Baseball on Trial: The Origin of Baseball's Antitrust Exemption

2. The Opening Salvos

2 The Opening Salvos December 1913 to June 1914 The news of December 27, 1913, sent a shockwave throughout professional baseball: star shortstop Joe Tinker had signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Federals, or“ChiFeds,”for $12,000 per season.The future Hall of Famer—immortalized in Franklin P.Adams’s poem“Baseball’s Sad Lexicon” regaling the Chicago Cubs’ famed double play combination of “Tinker to Evers to Chance”—jumped to the Federal League after his contract was sold earlier that off-season from the Cincinnati Reds to Brooklyn for $25,000. Following the sale, Brooklyn rejected Tinker’s demand for a $7,500 salary, offering him no more than $5,000 per season.Tinker balked at the offer and instead agreed to terms with the ChiFeds on one of the richest contracts in baseball history, in the process giving the Federals instant credibility with other major league players.1 A driving force behind Tinker’s signing was Charles Weeghman, a recent investor in the ChiFeds. Weeghman was a self-made millionaire, having earned his fortune by opening a chain of twenty-four-hour, quick-service diners throughout Chicago. His involvement with the Federals would cause some of the more dismissive media outlets to dub the organization the “Lunch Room League” or the “Flap Jack Circuit.” Having long sought to enter professional baseball,Weeghman agreed to join the new organization after hearing a recruiting pitch by Federal League president Jim Gilmore. The Sporting News described the forty-year-old Weeghman as “a clean-cut man, as lively as a cricket,”and noted that“[w]hen he talks his voice is well modulated and good to hear.”2 Weeghman used his youthful energy to build his team and league. Upon learning of Tinker’s defection, Brooklyn announced that it would seek to enjoin him from playing in the Federal League prior to the start of Grow_text.indd 22 12/20/13 11:37 AM Charles Weeghman, the energetic head of the Chicago Federal League team (Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, LC-DIG-ggbain-17663) Grow_text.indd 23 12/20/13 11:37 AM 24 chapter two the 1914 season. In response, the Federals issued a statement denouncing the legality of the reserve clause and proclaiming that they would stand behind any player joining the league by furnishing his defense in court. Fearing that Tinker’s contract did not provide the strongest test case for determining the validity of the reserve clause—no doubt instead preferring to rely on the newly revised 1914 player contract in any litigation—the National Commission ultimately convinced Brooklyn owner Charles Ebbets not to pursue legal action. Instead, Brooklyn was left to fight it out with Cincinnati over the return of the $25,000 it had paid for the rights to Tinker.3 Tinker’s defection forced organized baseball to begin taking the Federal League challenge more seriously. The baseball press speculated that major league teams would be more amenable to compromising with players in salary disputes that off-season to prevent a mass exodus to the rival circuit. Recognizing that it had a fight on its hands, the National Commission sought to prevent other players from jumping to the new organization. American League president Ban Johnson attempted to deter players by publicly discrediting the benefits of joining the Federals, noting that the rival league’s standard player contract itself included both a reserve clause and ten-day release provision. Indeed, the Federal League contract did include both provisions. However, its reserve clause was more favorable to players, guaranteeing them at least a 5 percent raise each year and permitting them to become free agents after ten years. Moreover, the Federals often omitted the ten-day release provision in order to entice players to sign.4 Meanwhile, National Commission chairman August Herrmann reiterated his earlier threat that organized baseball intended to forcefully defend its contracts in court against both defecting players and the Federal League itself: “Rivalry will not be resented so long as league and club rights are not ignored, but illegal and unsportsmanlike interference with an utter disregard of established privileges of national agreement clubs will justify the adoption of vigorous-defense methods.”5 The Federals bristled at the charge of “unsportsmanlike” behavior, arguing that they were only signing players subject to the invalid 1913 reserve clause, and not those already under contract for the 1914 season. Despite organized...