The 1884 Maroons: Tie Goes To The Runner (Except When You're Playing The Maroons)

The Chicago and St. Louis Unions played another championship game at the Union Grounds yesterday afternoon before the largest gathering of the week.  The game started out to be a good one, the Chicago boys hitting Boyle hard and jumping immediately into the lead.  In the third inning poor fielding and several hard raps brought 4 runs over the plate for St. Louis.  This long start took the life out of the visitors, and they never rallied afterward.  Dunlap, Shaffer, Gleason and Quinn did lively hitting all through the game, while Schoeneck, the Chicago's big firs baseman, was the only one of the visitors to hit the ball hard.  Umpire Heagle leaned against the Chicago boys all through the game, and this took the life out of them and gave them little heart for their work.  On all close decisions he decided against the runner.  It would appear that he misconstrues the rule which says that when a base-runner reaches a base at the same moment as the ball the runner must be declared safe.  He always decided the runner out, and hence the runners became timid and quit trying to steal bases.  Boyle pitched well all through, and he was more effective in the closing innings than at the opening of the contest, the Chicagos never bunching their hits or scoring after the second inning.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, August 16, 1884