Volume 17 , Issue 47

February 1907 - The Ball Season

It was in The Houston Post, Houston, Texas, 24 February, Sunday, page 20, that we found this article concerning "The Ball Season." It was soon to crack open and players would begin to arrive. The Cardinals would be there next week. Houston would have a fine aggregation of ball players that year and should make a strong bid for the rag.

Found on Newspapers.com

In ten days more the dull roar of the basest would be heard in the land and the box score would make its appearance on the sport page. It seems but a short time since we were wondering how the White Sox managed to beat the Cubs, and in ten brief days the St. Louis Cardinals would be prancing around the ball yard.

McCloskey and his help would leave St. Louis March 5 and arrive here March 7, and would remain with us for three weeks, getting in condition for the chase after the merry memento of baseball greatness. Kroger and Crawford would join the team here and the southpaw would be one of the star flingers of the St. Louis bunch. McCloskey regards him highly. Crawford's chances for making the team were not so bright, and it looked as if he would be traded to some league where the company was not so fast. However, McCloskey would give him another chance to make good. McCloskey would bring an entire different team from what he had here last year.

All managers of Texas league baseball clubs were now inquiring and arranging the cheapest railroad rates possible for the transportation of their players from pints north and east to Texas. These were busy days for managers, and little did the general public know or realize of the time, trouble and correspondence it required of the business manager of a baseball club to successfully secure a competent man to represent his respective tour or city in the coming season.

To the average mind and casual observer, when the baseball season ended in September, to his way of thinking and so far as he was concerned, the baseball was ended, and was not thought of again during the long, dull winter months. Little did he know of the trials and troubles of the secretary and business manager of a baseball club to secure available playing talent for next season, especially after a pennant winning club had been riddled by the draft and sale of players during the drafting season, lasting from October 15 to January 15. Any club in the minor league class was subject to a draft of from one to a dozen of its players and the trouble all falls on the club scout or secretary to secure competent men to fill their places. This usually kept him busy during the winter months, carrying on a correspondence with different players, clubs and managers trying to fit the places of the men his club had lost by drafts, sale, suspension, incompetence and other causes.

The coming baseball season was being anxiously watched by all baseball enthusiasts, as they knew that the all-state league means that they were to be treated to gilt-edge baseball all season and no question that there would be many close and thrilling contests on the local diamond.

The formation and maintaining of this present circuit of baseball clubs meant better baseball, better games, better attendance and more interest all around by the general public, and it was to be hoped that the present circuit of clubs would remain intact throughout the season.

Manager Rielly had secured one or two contracts this week, the principal one being that of George Emery, an all around utility man. He comes highly recommended by good edges of ball players and was touted to be a good one.

All managers were now hustling to send contracts by registered mail to all their players of last season, as the baseball laws of the National agreement required that every player under reserve must be presented a new contract prior to March 1.
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