"The Louisville Club came upon the Baltimore grounds yesterday for the first time this year, casting a lurid glare over the place by the intense brilliancy of their cardinal costumes," stated the Baltimore Sun. This comment really proved the most memorable thing about the game for the Falls City faithful, as Louisville played its last game of May, losing 7-3.

Rain mercifully cancelled a game the next day, ending the month in appropriate fashion for the flatlining Colonel nine.

The end of May saw a fierce struggle at the top of the Association standings, Louisville did its part by losing a total of 12 games to league leaders Brooklyn, Cincinnati, and St. Louis. Louisville wasn't last, they could thank the still-worse Kansas City club for taking that honor by a half game, but things looked bleak. The Colonels seemed dead in the water, with most of the season yet to play.

Something seemed terribly wrong.

American Association Standings- 05/30/1888

Club                W     L   Pct   GB

Brooklyn        25     9   .735

Cincinnati      23     9   .719    1

St. Louis        19     8   .704    2.5        

Philadelphia  14     15  .483   8.5

Baltimore      13     15  .464   9

Cleveland      11     20  .355  12.5

Louisville       9      23  .281  15

Kansas City   7      22   .241  15.5

The 1888 Colonels-A Difficult May Begins

When we last left the Colonels, the Reds had just polished them off in Eclipse Park in Louisville. 

Life didn't get easier for the Colonels, as the three-time defending champion St. Louis Browns arrived at the Falls City.

The Colonels, behind the formerly recalcitrant "Ice Box" Chamberlain, surprised the Browns in the first game, winning 7-4. According to the Courier-Journal, they played almost perfect ball and Chamberlain would "win it or pitch his arm off."

The performance proved an anomaly, as the Louisvilles lost 7-5 in front of a small crowd as foul weather threatened throughout the day. However, those who did show up were "rewarded by witnessing a sharp and exciting game of base-ball."

Scott Stratton started for Louisville and pitched well, as the vaunted Browns lineup made "spasmodic but vain attempts to smash the ball." In the end, his efforts weren't enough, as St. Louis held the edge that afternoon after a four-run fifth inning. 

The next day could not be called a fine ballgame, as Louisville put on a "sorry exhibition of base-ball" according to the Courier-Journal, losing 18-1 to St. Louis.

"Toad" Ramsey took the box for the Colonels and didn't pitch badly, but the rest of the team fielded poorly. St. Louis took full advantage of every Louisville miscue and made no miscues in the field.

But facing the champs and poor fielding alone couldn't explain the shoddy play of the Louisville Club. The club had talent, but as The Courier-Journal stated "there is something radically wrong with the club," and dissention seemed to rack the team. The article pointed out that when Toad Ramsey and Scott Stratton pitched, the Louisville fielders performed poorly, but Ice Box Chamberlain benefitted from a seemingly competent Colonel defense. Things would not get better in the coming days.

On May 6, Louisville lost 4-2 to St. Louis as the Colonels ran themselves off of the bases. Ice Box Chamberlain again pitched well, but critically walked three and hit one batter. All of those contributed to the loss. Luckily for the Louisville fans, only 2,500 turned out on a perfectly fine Sunday to see the effort. The club's previous ineptitude kept many at home.

After an off day, the battered Colonels welcomed the Kansas City Cowboys to Eclipse Park. There were almost more participants than spectators present as only 500 bothered to show up. Those who did show saw Louisville win 6-3.

Guy Hecker pitched well and helped his own cause with a three-run single. Pete Browning, well-renowned for his hitting but not his fielding prowess, killed a Cowboy rally with a crucial assist from centerfield that put out Henry Porter at the plate.

The Colonels lassoed the Cowboys again the next day (May 9) as they won 18-6. Kansas City pitching walked eight Louisville batters and their "rotund catcher" Charles "Fatty" Briody (The 19th Century wasn't a period for those who were overly sensitive) allowed two passed balls.
 

Louisville hit, pitched, and fielded well. William "Chicken" Wolfe and George Mack both had three hits, and Pete Browning struck two doubles. 

Chamberlain started for Louisville and pitched well and "had the big Kansas City batters at his mercy." He pitched so well that he did so with both hands. He pitched right-handed the first five innings and with Louisville up by an almost insurmountable margin, pitched the sixth and seventh innings left-handed. Ambidexterity is a rare trait among pitchers, as it's difficult pitching well period, much less with both hands, but some players can do it. 

