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Past Champions |
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League Info |
League Date
September 1st, 1920
File Updated
April 17th, 1:00pm
Next Sim
April 18th, Noon
Available Teams
No Teams Available
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Potential Strike Instigated by Ballplayer Wives |
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Written by Pete Kahle
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Saturday, 07 February 2009 |
Commissioner Frick Intervenes
March 1st, 1954
Baseball commissioner Ford Frick was forced to step in to settle a rising dispute in the baseball community, arising from an unexpected source.
Player wives, particularly those of players associated with the Chicago White Sox, agitated for changes to baseball's policies regarding the trading of player contracts. While their theats were non-specific in nature, both players and executives appeared to be quite concerned about the situation.
"Something must be done," said an agitated Thomas Griffin, vice-president and general manager of the St. Louis Cardinals. "Something really must be done before we lose this great game of ours."
"I think most women know what they're getting into when they marry a baseball player," said Darlene Daggett, spokeswoman for the players' wives. "A man can make a good living as a professional baseball player, and provide a good life for his family. Frequent moves are part of the game, and we understand that when our men sign contracts. But this is ridiculous."
 Daggett's plight has become the centerpiece of the controversy. Her husband, "Deacon" Daggett, had a fairly typical career as a professional ballplayer. He was drafted as a 22 year old pitcher out of Brigham Young University in 1945, worked his way up to the big leagues in 1947, and has been a consistent and well-regarded player since. He was traded to the Philadelphia Athletics in July of 1948, and then to the Chicago White Sox just prior to the season in 1951. Then things heated up for Deacon... and not incidentally, for Darlene.
Daggett played but one season for the White Sox, and was traded to the Brooklyn Dodgers prior to the 1952 season. Then, just weeks ago, Daggett was traded back from the Dodgers to the White Sox. Darlene had had enough.
"I put my foot down. I said 'Fine. We'll pack up the kids and the house and move back to Chicago, but that's it. No more.'" It took practically no time at all for her threat to be put to the test. Just days after the trade to the White Sox, and while Darlene was finishing the arrangement for the family's housing and schools for the couple's four children, they received another call, informing the 30 year old pitcher he had been dealt again, this time to Cincinnati. Even before the uproar began, one National League GM was quoted as saying "Daggett's getting tossed around like old luggage."
Darlene Daggett started calling. She called friends made during her time in Chicago, the wives of (mostly former) White Sox players who had been traded multiple times. They called their friends made in other cities with other organizations, and before long an ad-hoc coalition had been formed. On Tuesday, a shaken Ned Whitestone, owner and president of the White Sox, was calling Ford Frick, informing him that the White Sox might not be able to take the field on opening day, so many of their players were leaving spring training without leave.
"It's like they don't think their decisions affect anyone but themselves," fumed one wife. "Our husbands are not robots. We're human beings attempting to live real lives, and raise real families. We aren't fictitious playthings for a bunch of bored baseball fans with no lives and bad personal hygiene."
Fortunately for baseball fans across the nation, Commissioner Frick was able to come to an arrangement with the coalition, allowing all players to return to work, and mollifying if not completely satisfying the angry women. "I think the changes we've agreed to will not harm the game in any way," said Frick. "Our baseball men will have to adjust to a new way of doing business with each other, but I do not doubt that their creativity and competitive spirit will not be dulled by minor restriction on their movements."
Some wives were far more demonstrative in their response to the restrictions on player trades. "Thank ******* God," said Darlene Daggett. |
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Better Late Than Never for Fox and the Giants |
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Written by Heinz
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Tuesday, 19 August 2008 |
 The Giants knew they should have acted sooner. Negotiations to add Quincy Fox to the ballclub could have been wrapped up on the evening of July 29th, but instead the Giants were stubborn. They didn't want to include big league OF Dave McAleer in the deal, but finally relented, not until the late late hours on July 30th.
Then, all hell broke loose.
