Battle for Control of the National League, 1901-02 

After the 1891 season, the two existing major leagues, National League and American Association, merged to form the National League and American Association of Professional Baseball Clubs. This title proved unwieldy thus the league would predominantly be referred to as the National League.

The new conglomeration was chartered for ten years. Nick Young was selected as president, a title he held from 1882-1902. He was also secretary and treasurer for much of that time. 

Near the end of those ten years, the National League was in upheaval, mainly due to the rise of the American League. The American League proved very successful in 1901 in not only luring quality talent into its fold but in taking much of that talent from the established league.

The upstart league also moved into established National League territories and “pilfered” fans and their entertainment dollars from the National League. In only a few months Ban Johnson and his league took significant National League talent, moved into its territories and capture a good deal of their traditional fan base. 

We know today that the National League survived and actually thrived; however, the initial shock severely threatened NL magnates and their investments. A few of those magnates panicked and set about to radically change the industry. The kicker is – they would be in control of that industry as well. 

THE PLAN 

Beginning at the latest in July 1901, Frank Robison of the Cardinals, John Brush of the Reds and Andrew Freedman of the Giants began exchanging words, both oral and written, to the point of creating a baseball trust along the lines of the American Bicycle Trust, one of the top sports in the country at the time.

Robison believed that the ten-year agreement that the league made in 1891 was due to expire and thus a complete reevaluation of the league’s goals and business structure were warranted. 

The bicycle trust was pushed by Al Spalding with the intended purpose of pooling the interests of the largest manufacturers. This implied the potential destruction and elimination from the market of the smaller manufacturers. As everyone knows, this push toward monopolization was common during the era. 

Thus, Robison, Brush and Freedman wanted a two-fold outcome. Primarily, they desired the consolidation of the National League into a single conglomerate with the expressed desire to subjugate the American League and other possible challengers. Secondly, the three, especially Brush and Freedman, wanted to control that entity. 

HOW IT WOULD WORK 

The plan was to pool the ownership of the eight National League clubs. At the time the National League was merely a voluntary business partnership. It was not incorporated. The clubs were incorporated in different states. The Giants, Dodgers and Pirates were actually New Jersey-based companies. The other five were incorporated in their home states. 

Common stock would then be issued according to relative (or perceived) value as follows: 

• New York, 30%
• Cincinnati, 12%
• St. Louis, 12%
• Boston, 12%
• Philadelphia, 10%
• Chicago, 10%
• Pittsburgh, 8%
• Brooklyn, 6% 

Note that controlling interest would lie in the hands of Brush and Freedman’s backers (which of course included the top four above: NY, CIN, STL and BOS). 

Furthermore, the trust plan called for a 7% dividend which would belong to the league itself to fund administrative costs. Of course, a new governing body would be needed, called the Board of Regents. The president would draw a salary of no more than $25,000, with $12,000 allotted the treasurer. Guess who would hold those offices. 

The Board of Regents would appoint all field managers (at $5,000 a year) and would license individual players the way jockeys were licensed. The board would then assign players among the clubs in any fashion it chose. 

THE SIDES 

The Freedman faction, as it would be called, set to unveil its plan and drive it through at the winter meetings in December 1901. However, significant opposition was already forming. With Nick Young’s contract up for renewal, the opposition was set to install a new president who was intent on not only defeating the trust idea but on expelling Freedman from the game. 

The National League met on December 10 at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City. The following were in attendance: 

• Boston: Soden, Conant, Billings
• Brooklyn: Ebbets, Abell, von der Horst
• Chicago: Hart
• Cincinnati: Brush, Lloyd
• New York: Freedman, Knowles
• Philadelphia: Rogers, Reach
• Pittsburgh: Dreyfuss, Pulliam
• St. Louis: Robison 

With the presidency of the league up for discussion Young excused himself from the meeting. Barney Dreyfuss of the Pirates promptly nominated Al Spalding for president. Charlie Ebbets of the Dodgers and John Rogers of the Phillies seconded the nomination. Robison then stood and declared that elections were senseless as the league’s charter was due to expire in a few days anyways (Robison was pushing the point that the league only made a ten year agreement to continue itself in 1891. Others simply viewed the National League as acting on in perpetuity).

Brush and Freedman then stood and requested a tabling of the election issue, pressing the point that the league first had to decide how the league was to be run (wishing to introduce the trust idea) before deciding who would run it. The pair then went into discussion of the baseball trust. 

With that, the sides were set. The league was essentially split in two:

• Spalding faction: Brooklyn, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia
• Freedman faction: New York, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Boston 

Of note here is the Boston club owned by Arthur Soden. Spalding had taken for granted that Soden would side with him. However, at some point Spalding made a remark along the lines that Soden “dare” not vote against him. Soden objected to the word dare and thus sat in defiance of Spalding (Spalding, for his part, insisted he meant nothing by the remark). 

THE ELECTION 

There was no agreement and wouldn’t be one for a long time. The owners met again on over the next few days but were still bickering, remaining deadlocked. Finally, on December 14 Phillies’ owner John Rogers announced the election of a new National League president – Al Spalding. 

The election was highly questionable though. Spalding had been verbally bashing Freedman for days at this point. He wanted the man out of the game. On the 14^th the sides, entrenched in their respective positions, continued to argue unrelentingly. The Freedman faction left meeting and took no further part in the election process. 

