Spalding's Baseball Guide And Official League Book For 1889 Part 13

"Spalding is justly regarded as one of the most successful of the strategic cla.s.s of pitchers. In judgment, command of the ball, pluck, endurance, and nerve, in his position he has no superior; while his education and gentlemanly qualities place him above the generality of base- ball pitchers. As a batsman he now equals the best of what are called 'scientific' batsmen--men who use their heads more than their muscle in handling the ash. His force in delivery is the success with which he disguises a change of pace from swift to medium, a great essential in successful pitching. Spalding is a thorough representative of the spirited young men of the Western States, he being from Illinois."

Of George Wright the same writer said: "George Wright is generally regarded as a model base-ball player, especially in his responsible position of short-stop; and until he injured his leg he had no equal in the position. He is a jolly, good-natured youth full of life and spirit, up to all the dodges of the game, and especially is he noted for his sure catching of high b.a.l.l.s in the infield, and for his swift and accurate throwing. At the bat, too, he excels; while as a bowler, fielder, and batsman, in cricket, he ranks with the best of American cricketers. He comes of real old English stock, his father being a veteran English cricketer, and formerly the professional of the St. George Cricket Club of New York."

Besides the base-ball matches played during the tour, the following table shows what the two clubs combined did on the cricket field, against the strongest players of London, Sheffield, Manchester and Dublin. The sides in each contest were eighteen Americans against twelve British cricketers:

AMERICANS vs. AMERICANS. OPPONENTS.

-----------+-------------------+----------------+------------ 1st. 2d. Total 1st. 2d. Total -----------+-------------------+----+----+-----+----+----++------ Aug. 3,4 12 Marylebone 107 --- 107 105 --- 105 Club on Ground at Lords Aug. 6,7 11 Prince's C. C. 110 --- 110 21 39 60 at Prince's Aug. 8 13 Richmond C at 45 --- 45 108 --- 108 Richmond[1] Aug. 13,14 11 Surrey C. S. at 100 111 211 27 2 29 Ovalt[2] Aug. 15,17 12 Sheffield, at 130 --- 130 43 45 88 Sheffield Aug. 20, 21 11 Manchester, at 121 100 221 42 53 95 Manchester Aug. 24, 25 11 All Ireland, at 71 94 165 47 32 79 Dublin ____ ____ _____ ____ ____ ____ Totals 684 305 989 393 171 564

[Footnote 1: Unfinished innings, only six wickets down.]

[Footnote 2: Second innings unfinished, only four wickets down.]

The ball players did not lose a single game, and had the best of it in the games which were drawn from not having time to put them out. The trip cost the two clubs over $2,000, exclusive of the amount received at the gate. In fact, the Britishers did not take to the game kindly at all.

To show what the All England eleven could do in the way of playing base ball, the score of a game played in Boston in October, 1868, after the All England eleven had played their cricket match there, is given below:

American Nine 3 2 0 0 1 6 3 5 0 20 English Cricketers' Nine 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4

George Wright pitched for the cricketers, the nine including Smith c; Tarrant 1b; Peeley 2b; Shaw 3b; Humphrey ss; Jupp lf; Clarkwood cf, and Rowbotham rf.

The American nine was a weak picked nine, including O'Brien--a Boston cricketer--and Archy Buch, of Harvard, as the battery; Shaw, Barrows and Lowell on the bases; Pratt as short stop, and Smith Rogers and Conant in the out field.

In all the base-ball games in which the English professional cricketers took part during their visits to America from 1859 to 1880, they failed to begin to equal in their ball play the work done by the ball players in cricket in England.

THE GREAT BASE BALL TRIP AROUND THE WORLD IN 1888-'89.

[Ill.u.s.tration: ALL AMERICA.

BROWN FOGARTY CARROLL WARD HEALY HANLON WOOD CRANE MANNING EARLE.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: CHICAGO TEAM.]

The greatest historical event recorded in the annals of the national game was undoubtedly the journey to Australia, which began in November, 1888, and ended in March, 1889, on a trip around the world. While in 1874 Mr. A.

G. Spalding was the _avant cornier_ of the visiting party of base ball players to England, and also one of the most prominent of the victorious team players; in 1888 Mr. Spalding was the originator of the trip, the master spirit of the remarkable enterprise, and the leader of the band of base ball missionaries to the antipodes. Of course, in recording the Australian trip in the GUIDE for 1889, only a cursory glance can be taken of the trip, as it would require a volume of itself to do the tour justice. Suffice it to say that the pluck, energy and business enterprise which characterized the unequaled event reflected the highest credit not only on Mr. Albert G. Spalding, as the representative spirit of Western business men, but also on the American name in every respect, and it did for the extension of the popularity of our national game in six short months what as many years of effort under ordinary circ.u.mstances would have failed to do.

