Clipping:A secret AA meeting; a move to oust Wikoff; dissension in the AA; the guarantee system
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
 |
| Add a Clipping |
| Date | Sunday, July 31, 1887 |
|---|---|
| Text | The first ripple of excitement that precedes the war of the clubs which will be inaugurated before the arrangements for the two big organizations are completed for next season occurred at New York on Tuesday last, when four of the American Association clubs held a secret conference. The clubs represented were Louisville, St. Louis, Cleveland and the Metropolitan. Charges of incompetency were preferred against President Wikoff. It was intimated that it had been intended to take a vote to oust Wikoff, but the failure of William Barnie, of Baltimore, who was expected to hold a proxy from the Athletics, to arrive in time, left the meeting without a majority of clubs necessary to act in the matter. It was finally agreed to hold a special meeting of the Association in New York on September 3, and the four clubs present united in an open call to President Wikoff to call the meeting. This is the news of the conference as it came over the wires, but there was considerably more that did not reach the newspapers. The absence of such a representative as President Charles H. Byrne, of the Brooklyn Club, was of course marked. Mr. Byrne did not receive an invitation from the meeting, simply because he has always championed Wikoff’s cause. It has been alleged that Wikoff has always acted in the interest of the Brooklyn Club to the detriment of the other clubs of the Association, and this was one of the principal charges brought against him. The Cincinnati Club was not represented at the meeting; neither was the Athletic Club, of this city. “We knew nothing about it,” said Lew Simmons, “and I do not know as we would have sent a representative, anyhow.” Trouble has been brewing in the Association ranks for some time, and all efforts to stave it off have failed. There is cause for alarm in President Von der Ahe’s threat to join the National League. The loss of such a club, and such a team by the Association at this time would be a sad blow. The present compact circuit is strong in every way. The cities are just about the right distance apart; all have populations capable of supporting good clubs, and there has been such an improvement in equalizing the playing strength of the teams that the contests between them grow more exciting and attractive every day. Enemies of the Association have been pitching into Von der Ahe, and have been advising it to adopt such legislation as would drive the champion Browns out of the organization altogether. They argue that the vacancy could be easily filled. So it could. Buffalo is the most available city so far offered, and Buffalo would not doubt jump at an Association franchise. But Buffalo would never fill the gap. It could not support a League club, and an Association team in that city would have to be a winner to prove self-supporting. A losing club there would simply prove a drag to the Association. No city or club that could be secured would prove the drawing attraction away from home that the St. Louis Club is, and the Association club s would find a marked falling off in their receipts. The Association cannot afford to lose any of its clubs at this time, more especially St. Louis. The present trouble in the Association is not so much President Wikoff’s incompetency, and the umpires, as it is something else. The desire of St. Louis, and perhaps one or two other clubs, to obtain a more equitable division of the gate receipts has had more to do with it than anything else. The present system, which gives the visiting club a guarantee of sixty-five dollars per game, and allows the home club to retain the remainder of the receipts, has not proven satisfactory to Von der Ahe, and he inaugurated a movement to have it changed, so that the visiting club should share in a percentage of the receipts. His trouble with the Association now is identical with that of Detroit with the League. The difference is this, that while Detroit’s threats to jump into the Association have been rapturously applauded by the organs, Von der Ahe’s threats to join the League have caused him to be jumped upon and denounced as a traitor to the Association. The Metropolitan Club has joined hands with St. Louis on the percentage plan and Managing Director Watrous says very plainly that the “Mets” will not continue in the Association unless the percentage plan is adopted. A vacancy in the Association ranks in the East would be more difficult to fill now than one in the West. Louisville is probably also in favor of the new deal and it is likely that Cleveland can be counted upon to support it. These four clubs seem to be alone, however, as it is authoritatively stated that Brooklyn, Baltimore, Cincinnati and the Athletics have entered into an agreement favoring the continuance of the present guarantee system. As it will require a two-thirds vote to amend the constitution it will be seen that there will be plenty of wire pulling between this and the annual meeting of the Association in December. |
| Source | Philadelphia Times |
| Tags | |
| Warning | |
| Comment | Edit with form to add a comment |
| Query | Edit with form to add a query |
| Submitted by | Richard Hershberger |
| Origin | Initial Hershberger Clippings |
Comments
<comments voting="Plus" />