Chapter 22

FIELDERS' AVERAGES. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- P A P u s E e G t s r r a i r c m O s o e e u t r n s t s s t No. Name. Club. . . . . . ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Clymer Buffalo 61 152 11 4 .976 2 Drauby Buffalo 37 67 5 5 .960 2 Welch Syracuse 108 225 19 10 .960 4 Lyons Providence 108 294 27 14 .956 4 Gore Binghamton 48 99 10 5 .956 6 Simon Syracuse and Troy 114 265 15 13 .955 7 Scheffler Troy and Springfield 112 175 23 12 .942 8 Hoffer Buffalo 19 45 3 3 .941 9 Collins Buffalo 125 299 34 21 .940 10 Wood Yonkers 22 42 3 3 .937 11 Griffin Buffalo and Syracuse 106 178 13 13 .936 12 Lally Erie 108 239 17 18 .934 13 Knight Wilkes-Barre and Providence 113 307 13 24 .930 14 Van Dyke Erie 108 219 23 20 .923 15 Johnson Troy and Scranton 111 312 24 31 .915 16 Betts Wilkes-Barre 107 302 23 31 .912 17 Shearon Erie 103 163 21 18 .910 18 Payne Binghamton and Syracuse 47 58 9 7 .905 19 Bottenus Springfield 110 267 6 31 .898 20 Daly Buffalo 82 137 17 18 .895 21 Murray Providence 108 144 26 21 .890 22 Lezotte Wilkes-Barre 63 112 7 15 .888 22 Carr Binghamton 15 32 2 4 .888 24 Connors Binghamton 19 37 2 5 .886 25 Hess Wilkes-Barre and Scranton 74 136 8 20 .878 26 Nadeau Springfield 85 187 17 30 .871 27 Lytle Wilkes-Barre and Binghamton 87 196 34 36 .864 28 Hoover Syracuse and Scranton 83 152 12 27 .858 29 Friel Spr'gf'ld, Binham'n, Scranton 60 96 5 11 .857 30 Pettit Providence and Wilkes-Barre 57 98 5 12 .830 31 Rogers Scranton 18 32 2 7 .829 32 P. Sweeney Yonkers 17 34 4 8 .825 33 Costello Yonkers 13 28 2 7 .810 34 Sheehan Springfield 32 36 6 7 .728 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

CLUB BATTING AVERAGES. ----------------------------------------------- A B S P t a t e s o B r B R e H l a C a u i e s e t n t n e n s s s s t No. CLUB. . . . . . ----------------------------------------------- 1 Buffalo 4630 1022 1500 154 .323 2 Springfield 4004 942 1268 184 .316 3 Providence 4210 842 1306 365 .310 4 Syracuse 4092 814 1260 186 .307 5 Binghamton 3018 585 919 128 .304 6 Wilkesbarre 3949 773 1196 136 .302 6 Erie 4018 751 1214 194 .302 8 Troy 2775 588 821 97 .295 9 Scranton 1269 200 372 154 .293 10 Yonkers 735 118 220 28 .288 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

CLUB FIELDING AVERAGES. ------------------------------------------------------------- P P A e u s E r t s r i r C O s o e u t r n t s s t No. CLUB. . . . . ------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Providence 2825 1357 257 .942 2 Erie 2776 1399 281 .936 3 Troy 1968 940 194 .934 3 Springfield 2779 1286 285 .934 5 Syracuse 2754 1380 310 .930 6 Buffalo 3011 1442 369 .923 7 Wilkes-Barre 2457 1191 354 .918 8 Binghamton 1916 967 276 .916 9 Yonkers 410 263 68 .902 10 Scranton 794 357 138 .892 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

#The Presidents of the National League.#

This is the twentieth year of the existence of the National League, and in all that time but four members of the League have occupied the presidential chair, viz., Morgan G. Bulkeley, ex-Governor of Connecticut; the last W.A. Hulbert; A.G. Mills, the leading spirit of the great New York Athletic Club, and N.E. Young, the present highly-esteemed and worthy President of the League. Mr. Bulkeley served during 1876; Mr. Hulbert from 1876 to his death in 1882; Mr. Mills from that date up to 1884, when business requirements led to his resignation, and Mr. Young since then. From the organization of the National League in 1876 to the day of his death, Mr. Hulbert was the great moving spirit in the reforms in the government of the professional clubs of the country, which marked the period from 1876 to the eighties. It was his influence, largely, which led to the war upon the "crookedness" which marked the early years of professional base ball history, in which pool gambling was the potent factor. It took years of cohesive and even arbitrary legislation to eliminate the poison of the pool rooms from the professional system, but success was finally achieved, and to the late President Hulbert and his able coadjutors in the League does the credit of this success belong. During the League regime, under President Mills, the great union safety compact, known as the National Agreement, sprang into existence, and its author--Mr. Mills--at this day has reason to be proud of the good work he did for professional ball playing, and for the benefit of the game at large, in the perfecting of this bond of union between the reputable clubs of the professional fraternity. The wisdom of the measure, as a protection against the abuses of "revolving" and "contract breaking," has been very strikingly shown by court decisions which oblige professional clubs to depend entirely upon base ball law, and not the common law, for the preservation of their club rights in contracting with players for their services on the field. Since Mr. Mills left the League arena he has done most efficient service in conserving the best interests of the New York Athletic Club and those of the clubs of the Amateur Athletic Union at large.