The party of tourists which started on their journey to Australia on October 20, 1888, met with an enthusiastic welcome on their route to San Francisco, and in that city they were given a reception on their arrival and a send-off on their departure for Australia, unequaled in the history of the game on the Pacific coast. The record of the series of games played by the two teams--Chicago and All America--en route to San Francisco and while in that city, is appended:

DATE CLUBS. CITIES. PITCHERS. SCORE.

-------+------------+--------------+----------------+------- Oct. 20 Chicago vs. Chicago Spalding, 11--6 America. Hutchinson " 21 " " " St. Paul Baldwin, Healy 8--5 " 22 " " " Minneapolis Baldwin, Duryca 1--0 " 22 America vs. " Van Haltren, 6--3 Chicago. Tener " 23 Chicago vs. Cedar Rapids Tener, 6--5 America. Hutchinson " 24 America vs. Des Moines Hutchinson, 3--2 Chicago. Baldwin. " 25 " " " Omaha Healy, Ryan 12--2 " 26 Chicago vs. Hastings Baldwin, 8--4 America. Van Haltren " 27 " " " Denver Tener, Healy 16--2 " 28 America vs. " Crane, Baldwin 9--8 Chicago. " 29 Chicago vs. Colorado Ryan, Healy 3--9 America. Spr's " 31 America vs. Salt Lake Crane, Tener 19--3 Chicago. City Nov. 1 " " " " " " Healy, Baldwin 10--3 " 4 " " " San Francisco. " " 4--4 " 11 " " " " " Van Haltren, 9--6 Tener " 14 Chicago vs. Los Angeles Baldwin, Healy 5--0 America. " 15 America vs. " " Crane, Tener 7--4 Chicago.

The teams, when they left San Francisco on November 18, 1888, included the following players:

CHICAGO TEAM.

A. C. Anson, Capt. and 1st baseman.

N. F. Pfeffer, 2d baseman.

Thos. Burns, 3d baseman.

E. N. Williamson, .short stop.

M. Sullivan, left fielder.

Jas. Ryan, center fielder.

R. Pett.i.tt, right fielder.

Thos. P. Daly, catcher.

J. K. Tener, .pitcher.

M. Baldwin, pitcher.

ALL AMERICA TEAM.

J. M. Ward, Capt. and short stop.

G. A. Wood, 1st baseman.

H. C. Long, 2d baseman.

H. Manning, 3d baseman.

J. Fogarty, left fielder.

E. Hanlon, center fielder.

J. C. Earl, right fielder.

F. H. Carroll, catcher.

John Healy, pitcher.

F. N. Crane, pitcher.

Earl also acted as change catcher. The All America team included players from the League clubs of New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Pittsburg and Indianapolis, and from the American a.s.sociation clubs of Cincinnati and Kansas City. Mr. Spalding stood at the head of the tourist party, with Mr.

Leigh S. Lynch as his business manager, and H. H. Simpson as a.s.sistant, Mr. J. K. Tener being the treasurer and cashier.

The record of the games played by the two teams with outside clubs en route to San Francisco and in California is as follows:

DATE. CLUBS. CITIES. PITCHERS. SCORE.

-------+--------------------+-------------+---------------+------- Oct. 21 St. Paul vs. Chicago St. Paul Duryea, Tener 8-5 Nov. 6 Haverly vs. America San Francisco Anderson, Crane 12-5 " 8 Chicago vs. Stockton Stockton Tener, Harper 2-2 " 8 Pioneer vs. America San Francisco Purcell, Healy 9-4 " 9 America vs. Stockton Stockton Crane, Baker 16-1 " 10 Chicago vs. Haverly San Francis...o...b..ldwin Inal 6-1

While en route to Australia the tourists stopped at Honolulu, where they were given a public reception, by King Kalakaua, but their first game played after they had left California was at Auckland, where they first realized what a cordial reception the Australians had prepared for them.

On their arrival at Sydney, and afterward at Melbourne, the hearty welcome accorded them, not only as ball players but as representatives of the great Western Republic, was such as to surpa.s.s all their antic.i.p.ations, the heartiness of the greeting, the boundless hospitality and the crowded attendance at their games imparting to their visit a brilliancy of success which fully remunerated Mr. Spalding for all the pecuniary risks he had incurred by the trip. It was originally intended to have made the tour of the colonies a more extended one than was afterward found possible, and so the sojourn of the players on the Australian continent ended sooner than antic.i.p.ated, only four cities being visited, instead of eight or ten, as laid out. The record of the games played in Australia is as follows:

DATE. CLUBS. CITIES. PITCHERS. Score.