First, word of the trade wasn't easy to manage. Not when the players being traded from Pittsburgh to New York were still on a train from St. Louis to Chicago for their upcoming series against the Cubs. Luckily the team had just pulled into Chicago, but that meant another long one for Fox and Koenig. Then, the train broke down. Twice.
Giants manager Cal Marble was unsure what to do. He wanted to get Fox into the starting lineup, but without his actually being there, was forced to let Yappie McCloud have one last go-round out in center. Fox and Koenig, both exhausted from their trip arrived in the bottom of the 5th, just as McCloud was grounding into a double play with 2 runners on and 1 out. That was the 3rd out for McCloud on the day and he managed to leave 5 runners on in 3 trips to the plate.
 In the top of the 7th Fox sidled up next to Marble. After some brief talk and former Giant Ethan Tate's Sacrifice Fly made the game 5-3, Fox said "Coach, you guys brought me here to play. I don't need to take the day off, I want in the ball game"
The home half of the 7th provided the perfect entrance for Fox into Giants lore. With one away, Mitch Gilstrap laced a double and the Dodgers walked the hot-hitting Bob Tcherkezian. With Merchant coming down with the flu and McCloud on deck, Marble rolled the dice and first sent Dusty Feinberg out to pinch hit and he walked, loading the bases. The decision from here couldn't have been easier. Marble replaced McCloud with his new weapon of choice and watched as Black Bart launched the 2nd pitch he'd seen as a Giant 454 feet into deep left-center for a Grand Slam and a 9-3 lead.
The team weathered a couple late Dodger homeruns, winning 9-6 in the end with the Grand Slam making all the difference.
Yappie McCloud, one of the most well-liked Giants on the team, said after the game "Well, since I don't think I've hit a grand slam since the late 30's, I believe I'm going to train to be the team cheerleader and bat boy" |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 19 August 2008 )
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Phillies Owner Banned from Baseball for Gambling |
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Written by JT
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Sunday, 13 July 2008 |
 In 1940, Cox bought the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball's National League. At only 30 years, he was the youngest owner in baseball.
At the time Cox took over, the Phillies had been the dregs of the National League for almost 30 years; they hadn't finished above .500 since 1915. This was at least in part because the team's owners had been unwilling or unable to spend the money necessary to build a winner. Cox, however, was not afraid to spend what it took to get the Phillies out of the cellar. He significantly increased the team's payroll, and devoted significant resources to player development (including the farm system) for the first time in the history of the franchise. He also hired Butch Dempsey, as manager.
However, Cox was a very hands-on owner. He'd played baseball at Yale, and still thought of himself as a star athlete. Believing the team needed to be better conditioned, he hired his high school track coach, Harold Bruce, as team trainer. Cox even suited up for workouts, and frequently showed up at the clubhouse before and after games. All of this grated on Dempsey, and when he protested against Cox's interference, Cox fired him on Feb 20 in a press conference--without bothering to tell Dempsey first. The players threatened to go on strike in protest, but Dempsey urged them to drop those plans. However, the next day, Dempsey dropped a bombshell at his hotel room in Philadelphia--he had evidence that Cox was betting on his own team. When Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis got wind of Dempsey' charges, he launched an immediate investigation. Despite this, the Phillies showed signs of respectability for the first time in years.
Initially, Cox denied any wrongdoing, but conceded that some of his business associates bet on the Phillies. As the investigation progressed, Cox changed his story and admitted making some "sentimental" bets on the Phillies. He claimed, however, that he didn't know it was against the rules. This made no difference to Landis, who suspended Cox indefinitely on March 1st. Cox immediately resigned as team president, but appealed Landis' ruling two weeks later. At a March 20 hearing, Dempsey testified that he'd heard Cox's secretary ask 3b Mike Pope who had a history with horse betting in the minors about the odds for a game between the Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers in 1943. When Dempsey asked, "Do you mean to tell me Mr. Cox is betting on baseball?" the secretary replied that it was common knowledge in the Phillies office. On the basis of this and other evidence, Landis made the suspension permanent--thus making Cox the first non-player to be banned from baseball by Landis. Mike Pope was also banned for life |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 July 2008 )
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