The great master of League records, and the whilom Secretary of the League since its organization, Mr. Young, is known throughout the entire base ball world, alike for the integrity of his character, the geniality of his disposition and the marked industry and persevering application which has characterized the discharge of his onerous official duties.

It is well known that "Old Nick" is frequently alluded to in daily life as the arch-fiend of the world; but the Old Nick of the base ball arena presents a character the very opposite in every respect of his devilish namesake--the one being the spirit of evil, and the other the spirit of honor and good nature. Long may he live to honor the position and uphold the reformation in the base ball world which his predecessors so creditably originated and supported.

Mr. Young is a native of Amsterdam, N.Y. He was but a mere boy at the outbreak of the war between the States, but he was game to the core and among the first from his home country to enlist in the Union service. Just before the war he appeared as an athletic young fellow with muscles that would have done credit to one as large again as he was. He was looked on as the best cricket player in the section of the country in which he lived, playing frequently on elevens which had besides himself George and Harry Wright as members. You should hear Nick relate anecdotes of his career as a cricketer. At the close of the war Mr. Young made Washington his residence, and securing a position in the Second Auditor's Department, being an excellent accountant, he has occupied his position through several administrations. From cricket he became interested in the national game of base ball, and eventually, in connection with Mr. A.G. Mills, he started the old Olympic club of Washington, and then it was that he took the field again. In 1871 he was elected Secretary of the old "National Association of Base Ball Players"--not of clubs, but of players--and in 1884, he succeeded Mr. Mills as President of the National League, which organization succeeded the National Association, which had become rotten.

* * * * *

THE PLAYING RULES OF PROFESSIONAL BASE * BALL * CLUBS

As adopted by the National League and American Association of Professional Base Ball Clubs.

THE BALL GROUND.

RULE 1. The Ground must be an inclosed field, sufficient in size to enable each player to play in his position as required by these Rules.

RULE 2. To lay off the lines governing the positions and play off the Game known as _Base Ball_, proceed as follows:

From a point, A, within the grounds, project a right line out into the field, and at a point, B, 154 feet from point A, lay off lines BC and BD at right angles to the line AB; then with B as centre and 63.63945 feet as radius, describe arcs cutting the lines BA at F and BC at G; BD at H ; and BE at I. Draw lines FG, GE, EH and HF, and said lines will be the containing lines of the Diamond or Infield.

THE CATCHER'S LINES.

RULE 3. With F as centre and 90 feet radius, an arc cutting line FA at L, and draw lines LM and LO at right angles to FA; and continue same out from FA not less than 90 feet.

THE FOUL LINE.

RULE 4. From the intersection point, F, continue the straight lines FG and FH until they intersect with the lines LM and LI, and then from the points G and H in the opposite direction until they reach the boundary lines of the grounds.

THE PLAYERS' LINES.

RULE 5. With F as centre and 50 feet radius, describe arcs cutting lines FO and EM at P and Q, then with F as centre again and 75 feet radius describe arcs cutting FG and FH at R and S; then from the points P Q R and S draw lines at right angles to the lines FO, FM, FG, and FH, and continue same until they intersect at the points T W and W.

THE CAPTAIN AND COACHERS' LINE.

RULE 6. With R and S as centres and 15 feet radius, describe arcs cutting lines RW and ST at X and Y, and from the points X and Y draw lines parallel with lines FH and FG, and continue same out to the boundary lines of the ground.

THE THREE FOOT LINE.

RULE 7. With F as centre and 45 feet radius, describe an arc cutting line FG at 1, and from 1 out to the distance of 3 feet draw a line at right angles to FG, and marked point 2; then from point 2, draw a line parallel with the line FG to a point 3 feet beyond the point G, and marked 3; then from the point 3 draw a line at right angles to line 2, 3, back to and intersecting with line FG, and from thence back along line GF to point 1.

THE PITCHER'S PLATE.

RULE 8. With point F as centre and 60.5 feet as radius, describe an arc cutting the line FB at a point 4, and draw a line 5, 6, passing through point 4 and extending 12 inches on either side of line FB; then with line 5, 6, as a side, describe a parallelogram 24 inches by 6 inches.

THE BASES.

