He Needs Practice, And A Great Deal Of It.

A practice gem of base ball was played last Saturday afternoon between the St. Louis Reds (professionals) and the Nationals (amateurs), at the Red Stocking Park, which resulted in a victory to the professionals by a score of 35 to 14 - report of which was crowded out of columns yesterday.  The weather was very disagreeable for playing ball, being entirely too cold and windy.  The attendance was small, not more than 200 spectators being on the grounds.  The game was not a brilliant one by any means, both sides indulging in muffing at a great rate, although there were at times some fine plays made.  The game was the first one the Nationals have played this season.  Bobb, their [pitcher], sent in the balls fearfully wild; the three players that attempted to catch him allowed twenty two balls to pass them.  He had no less than sixteen wild pitches charged to him during the game.  Fact is, Bobb never ought to pitch unless he can control the ball much better than he did.  He needs practice, and a great deal of it.  Boles, the catcher of the Nationals, is a good player and did well, he having made three fine base hits.  Lee, at short, did splendidly.  As for the Reds, they could have done much better, but, they did not seem to try.  Packey Dillon caught during most of the game, but his sore hand prevented him from doing his best.  Morgan put on a full head of steam and pitched well.  Old "Sweez," who, by the way, is a young man, only twenty-six years of age, played his base in good style, but did nothing with the stick.  Charley Houtz batted well...Indian Tommy (Oran) did nobly in the eighth inning; he and Houtz made a double play.  Joe Blong had nothing to do while in the field; he made a couple of fine base hits, and got in three runs for his side.  Litttle Croft and Redmond got in three base hits apiece.  

-Mears Baseball Scrapbook, Volume 5


Sixteen wild pitches.  I just want you to know how difficult it is to refrain from making Rick Ankiel jokes here.

The most interesting thing here is the reference to Tom Oran, the first Native-American to play in the major leagues, as "Indian Tom."  I've seen the reference in secondary sources but I believe that this is the first time I've seen it in contemporary accounts.

And like yesterday's game account, this appears to come from the St. Louis Democrat of April 20, 1875.     

Shamefully Treated On The East Side

The Owls complain that they were shamefully treated in East St. Louis yesterday, when they crossed the river to play the National Reserves.  Complaints of this character are very frequent from clubs visiting East St. Louis, and unless managers of the local nines do not correct abuses complained of, it will be advisable for all outside clubs to ignore challenges from that quarter.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, June 2, 1884


Yeah.  We here on the east side of the river have been having to listen to the whining of the people on the wrong side of the river for a long time.  We've learned to tune them out.     

Game Called On Account Of The Arrival Of The Boat

Notwithstanding the extreme warm weather and the short announcement given that a match game of base ball was to be played on Alstyne's prairie yesterday afternoon, a large crowd of spectators assembled to see the sport. The game was between the Nationals of St. Louis and Occidentals of [Quincy.] At 4 1/4 o'clock, the game was called. Mr. Rod Gurley, having been chosen as umpire. The O's were again lucky, won the "toss up" and took the field. In the first inning the St. Louis boys succeeded in getting in two runs, while in the third they made but one. The O's were "whitewashed" nicely the first two innings, but in the first half of the third they got down to their work bravely and sent their opponents to the field with a blank. In this inning the O's did their best batting, and scored three runs, the game then standing 3 to 3, which made it exceedingly interesting. As the N's were to leave on the down boat, the 4th inning was announced as the last. The excitement at this stage consequently increased. In this inning the N's made two runs, while the O's got in but one, when the N's gave up the game on account of the arrival of the boat, leaving the Quincy boys with only one man out. The Nationals are a strong nine, but we are of the opinion that the Occidentals are more than a match for them in a full game. The game was decided a draw.

-Quincy Daily Herald, July 7, 1874

A Great Doubleheader

Manager McNeary, of the Compton Avenue Park, has arranged to give his patrons the worth of their money to-day. Commencing at 11 there will be a game between the Black and Blue Stockings, rival colored organizations, for the local championship. The colored lads play surprisingly well, and those who witness the contest will ace proof of their efficiency. In the afternoon, at the regular hour, the Red Stockings and the Nationals of East St. Louis, champions of Southern Illinois, will cross bats. Either game will be well worth seeing, but one admission fee will cover both.

-The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, August 14, 1881

This is just a fountain of information. We have an African-American club I've never heard of, the Black Stockings, playing the Blues in a championship game. We have the Nationals described as the champions of Southern Illinois. And we also have an interesting glimpse at baseball during the Interregnum, when there was no major league baseball in St. Louis and the game was struggling to survive.

The Reds Play The Nationals

Saturday afternoon, April 24 (1875), the St. Louis Red Stocking Baseball Club (the McNeary Reds) played against the St. Louis Nationals at the Compton Avenue Park...and defeated them by 35 to 14...The club was represented that afternoon by its strongest team-Dillon, Blong, Morgan, Houts, Sweasy (formerly of the famous Cincinnati champion Red Stockings), Croft, Oran, Redmond, and McSorley, all men of national reputation then or later. The Nationals, all amatuers, were from well known St. Louis families. Bopp and Boles were the battery that day. Lee Funkhouser, a Princeton cum laude graduate and brother of the late Dr. Robert M. Funkhouser, covered first base and made three of the runs credited to the amateurs. My report of the game in the Times says that "the fielding of the Nationals was done mainly by Jackson, Lee, McCreery and Funkhouser," the three first named covering respectively third, short and second. In the outfield was Wickham (a brother of Judge Wickham, if I remember rightly, or it may have been the judge himself). The best batting for the amateurs was done by Boles with three hits, and he also made a couple of their fourteen runs.

-From A Newspaper Man's Motion-Picture of the City