That was the good news, the bad news for the day featured Toad Ramsey. Manager John Kelly suspended him indefinitely and without pay. Ramsey quickly gave up the temperance pledge he'd made early in the season and routinely drank and showed up in no condition to pitch. 

The next day (May 10), Scott Stratton pitched well, but lost 2-1 to the Cowboys. Stratton pitched well, issuing no balls and giving up three hits. However, catcher John Kerins allowed three passed balls, which proved devastating to the Colonels. The Colonels hit well, but ran themselves off the bases. All-in-all, a frustrating day on the field.

The next day featured heavy hitting and four double plays between the two combatants and it looked like yet another defeat for Louisville, but a three run ninth tied the game and sent it to extra innings. Unfortunately, about half of the crowd left in frustration and didn't see the rally.

Pete Browning saved the game in the tenth, once again displaying his unheralded defensive prowess, making a circus catch for the third out, stranding two Kansas City players in scoring position.

"Chicken" Wolf drove in the winning runs in the eleventh, and Louisville eked out the win. 

After the game, the Colonels departed Louisville and went up the Ohio to the Queen City, to pay a visit to the Reds.

In the first game of the four game tilt, "The Louisville Club added another chapter to its spring serial of base-ball ill luck" as it lost 8-3 to the Reds.

The Colonels, in desperate need for help, met with Toad Ramsey and successfully came up with an agreement, lifting his suspension. Ramsey "looking fresh as a buttercup" pitched well, but not as well as Cincinnati's Lee Viau, who also had strong support from his Association-leading Reds. 

A steady rain fell the next day (May 15) as both teams hit well, but Cincinnati hit better, winning 8-4. Tony Mullane started for the Reds and the Colonels hit "The Apollo of the Box" hard (Browning going 4-4), but the Reds defense bailed him out throughout the contest.

The Cincinnati Enquirer stated the Colonels, "disgusted with Ramsey's conduct" were entertaining offers for Toad Ramsey. Louisville wanted $10,000.00 for their former ace, whom the Enquirer implied had seen better days. Even though the Colonels and Ramsey had came to an amicable agreement, Louisville felt they could lose as easily without their former star as with him. This was another indicator of the ill-mood of the club.

Louisville closed out the series on the business end of the broom as the Reds swept them with a 5-3 win. Despite Guy Hecker's pitching, "poor old Louisville (was) again the sufferer" according to the Enquirer. Hecker had good speed and Cincinnati had difficulty with his deliveries, but they managed to hit him nonetheless.

As May passed it's midpoint, the Colonels were in trouble, they stood seventh in the eight team American Association with an 8-16 record. Only the hapless Cowboys played worse ball at this point. As the Colonels chugged east to play Association stalwarts in Philadelphia and Brooklyn, things looked bleak indeed.

The Louisville Courier-Journal, Cincinnati Enquirer, www.newspapers.com, and www.baseball-reference.com all contributed mightily to this article.

Monarchs Sucessfully Defend Waveland Cup

Special to The Faded Chalklines Blog-

The Monarch Club of Moscow, Ohio successfully defended the high honors from winning last year's inaugural Waveland Cup in fine form this afternoon at Waveland State Historic Site in Lexington.

They proved themselves worthy of the name of the city which doomed Napoleon as they gave the Bluegrass Barons Club of Lexington and the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame the Waterloo treatment.* Tallying the most runs and giving up the fewest, the Monarchs turned back the stern challenge offered by their esteemed opponents, taking the trophy back to their noble town on the north bank of the Ohio.

A large throng of spectators saw a first rate stick-work and capital defense which shone throughout the three contests today as the Hall of Fame Club defeated the Monarchs, the Barons defeated the Hall of Fame Red Stockings, and the Monarchs defeated the Barons.

With such exciting feats of base ball, hope abounds among the leaders of Lexington's vintage club of a challenger within Central Kentucky to spread the gospel of the 1860s version of the National Game.

(*I hope the dear reader pardons me for mixing my Napoleonic references.)

The Ballist's Bookshelf: The Great Baseball Revolt

While on a family vacation to Arizona, I managed to finish another book pertaining to the era which is the focus of this blog. It's titled The Great Baseball Revolt: The Rise and Fall of the 1890s Players League by Robert Ross and published by the University of Nebraska Press.

By the late 1880s, labor relations in baseball reached its nadir. The owners of clubs held tight grip on the salaries and the destinies of the players, which limited the say players had pertaining to their freedom as employees.

