Category: Union-grounds

The Union Triumphant: Game Two

10/31/2014

The Great Base Ball Match Between The Empire And Union Clubs, Second Game - The Union Victorious. - In accordance with the published announcement, the second game in the contest between the Empire and Union Base Ball Clubs for the State championship came off at the grounds of the latter yesterday afternoon. The weather was highly favorable, and quite a large and respectable concourse of spectators assembled to witness the game. The play on both sides was good, and the interest sustained throughout. The contest was unusually close. The terrible defeat they experienced at the first had evidently stirred up the Empire men to their metal, and they played their best, but without avail, for victory again perched on the banners of the Union, the score, at the close, standing for the Union 34 and for the Empire 32. This, however, is a noble defeat, of which there is no cause to be ashamed, and although the triumph of the Union is now complete, the contest was as close almost as it was possible to be...

The game occupied three hours and thirty-five minutes. The Union has thus won the championship, and the boys are confident they can keep it for many a long day.

-Missouri Republican, July 11, 1867

While the series itself wasn't that great, this game looks to have a darn good one. The lead changed hands several times early and the Empires keep coming at the Union. The big blow was the eight runs that the Union put up in the seventh inning, which pretty much sealed the game. That ninth inning must have been something, with the Empires' comeback just falling short.

Here's Tobias' account of the match:

The second game of the series took place July 10 on the new grounds of the Union Club, on Grand near Franklin ave., and drew a very large attendance, the price of admission being placed at 25 cents, ladies free, and this was the beginning of admission fees to the games. The fact that the Empire Club had lost the former game of this series enhanced the interest of all lovers of the sport and particularly were the friends and supporters of the two clubs stirred up over the probable result. The arrangements for the convenience of the public were quite superior to anything heretofore furnished though not sufficiently strong as was demonstrated during the game. On the East side of the grounds near the Grand avenue entrance were located covered seats for ladies and their escorts, while on the south side were those designed for men and boys who had no objection to a sun bath. It was this latter portion of the amphitheatre that proved to be a weak brother by suddenly giving way and tumbling the occupants in a confused mass to the ground. Fortunately no serious injury was sustained by anyone. The playing of both nines was not equal to expectations, being marked by weak batting and faulty catching. The Empire suffered by the absence of two of its best men, Barrett and Hazleton. Wirth, Murphy, Barron and Duffy, the wiry little catcher who always was ready with his tongue as his hands, carried the honors of the day for the Empires, as did Cabanne, R. Duncan, Meacham and McCorkle for the Union nine. The Duncan brothers proved valuable acquisitions to their new love, both being quick, active fielders, handy with the willow and tenacious ball-takers. The result of this game crowned the Union Club with the long coveted hard fought for and fairly won honor of “champions” by the score of 34 to 32...

This game, having wrested from the Empires the championship title for the year, two days thereafter Capt. Jerry Fruin promptly presented Capt. E.C. Meacham the championship trophies held by the Empire Club, viz. a ball that had been won in 1866 and the belt which Martin Collins, Esq., an honorary member of the Empires, had presented to it as a prize to be played for and awarded to whatever club should wrest it from the Empires. After a few explanatory remarks regarding these trophies, Capt. Fruin gracefully surrendered them in behalf of his team.

Of interest in Tobias' account is the contention that this was the first time that admission had been charged for a baseball game in St. Louis. This is possible, as there is some hint in the Republican of July 10, 1867, that the Union Grounds were new and had just been "fitted up." It's an interesting idea, especially given the fact that the Nationals of Washington had some complaints about the field when they played the Unions later in the month

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The Union Triumphant: Enclosed Grounds

10/30/2014

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The Base Ball Championship. - The second championship game between the Empires and Unions will take place this afternoon at 3 o'clock, on the grounds of the Union Club.

We hope to see a huge attendance, as the Union Club deserves great credit for the manner in which they have fitted up their grounds. It is the first attempt in this city to establish enclosed grounds, and we wish them success.

-Missouri Republican, July 10, 1867

This is extremely significant. We've always known that the Union Grounds, which opened in 1867, were the first enclosed grounds in St. Louis but the evidence for that had always been found in the secondary source material. Here, we have primary source evidence stating that the Union Grounds were the first enclosed grounds in the city.

What's the big deal about enclosed grounds? With enclosed grounds, you're charging for admission and, when a club is making money, that money is usually going, at least in part, to the players. With the advent of enclosed grounds, you begin to see the beginnings of professional baseball. From this point forward, I would argue that the best clubs in St. Louis were compensating their players in some form. Professional baseball in St. Louis traces its beginnings to the construction of the Union Grounds in 1867.

Prior to this, you really didn't see players jumping from club to club but you begin to see it in 1867. Tobias mentioned the Duncan brothers, who had jumped from the Empires to the Unions and most likely changed the balance of power among the top St. Louis clubs in 1867. Tom Oran would jump from the Unions to the Empires to the Reds. I would argue that these guys were jumping clubs for money.

These clubs wanted to compete for the national championship and the championship of Missouri and they needed the best players they could find. The St. Louis clubs were not the first to pay their players and there is evidence of player compensation in the antebellum era so I think that the St. Louis clubs saw this and adopted the tactics of the Eastern clubs. If the big Eastern clubs were building enclosed grounds, charging for admission, and using that revenue to buy players, the St. Louis clubs, if they wanted to compete with the big clubs, had adopt the same tactics.

I always argue that this was Asa Smith's plan. He wanted the Union Club to compete for the national championship and to do that, he needed to take steps to bring his club and St. Louis baseball generally into what I have always called "the baseball mainstream." By that, I mean that St. Louis baseball was a little bit behind the times and that they needed to adapt to the newest baseball trends being adopted by the Eastern clubs. Missouri needed a state association. The clubs needed to join the NABBP. There had to be a state championship. There had to be enclosed grounds. There had to be road trips. There had to be games played against the highest level of competition. There had to be compensation for players so that you could put together the best possible nine. And Smith advocated for all of that and, I think, achieved it. The only thing that was really missing from his plan was the recruitment of players from outside St. Louis and a tour of the East.

In the end, the Union Club was not good enough to compete for the national championship and this failure was a serious setback for baseball in St. Louis. By the end of the 1869 season, it was obvious to all that the best St. Louis clubs could not compete with the best Eastern clubs and, as a result, there was a bit of a decline in the popularity of the game in the city that wouldn't be overcome until 1874. A St. Louis club wouldn't serious attempt to compete for the national title again until 1875.

But this failure in the second half of the 1860s shouldn't be seen negatively. Smith had a vision for what St. Louis baseball could be and that vision was, in the end, proved correct. He did everything he thought was necessary, improved the quality and nature of baseball in St. Louis, and should be remembered as one of the great pioneers of the game. Smith, in the end, was right. St. Louis baseball clubs could compete for a national title. They could compete with the best clubs in the nation. To do that, they just had to go out and buy the best players they could find. Smith's failure was that he didn't see the need to go outside of St. Louis to get players. If he had done that, the history of baseball would have been very different.

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The Union Triumphant: Game Two

The Union Triumphant: Enclosed Grounds

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