RULE 9. Within the angle F, describe a square the sides of which shall be 12 inches, two of its sides lying upon the lines FG and FH, and within the angles G and H describe squares the side of which shall be 15 inches, the two outer sides of said square lying upon the lines FG and GI and FH and HI, and at the angle E describe a square whose side shall be 15 inches and so described that its sides shall be parallel with GI and IH and its centre immediately over the angular point E.

THE BATSMAN'S LINE.

RULE 10. On either side of the line AFB describe two parallelograms 6 feet long and 4 feet wide (marked 8 and 9), their length being parallel with the line AFB, their distance apart being 6 inches, added to each end of the length of the diagonal of the square within the angle F, and the centre of their length being upon said diagonal.

RULE 11. The Home Base at F and the Pitcher's Plate at 4 must be of whitened rubber and so fixed in the ground as to be even with the surface.

RULE 12. The First Base at G, the Second Base at E, and the Third Base at H, must be of white canvas bags, filled with soft material, and securely fastened in their positions described in Rule 9.

RULE 13. The lines described in Rules 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 must be marked with lime, chalk, or other suitable material, so as to be distinctly seen by the Umpire.

THE BALL.

RULE 14. The Ball.[A] [Footnote A: The Spalding League Ball has been adopted by the National League for the past sixteen years, and is used in all League contests.

For junior clubs (clubs composed of boys under 16 years of age) we recommend them to use the Spalding Boys' League Ball, and that games played by junior clubs with this ball will count as legal games the same as if played with the Official League Ball.]

SECTION 1. Must not weigh less than five nor more than five and one-quarter ounces avoirdupois, and measure not less than nine nor more than nine and one-quarter inches in circumference. The Spalding League Ball, or the Reach American Association Ball, must be used in all games played under these rules.

SECTION. 2. For each championship game two balls shall be furnished by the Home Club to the Umpire for use. When the ball in play is batted to foul ground, out of sight of the Umpire, the other ball shall be immediately brought into play. As often as one of the two in use shall be lost a new one must be substituted, so that the Umpire shall at all times after the game begins have two balls for use. The moment the Umpire delivers an alternate ball to the pitcher it comes into play, and shall not be exchanged until it, in turn, passes out of sight to foul ground.

SECTION. 3. In all games the ball or balls played with shall be furnished by the Home Club, and the last ball in play becomes the property of the winning club. Each ball to be used in championship games shall be examined, measured and weighed by the Secretary of the Association, inclosed in a paper box and sealed with the seal of the Secretary, which seal shall not be broken except by the Umpire in the presence of the Captains of the two contesting nines after play has been called.

SECTION. 4. Should the ball become out of shape, or cut or ripped so as to expose the interior, or in any way so injured as to be, in the opinion of the Umpire, unfit for fair use, he shall, upon appeal by either Captain, at once put the alternate ball into play and call for a new one.

THE BAT.

RULE 15. The Bat.

Must be made entirely of hard wood, except that the handle may be wound with twine, or a granulated substance applied, not to exceed eighteen inches from the end.

It must be round, not exceed two and three-quarter inches in diameter in the thickest part, and must not exceed forty-two inches in length.

THE PLAYERS AND THEIR POSITIONS.

RULE 16. The players of each club in a game shall be nine in number, one of whom shall act as Captain, and in no case shall less than nine men be allowed to play on each side.

RULE 17. The players' positions shall be such as may be assigned them by their Captain, except that the pitcher must take the position as defined in Rules 8 and 29.

RULE 18. Players in uniform shall not be permitted to occupy seats among the spectators.

RULE 19. SECTION 1. Every club shall adopt uniforms for its players, but no player shall attach anything to the sole or heel of his shoes other than the ordinary base ball shoe plate.

SECTION. 2. The catcher and first baseman are permitted to wear a glove or mitt of any size, shape or weight. All other players are restricted to the use of a glove or mitt weighing not over ten ounces, and measuring in circumference around the palm of the hand not over fourteen inches.

PLAYERS' BENCHES.

RULE 20. The Players' Benches must be furnished by the Home Club, and placed upon a portion of the ground outside of, and not nearer than twenty-five feet to, the players' lines. One such bench must be for the exclusive use of the visiting club, and one for the exclusive use of the home club, and the players of the competing teams shall be required to occupy their respective benches while not engaged in active play.

THE GAME.

RULE 21. SECTION 1. Every Championship game must be commenced not later than two hours before sunset.

SECTION. 2. A Game shall consist of nine innings to each contesting nine, except that

(a) If the side first at bat scores less runs in nine innings than the other side has scored in eight innings, the game shall then terminate.

(b) If the side last at bat in the ninth innings scores the winning run before the third man is out, the game shall terminate.

A TIE GAME.