The reserve clause ruled the business side of the game by this point. The reserve clause bound a player to his club for as long as the owner pleased, dictating salary, prohibiting a player from entertaining other contracts, and ensuring better profits for the owners. Owners ran the game, they controlled the business of it, the reserve clause infuriated the players, but that was hardly the only thing that drew their ire.

Owners kept salaries artificially low, through various means, the most hated and nefarious being the Brush Classification System. Devised by Indianapolis owner John Brush, it graded players on ability, physical health, and personal habits and determined their salaries as a result. By this time, the best players rarely made more than $2,500.00 a year. A fantastic salary for the era to be sure, but one contrived in the owners' favor.

The artificially capped salaries proved to be part of the problem. Sometimes players didn't get paid for their services, either due to the club's unwillingness or inability to pay. Owners figured ways to deduct salaries, from fines to deducting the laundering of uniforms from their pay.

In addition, woe betide the man who fell injured. Many instances saw players lamed on the field not receive pay while recuperating, what's worse is when they recovered, they didn't necessarily have a roster spot to return. Replacements sometimes supplanted those hurt, but the reserve clause still bound the man to his club. This placed a man in a payless, play-less purgatory.

The environment proved perfect for rebellion, and John Montgomery Ward led the revolt. Ward, a former pitcher and current shortstop for the New York Giants was more than one of the preeminent players of the era. Armed with a law degree from Columbia University, Ward had an intellectual capacity that matched his ability to hit or defend the middle of the infield. This combination, plus his disgust with the owners, made him the ideal leader for the Players League.

By 1890, the time proved right for the players to assert their rights. A new league to rival the National League and American Association made it's debut. The league had strong investors and most importantly, the best players in the nation (to include Louisville's Pete Browning).

However, three major leagues vied for the fans' hearts and-more importantly-their dollars. The talent pool in the American Association and the National League thinned as the ranks of the Players League swelled with the best players the nation had to offer.

Louisville won its solitary major league pennant in 1890, one year after an execrable 1889 campaign (which we'll discuss later). One can make a good argument that the dilution of talent in the major leagues helped to mightily contribute to its miraculous turnaround. All three leagues faced the brink, but it seemed the Players League had the upper hand.

With these advantages, the future looked promising for the players, but would they be able to fulfil the promise? How did the labor struggles in the national game figure in to the larger struggles in American labor as a result of the Industrial Revolution?

Robert Ross tackles these issues in his recent look at the Players League. The above topics are discussed, but most importantly, he links the player's struggle with the struggle of those in America's working class. As industrialization transformed America, the gulf between those who produced and those who profited widened by the day. The Gilded Age of America saw great wealth and crushing poverty. The disparities occurred in all industries, even baseball.

The players looked out for their interests, but really saw their struggle as one with them against the owners, and really didn't sympathize a great deal with the burgeoning struggle between capital and labor in general. While organized labor saw the players as kindred spirits in the fight, the Players League didn't exactly reciprocate.

However, the players weren't the only laborers whose livelihoods lay in the balance. Those who built the parks, made the equipment, and tended the fields all had a stake in the game. Unfortunately, many times in the founding of the Players League, the concern of those who ran the new league and its players proved myopic when it came to the logistical support of the game.

For those looking for page after page of diamond heroics, this won't satisfy you. For those looking at a strict monograph, you'll be pleased to a degree. But for people interested in the labor history of the game and the labor history of the United States, this is your book. It weaves a history of labor and baseball and does a good job of giving an overview of the situation facing the players at this point in the game's history and their attempt at redressing the inequities.

My biggest complaint is that it, like many baseball books treats the American Association as a bit of an afterthought. But that is more a personal pique rather than any real flaw with the book.

It's worth a look for anyone who wants to understand the era this blog covers or those who are interested in the game's difficult history regarding labor.

The biggest thing to realize about professional baseball, especially the finances of the game, there were never any "good old days" of apple pie, mom, and puppies when it came to capital and labor or how the behind the scenes deals enabled the action on the field.

Since the beginnings of professionalism, it's been a ruthless and many times heartless endeavor. Both sides want theirs and will do their best to get it, for the bulk of the game's history, the owners have mostly been on the winning side. But with the death of the reserve clause in 1976, the players' prospects have taken an obvious uptick as evidenced by player salaries (fully earned in this author's opinion).

The Great Baseball Revolt reminds us of this struggle and how important it is to the history of the game and our nation.