-------+-------------------+---------+--------------+------- Dec. 10 Chicago vs. America Auckland Baldwin, Crane 22-13 " 15 America vs. Chicago Sydney Healy, Tener 5-4 " 17 " " " " Healy, Baldwin 7-5 " 18 " " " " Healy, Tener 6-3 " 22 Chicago vs. America Melbourne Tener, Crane 5-3 " 24 America vs. Chicago " Healy, Ryan 10-13 " 26 " " " Adelaide Healy, Tener 19-14 " 27 Chicago vs. America " Baldwin, Healy 12-9 " 28 " " " " Ryan, Simpson 11-4 Dec. 29 America vs. Chicago Ballarat Healy, Baldwin 11-7 Jan. 1 Chicago vs. America Melbourne Tener, Healy 14-7 " 1 " " " " Baldwin, Crane 9-4 " 5 " " " " Baldwin, Crane 5-0 " 26 America vs. Chicago Colombo Crane, Baldwin 3-3

After leaving Australia the tourists called at Colombo, Ceylon, and from thence went to Cairo, and while in that city visited the Pyramids, and they managed to get off a game on the sands in front of the Pyramid Cheops on Feb. 9. Their first game in Europe was played at Naples on Feb. 19, and from there they went to Rome, Florence and Nice, the teams reaching Paris on March 3. The record of their games in Europe is as follows:

DATE. CLUBS. CITIES. PITCHERS. Score.

-------+-------------------+--------+---------------+------- Feb. 9 America vs. Chicago Ghiz eh Healy, Tener 9-1 " 19 " " " Naples Healy, Baldwin 8-2 " 23 Chicago vs. America Rome Tener, Crane 3-2 " 25 America vs. Chicago Florence Healy, Baldwin 7-4 March 3 Paris

In commenting on the physique of the American ball players, the editor of the Melbourne _Argus_ says:

"Right worthy of welcome did those visitors appear-stalwarts every man, lumps of muscle showing beneath their tight fitting jersey garments, and a springiness in every movement which denoted grand animal vigor and the perfection of condition. We could not pick eighteen such men from the ranks of all our cricketers, and it is doubtful if we could beat them by a draft from the foot ballers. If base ball has anything to do with building up such physique we ought to encourage it, for it must evidently be above and beyond all other exercises in one at least of the essentials of true athletics."

The Melbourne _Sporteman_ in its report of the inaugural game in that city, said: "The best evidence offered that Melbournites were pleased and interested in the exhibition lies in the fact that the crowd of nearly ten thousand people remained through not only nine but twelve innings of play, and then many of them stayed to see a four inning game between the Chicago team and a nine composed mainly of our local cricket players, who made a very creditable show, considering the strength of the team they were playing against, and the fact that they were almost utter strangers to base ball. Not only did the spectators remain upon the ground but they heartily applauded the heavy batting, the base running and base sliding and the brilliant fielding executed by our Yankee visitors. Perhaps the truest realization of just how difficult it is to play a finished game of base ball was obtained by the cricketers who went in against the Chicagos.

A man may be able to guard a wicket with a degree of skill that would win him wide fame in cricket circles, but when it comes to standing beside the home plate of a base ball diamond, and mastering the terrific delivery of an American professional pitcher, the average cricketer is compelled to acknowledge the wide difference existing between the two positions. Then again, the quick handling of a batted or thrown ball, that it may be returned with all accuracy and lightning like rapidity to the waiting bas.e.m.e.n are points which our cricketers are deficient in, when compared with the American professional ball player. It can be seen at a glance that the game is prolific of opportunities for quick and brilliant fielding."

The following is the score of the first match at cricket played by the base ball tourists with Australian cricketers in Sydney on December 18, 1888:

BASE BALL EIGHTEEN.

Anson, b. Charlton 15 Williamson, c. Woolcott, b. Charlton 0 Ward, b. Charlton 1 Spalding, b. Charlton 0 Wright, b. Gregory 11 Pfeffer, b. Gregory 16 Wood, b. Gregory 0 Carroll, c. Robinson, b. Gregory 0 Earle, st. Crane, b. Gregory 0 Fogarty, b. Charlton 0 Burns, b. Charlton 10 Hanlon, hit wicket, b. Gregory 2 Manning, c. Woolcott, b. Gregory 14 Pett.i.t, b. Gregory 3 Ryan, c. Robinson, b. Gregory 3 Sullivan, c. Halligan, b. Gregory, 0 Baldwin, not out 0 Sundries 5 ---- Total 81