RULE 22. If the score be a tie at the end of nine innings, play shall be continued until one side has scored more runs than the other in an equal number of innings, provided that if the side last at bat scores the winning run before the third man is out the game shall terminate. A DRAWN GAME.

RULE 23. A Drawn Game shall be declared by the Umpire when he terminates a game on account of darkness or rain, after five equal innings have been played, if the score at the time is equal on the last even innings played; but (exception) if the side that went second to bat is then at the bat, and has scored the same number of runs as the other side, the Umpire shall declare the game drawn without regard to the score of the last equal innings.

A CALLED GAME.

RULE 24. If the Umpire calls "Game" on account of darkness or rain at any time after five innings have been completed, the score shall be that of the last equal innings played, unless the side second at bat shall have scored one or more runs than the side first at bat, in which case the score of the game shall be the total number of runs made.

A FORFEITED GAME.

RULE 25. A forfeited game shall be declared by the Umpire in favor of the club not in fault, at the request of such club, in the following cases:

SECTION 1. If the nine of a club fail to appear upon a field, or being upon the field, fail to begin the game within five minutes after the Umpire has called "Play," at the hour appointed for the beginning of the game, unless such delay in appearing or in commencing the game be unavoidable.

SECTION. 2. If, after the game has begun, one side refuses or fails to continue playing, unless such game has been suspended or terminated by the Umpire.

SECTION. 3. If, after play has been suspended by the Umpire, one side fails to resume playing within _one minute_ after the Umpire has called "Play."

SECTION. 4. If a team resorts to dilatory practice to delay the game.

SECTION. 5. If, in the opinion of the Umpire, any one of these rules is willfully violated.

SECTION. 6. If, after ordering the removal of a player as authorized by Rule 59, Sec. 5, said order is not obeyed within one minute.

SECTION. 7. In case the Umpire declares a game forfeited, he shall transmit a written notice thereof to the President of the Association within twenty-four hours thereafter.

NO GAME.

RULE 26. "No Game" shall be declared by the Umpire if he shall terminate play on account of rain or darkness, before five innings on each side are completed, except in a case when the game is called, and the club second at bat shall have more runs at the end of its fourth innings than the club first at bat has made in its five innings, then the Umpire shall award the game to the club having made the greatest number of runs, and it shall be a game and be so counted in the Championship record.

SUBSTITUTES.

RULE 27. SECTION 1. In every championship game each team shall be required to have present on the field, in uniform, one or more substitute players.

SECTION. 2. Any such player may be substituted at any time by either club, but no player thereby retired shall thereafter participate in the game.

SECTION. 3. The Base Runner shall not have a substitute run for him except by consent of the Captains of the contesting teams.

CHOICE OF INNINGS--CONDITION OF GROUND.

RULE 28. The choice of innings shall be given to the Captain of the Home Club, who shall also be the sole judge of the fitness of the ground for beginning a game after rain.

THE PITCHER'S POSITION.

RULE 29. The Pitcher shall take his position facing the Batsman with both feet square on the ground, and in front of the Pitcher's plate, but in the act of delivering the ball one foot must be in contact with the pitcher's plate, defined in Rule 8. He shall not raise either foot, unless in the act of delivering the ball, nor make more than one step in such delivery. He shall hold the ball, before the delivery, fairly in front of his body, and in sight of the Umpire. When the Pitcher feigns to throw the ball to a base he must resume the above position and pause momentarily before delivering the ball to the bat.

THE DELIVERY OF THE BALL--FAIR AND UNFAIR BALLS.

RULE 30. A Fair Ball is a ball delivered by the Pitcher while standing in his position, and facing the Batsman, the ball so delivered to pass over the Home Base, not lower than the Batsman's knee, nor higher than his shoulder.

RULE 31. An Unfair Ball is a ball delivered by the Pitcher, as in Rule 30, except that the ball does not pass over the Home Base, or does pass over the Home Base above the Batsman's shoulder or below the knee.

BALKING.

RULE 32. A Balk shall be:

SECTION 1. Any motion made by the Pitcher to deliver the ball to the bat without delivering it.

SECTION. 2. The holding of the ball by the Pitcher so long as to delay the game unnecessarily.

SECTION. 3. Any motion in delivering the ball to the bat by the Pitcher while not in the position defined in Rule 29.

DEAD BALLS.

RULE 33. A Dead Ball is a ball delivered to the bat by the Pitcher that touches any part of the Batsman's person or clothing while standing in his position without being struck at; or any part of the Umpire's person or clothing, while on foul ground, without first passing the Catcher.

RULE 34. In case of a Foul Strike, Foul Hit ball not legally caught out, Dead Ball, or Base Runner put out for being struck by a fair hit ball, the ball shall not be considered in play until it is held by the Pitcher standing in his position, and the Umpire shall have called play.

BLOCK BALLS.