On This Date: Steele Loses, Wahpeton Saga Continues, Wilmot Fired

July 22, 1897 - Fred Steele fared better in his second start for the Divorcees, but still ended up on the losing end of a 8-3 game against Wahpeton-Breckenridge. Steele, the 21-year-old pitcher from Neola, IA, had a terrible debut for Fargo against Moorhead on June 12th, giving up six runs and lasting just two innings. On this day, Steele was a bit erratic, throwing a wild pitch, walking six, and hitting a batter, but he and the Fargo club entered the ninth inning tied 3-3. The final inning was disastrous,though,  as Steele gave up four hits and the team committed four errors.

Though Wahpeton-Breckenridge certainly enjoyed their come from behind win on the Fargo grounds, it still appeared that all was not well for the Methodist franchise. The uncertainty surrounding the future of the W-B team was addressed publicly by Manager Ed Corbett. In the Forum, (July 23) Corbett denied rumors that the Methodists were to be transferred to Crookston to finish out the season, and reasserted clearly that his team was perfectly stable. The coming days would prove otherwise.

Also on this date, Walter Wilmot, player/manager of the Minneapolis Millers of the Western League, was relieved of his duties. The Forum cited the Minneapolis Journal, who accused Wilmot of "poor fielding, poor batting, and worse management in releasing good players." A rumored theory was that Wilmot was trying to devalue the franchise to allow his old friend and Chicago Colt manager Cap Anson to take ownership of the team at a discount rate. Throughout 1897, Anson had worked with Wilmot in the development of a quasi-farm system between Chicago of the National League, Minneapolis of the Western League, and the teams of Red River Valley League. This working relationship is what led Deacon Phillippe and other Western League players to the valley in 1897. With Minneapolis struggling in the standings after some questionable personnel decisions, Wilmot quickly fell out of favor with the Miller magnates. Though Wilmot would return to the Minneapolis franchise the following season, Anson moved on to manage the National League's New York Giants, ruining any future hope of a farm system involving teams in the Red River Valley.* Without big-league backing, the RRVL never got off the ground for the summer of 1898.

*Wilmot, who played six years for Anson in Chicago, spent 35 games as a player for Cap's Giants team in 1898.

Fargo Forum and Daily Republican July 23, 1897 p.4
"Lost in the Ninth" and "After Wilmot" 

On This Date: Rain in Fargo, Storm Brewing in Wahpeton

July 21, 1897 - Wahpeton-Breckenridge received a message to stay home and not travel to Fargo for a series with the Divorcees. The field conditions were still poor from a recent rain. In a strange way, this may have been a blessing for the W-B team. Whispers were appearing in the local papers hinting that the Methodists were in financial trouble. Saving the team boarding costs for the night was fortunate in this light. Interestingly, the next day, the team would take a freight train to Fargo to begin the rain-delayed series. This method of transportation may very well have been a cost-cutting measure, a cheaper option compared with booking a passenger car for the players. In the coming days, the valley would come to learn just how desperate the situation had become for Manager Ed Corbett's club.

The folks in Crookston apparently were downwind of the whispers. The Forum reported that the city was positioning itself to join the RRVL for the remainder of 1897. By July 25, serious talks were in the works to transfer the Wahpeton-Breckenridge franchise north to Crookston, where the team would finish the season.

A Few Reasons Why Baseball Was Better Then

There are plenty of things to like about baseball today. Anywhere we are, we can see our favorite major league team in action on television or online. The detailed statistics and rich history of the game make for great conversation and analysis. Baseball is still played outside on beautiful summer days and evenings. Discrimination doesn't keep certain players out of the big leagues. Despite all this, there is something to be said about the way baseball used to be. I would enjoy it if these aspects of the 1897 game were still prevalent today:

1) Pitchers pitched the whole game, nearly all of the time. None of this 5 1/3 innings and go to the bullpen stuff. You finished what you started. And you didn't get five days off between starts, either, despite pitching more innings per start. A three man rotation was a luxury. And no one knew what a pitch count was.

2) They only used a few baseballs per game, at the most. Going through three baseballs in one game was relatively unusual. Today, going through three baseballs in one inning is remarkably rare. The thing that might drive me the most crazy about major league baseball today concerns pitches in the dirt. Watch an inning on television, and you will see what I mean. When the baseball hits the dirt, its life in the big leagues is over. It is thrown out of play, automatically. They say it has something to do with the dirt not really being dirt and scuffing up the ball much more than natural stuff. (However, I will concede that one benefit of today's approach is it allows for fans to keep foul balls as souvenirs.)

3) Nearly all players, even major leaguers, played mostly for love of the game and not for insane sums of money. Fortunately, this is a characteristic that has endured in most minor leagues, and I think it adds a unique feel to those games. There are too many major league players who don't seem to really mind if they strikeout or give up a home run. They sometimes lack that competitive, scrappy edge that players of old had in abundance. And they seem less like "regular guys", which has always been a strength of baseball.

4) The players faced more adversity, in general. Long train rides, no air conditioning, frequent doubleheaders, no night games, no guaranteed contracts, primitive facilities and equipment, and the list goes on.

These are obviously fairly subjective items, but these are some of the things that I think baseball could benefit from still having. In a perfect world, perhaps.

On This Date: Western League Notes (Post #50!)

Thank you all for reading! This is post #50!

July 18, 1897 - Though the Fargo team began a stretch of three scheduled days off, there was still baseball news of interest to the local fans. The Forum reported on Deacon Phillippe's first start on his return to Minneapolis, giving his Red River Valley fans a glimpse of his work in the Western League. The paper's account said Phillippe pitched well, giving up only eight hits, and went on to blame Minneapolis second baseman Fred Roat's two errors for the loss. Not entirely surprisingly, the Forum account was a bit biased, omitting the fact that Phillippe gave up five runs. However, according to the game box score, none of the runs allowed were earned. The Miller fans were likely pleased with the Deacon's performance.