So how was Spalding elected without a quorum? Simple, Spalding and his faction sat at the table discussing business. When Giants’ secretary Fred Knowles popped his head in the room to see what was going on, Spalding hastily called a quorum and then an election took place, a 4-0 vote for Spalding. 

Spalding then appointed his committees for the year and made plans for setting a schedule. With that, Spalding adjourned the National League meetings for the year. 

INJUNCTION 

Of course, the Freedman faction had a problem with this. Freedman first charged that Spalding’s only interest was to further secure a contract for sale of his baseballs to the National League via his sporting goods company.

Freedman claimed that Spalding’s ten-year contract was expiring and that the move was solely financially related on Spalding’s part. Furthermore, he charged the National League owners $1.20 each for baseballs that only cost him $0.20 to manufacture. 

Freedman then filed for a temporary injunction. It was granted on December 16, restraining Spalding from acting as president, secretary or treasurer or any other office and from interfering in league matters. Nick Young was also forbidden from delivering any league books, papers, etc. to Spalding. 

Spalding continued to make speech after speech which declared that Freedman was out of the game. Spalding also secured the support of American League president Ban Johnson and Eastern League president Pat Powers. On the 17^th the owners returned home. 

In court on December 20 Spalding consented to a continuation of the injunction. An idea begins to float the following day that the Spalding faction may join with the eight American League clubs to form a twelve-team circuit. 

At this point the National League is left without a leader pending a court decision. Spalding advices NL magnates to plan for the upcoming season as the league itself will be unable to for some time. Nick Young is also unsure of his position in the game, including his duties and responsibilities. 

UNDERMINING THE OPPOSITION 

The Spalding men then moved to undermine the Freedman faction. Spalding set plans in motion to usurp Brush in Cincinnati. He plans to take the team from Brush and put it in the hands of Columbus and Cincinnati businessman Col. J.D. Ellison.

If that’s not successful Spalding is intent on placing an oppositional club in the city. Ban Johnson also traveled to Cincinnati to meet with Ellison to make plans for a possible American League franchise in Cincinnati; however, he planned to hold off on that idea pending Spalding’s plan. 

Spalding maintained open discussions with Young about the future of the league. Spalding also is courting Boston in an effort to regain their support. Boston by this time is more favorable to the Spalding group’s plans than to Freedman and Brush’s upheaval methods. 

Brush starts to waver as well. The public is particularly scornful of the whole “trust” issue. The politics of the era are changing; monopolies are falling out of favor with the American people. Brush begins to backtrack claiming that the trust idea wasn’t his – it was anyone else’s but his. 

Brush tried to put the blame on the one man opposing it the hardest – Spalding. Spalding did in fact contemplate the idea of a trust in baseball. He discussed it but clearly he wasn’t the one espousing it in December 1901. To expose Brush, Spalding asked Young to publish the minutes of the December 10 meeting which clearly showed that it was indeed Brush who was driving the topic. 

Spalding then met with Ban Johnson to show his reasonableness and straight thinking. The two decided that it would be best to have two different major leagues and that Spalding’s faction would not joined the AL. The further decided to work together on certain matters, such as, unifying the playing rules. 

Spalding then contacted Eddie Talcott, a millionaire and former owner of the New York Giants, in an effort to remove Freedman from the game and take over the New York franchise. Spalding is setting into motion a restructuring of the National League which would include the removal of Brush and Freedman. Spalding openly offers to retire from the league if Robison, Brush and Freedman will exit as well. 

THE FIGHT DRAGS ON 

The prospects for peace look rather bleak. Both sides are entrenched, blaming the other and reopening old issues and grudges against the other. Arthur Soden offers his Boston Brave up for sale on January 11. Spalding is in constant contact with Ban Johnson about the prospects for the upcoming season; however, Spalding is enjoined from acting for the league and thus cannot make plans and agreements. 

After weeks of teetering back and forth, Soden declares his support for Freedman on February 6. Meanwhile, Opening Day is rapidly approaching and no schedule or other matters have been addressed by the National League. Meanwhile, the Reds and Giants applied for admission to the American League. 

On March 12 the injunction hearing was heard in New York Supreme Court. The court will rule at the end of the month. Both sides come to terms on certain issue awaiting the court’s decision. If Spalding is denied the presidency by the courts, it is decided that Spalding will be re-nominated by his faction and the Freedman faction would put up Nick Young. The league would then begin re-balloting at the point it left off (as a whole) on December 13 – four votes for each Spalding and Young. 

On March 29, Judge Truax of the NY Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Freedman faction. Thus, Nick Young is still officially the president of the National League. The league immediately set about to create a schedule for the rapidly upcoming season. 

On April 1 the warring factions made peace, tentatively. The following day Spalding officially resigned his claim to the disputed presidency. Talcott is desired for the position but he refuses citing other personal and professional obligations. Brush and Freedman move to eliminate the position of president, instead replacing it with a committee of three.

Rejected, Soden and Pirates’ official Harry Pulliam were next considered for the position but both declined. The National League then unanimously selected William Temple of Pittsburgh (of Temple Cup fame) as president. 

Temple declined by telegraph the following day. The league then elected a three-man Advisory Board consisting of Brush, Hart and Soden. Young was elected secretary and treasurer. (On December 12, 1902 Nick Young formally resigned, the Advisory Board was abolished and Pulliam was unanimously elected president and also secretary and treasurer of the National League) 

The league then set its focus as it should have been in the first place – on the rival American League.

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