the owners on anything and a situation like this was one of the few chances to cash in.
Averill made it absolutely clear to the Seals he was not reporting to Cleveland until he got his share. One point in his favor was that the Seals had originally signed him without having to pay another club. Averill came to them as a free agent and real bargain. On the Seals’ side was the contract, which did not have any language spelling out that they would have to pay Earl extra if he landed with the big leagues.
The uncomfortable situation prompted action from Billy Evans. Once again he boarded a train for the demanding cross-country trip to San Francisco. Upon arrival he met with both parties and found a way to end the crisis. With the Seals now out of the picture, Evans went over some spring training details with his new player. He needed to order bats for Averill and rolled his eyes when Earl told him he only used a forty-four-ounce bat. The heaviest bat in the American League was owned by Babe Ruth and that weighed forty ounces. Evans tried to explain that a lot of the pitchers in the majors threw fairly hard and a forty-four-ounce bat would not cut it. Averill would not be moved. He told his boss that, if anybody could throw the ball by him, maybe he would consider a lighter one. Averill did not lack confidence in his ability, a trait that would carry him a long way.
In the first week of December, Evans and Peckinpaugh traveled to Toronto for the minor-league winter meetings. It was a time to catch up with old friends and maybe buy a player or two. Evans did not waste a moment in purchasing thirty-four-year-old pitcher Jimmy Zinn from Kansas City. The Indians wanted to add an experienced pitcher to the staff to complement such youngsters as Willis Hudlin and, possibly, minor-league hurler Wes Ferrell. Zinn had won forty-eight games the previous two seasons and did have some big-league experience with Pittsburgh and Brooklyn.
With the business completed, Evans and Peckinpaugh spent time chatting with old friends, including Tris Speaker, Steve O’Neill, and former Cleveland Spider Jesse Burkett. Speaker was present as the new manager of the International League’s Newark Bears, while O’Neill was set to manage the same league’s Toronto Maple Leafs. They swapped humorous stories about their playing days and incidents that had happened on the diamond. The best story told was about Joe Cantillon, the former umpire and manager. One day Cantillon brought two friends with him to Comiskey Park in Chicago. When they reached the ticket taker Cantillon said, “These are two friends of mine. I’d like you to pass ’em in.” The ticket man yelled upstairs to Charles Comiskey, “How about passing a couple of friends of Mr. Cantillon?” The reply came down for everybody to hear: “It’s a lie! No umpire has got two friends!”
Attending the Toronto meeting were the Cleveland scouts, Cy Slapnicka, Bill Rapp, and former Naps Bill Bradley and Charlie Hickman. Bradley was an excellent third baseman, while Hickman was a good-hitting slow runner nicknamed “Piano Legs.” These four gentlemen were responsible for covering the entire United States. Despite their enormous territories, each scout would find some first-rate prospects in the coming years.
The Cleveland club either owned or had working agreements with four minor-league franchises. They owned outright the Frederick, Maryland, team of the Blue Ridge League. This was Class D ball, where the most inexperienced recruits would go. They had working agreements with Terre Haute and Decatur of the Three-I League, which was Class B, and with the New Orleans club in Class AA, or one step from the majors. With these four clubs, the Indians could shuttle players back and forth and keep close watch throughout the season.
Once the Toronto gathering ended, the Indians contingent moved on to Chicago for the American League meetings. Alva Bradley was already there, waiting for his top men to arrive. Here in the Windy City was where any possible major trades might occur. Dozens of names were thrown about, but nothing eye-opening took place. The Indians announced the George Uhle trade to Detroit, and that was the big moment for them. The team owners did reach an agreement to start the regular season on April 16, a week later than the previous year, and set a date of September 29 to finish the campaign. The late start was agreed upon due to the poor weather in early April. A week’s delay might not help much, but the owners hoped there might be a few days of sunshine rather than Midwest snow flurries: a few degrees up the thermometer would likely bring out more fans. The owners rarely failed to find ways to improve the take at the gate.
While the Indians continued to improve their club, news came that Western Reserve University had invited Yale to play a football game in the new Cleveland stadium. Ground had not been broken yet, but the proposed game was to be played in 1930. The local college was rumored to be negotiating a home-and-away series with the mighty Ohio State Buckeyes. Ambitious college grads in the area were contacting their former schools to schedule games at the new stadium. Among the colleges being courted were Syracuse, Nebraska, and Cornell. City Manager Hopkins was elated at the news. He had visions of 80,000 fans packing his new facility, not to mention the downtown hotels and restaurants. His stadium plan might just be exactly what his city needed.
Near the end of December, Hopkins announced some details about the new facility He wanted a study done to preserve the harmony of the lakefront. He had no intention of the stadium being built at a crazy angle that might detract from the buildings and pedestrian mall that extended north from Public Square. He contracted with Osborne Engineering Company, the builders of League Park, to provide the city with exact dimensions of the stadium. Once those were completed, the city engineer could determine the amount of excavating needed for the foundation. All those involved believed it would take one to two years to complete the project. Soon the bonds would be put up for sale, funds accumulated, and the digging would commence. The probability of any last-minute roadblocks to delay the project seemed remote at best. It seemed that 1929 would be a good year for the city of Cleveland.
Chapter 4
TROUBLE AHEAD
The new year in Cleveland was like most new years of the past: loads of snow and temperatures falling below twenty degrees, although it was plenty warm inside the offices at League Park. The office staff of the Cleveland Indians had much to do, including the mailing of the 1929 player contracts. Most would be returned with signatures on them, a few would not. Holdouts in baseball were quite common, dating back to the National League of the 1890s. Players knew they were in for a difficult fight with management if they refused to sign. The guys that held out had few alternatives. The reserve clause kept them property of their club year after year, so owners simply had to reserve rights to each player on their roster on a yearly basis. The owners held all the cards and the players had a simple choice: sign, or don’t play at all. Those who were in the superstar category—a Babe Ruth or a Rogers Hornsby—had some leverage to squeeze a few more dollars by holding out. The average Major Leaguer had little clout, with no agents or players union to assist them in negotiating. The great majority of disputes ended at the start of spring training, when an unhappy ballplayer would reluctantly sign and report to camp. Most had to play baseball to support their families and pay the mortgage. Other than Ty Cobb, who made a fortune in the stock market, there were few independently wealthy ballplayers.
A good example of an unhappy player was Cleveland pitcher Joe Shaute. He sent back his 1929 contract despite getting a raise. A year earlier, Shaute had an incentive-based contract. Any wins he registered above thirteen meant an additional $400 for each victory. Shaute argued that, by the time he got win number thirteen, the Indians had thrown in the towel for the season. Roger Peckinpaugh was playing rookies and minor-leaguers to see who, if anybody, might provide more help next year. Shaute did not win any further games in 1928 and blamed the makeshift lineups as the reason. He had expected to win several more games and cash in on his incentives. He wanted the Indians to make up for the situation by raising him another thousand or two. That would not happen, and Shaute gave up the fight in early March and reported to spring training. He simply had no other action to pursue.
Alva Bradley had developed a progressive approach in contract disputes. If a player refused to sign, Bradley would take the necessary time to study the previous