On the same day, player/manager Connie Mack's Milwaukee Brewers, also of the Western League, won a 15 inning marathon against the Indianapolis Indians by a score of 4-3. Born Cornelius Alexander McGillicuddy, Mack is best known for his incredible longevity as a major league manager. He went on to win 3728 games in the major leagues, managing the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-1950. The "Tall Tactician" was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937, while still a manager, and would not retire from his post with the A's until age 87. Remarkably, Mack began his playing career during Chester A. Arthur's presidency and retired during Harry S. Truman's presidency. Truman was born in 1884, the year Mack began his professional baseball career as a player.

Fargo Forum and Daily Republican July 20, 1897 p.4 "Doing Good Work"
Box score information from The Sporting Life July 24, 1897 p.15
Connie Mack's statistics found at http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=mack--001con

On This Date: Fargo Pounded, Protested Game Settled

July 17, 1897 - Fargo failed to capture a series win against Grand Forks, surrendering 14 runs to the Senators in the finale of a four game home stand. Oscar Peterson was on the mound for Fargo, and struggled mightily, allowing eleven to score while recording only nine outs. The knockout punch for Peterson was a mammoth three-run home run smashed by Sid Adams to begin the fourth inning. The young southpaw Gus Munch came in to relieve Peterson and pitched well, striking out seven in six innings of work. Fargo had to settle for a 2-2 series split with the Senators.

Some bad blood between first baseman Peaceful Valley Brown and Umpire Arthur Lyons came to the surface in the eighth inning. Presumably a rift had developed between the two while Lyons was playing for Fargo early in the season. With Brown at-bat, Lyons made a strike call that Brown clearly disagreed with. Later in the at-bat, Brown slashed a ball down the third-base line that got by Grand Forks third baseman Joe Marshall. The problem for Brown was that the ball had failed to stay fair, and the general consensus was that Lyons had made the correct call in ruling the hit foul. Nonetheless, Brown was angered by the call and barked at Lyons for some time before being ejected. Some fans who had a bad angle on the play also gave ol' "Tige" an earful, and one crank was rowdy enough for a policeman to be summoned. The Divorcees could not afford to lose Brown, since Deacon Phillippe had just returned to Minneapolis, Fred Steele was playing in Sheldon, and Catcher Hayes hadn't yet arrived from Omaha. Luckily for Fargo, team captain George Keas was able to convince Lyons to let Brown remain in the game. It wasn't much help for Fargo, though, who already trailed by double digits at the time of the ejection, and they lost 14-3.

The game wasn't a total loss for the Divorcees. Fargo's nomad second baseman, Josh Reilly, apparently had made quite an impression on the local fans by mid-July. Before one of Reilly's at-bats, a female admirer gave him a bouquet of flowers as a sign of appreciation. Reilly doubled in the at-bat.

Also on July 17, RRVL officials and managers met to discuss the matter of several protested games. While two decisions regarding protests were referred to National League President Nick Young for further review, the league board did rule on one game. The result of the June 26 Fargo vs. Moorhead match up featuring Umpire Tupper's egregious missed call was thrown out by the board, and the game was set to be replayed at a later date (see "It Was Larceny" for more details on the June 26 contest). 

Sunday Argus July 18, 1897 p. 8 "It Was Awful" 

Fargo Forum and Daily Republican July 19, 1897 p.4 "We Were Easy"

On This Date: Phillippe Pitches Final Game for Fargo

July 16, 1897 - Charles "Deacon" Phillippe played his final game with Fargo, as the Minneapolis Millers of the Western League had called the right-hander back to their club. Phillippe said his farewell to Fargo by giving the home fans a victory over Grand Forks. He went nine innings for the Divorcees, surrendering seven hits and five runs. In the ninth inning, Fargo was down 5-3 and had two men on base, but were down to their final out. Josh Reilly stepped to the plate and blasted a triple against the left field fence, scoring two men to tie the game. Bill Zink followed with the game-winning single that sent the Fargo fans into a frenzy. Though the Deacon hadn't pitched great, his teammates helped give him a great sendoff with the walk-off win.


The Forum lamented Phillippe's departure and correctly predicted he "...will be a world beater someday." The pitcher took the No. 4 rail the next night to Minneapolis and rejoined the Millers. Despite not making his major league debut until age 26 (with Louisville in 1899) Phillippe would go on to win 189 big league games.

Fargo Forum and Daily Republican July 17, 1897 p.25 "A Garrison Finish"

On This Date: Fargo Rebounds, Defeats Senators

Fargo enjoyed redemption in game two of their four game series with Grand Forks, winning 6-3 to even the series at a game a piece. Shortstop Bill Zink was the star for the Fargo nine, pounding out a home run and a double, while pitcher Oscar Peterson surrendered just three hits in nine innings of work. Peterson struck out the side in the fifth inning and added three hits of his own batting ninth in the lineup for the Divorcees. Deacon Phillippe showed his versatility and athleticism by manning right field for Fargo, helping in the absence of the team's outfielder Hopkins, who continued to recover from an injury sustained three days earlier against Moorhead. The umpire for the contest was Arthur "Tige" Lyons, who would officiate all four games of the series.

Standings published by the Forum

Team                      W-L          PCT
1. Moorhead          18-8           .692
2. Grand Forks      16-13         .552
3. Wahp-Breck      12-16         .429
4. Fargo                 10-19         .345

Fargo Forum and Daily Republican July 16, 1897 p.4 "Easy For Us"