213 - Talking 1890 Players League Blues w/ Robert Ross

Hooks & Runs

Professor Robert Ross, author of The Great Baseball Revolt: The Rise and Fall of the 1890 Players League (2016) joins us this week to discuss the first attempt at unionization by Major League players -- the Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players which had formed in the mid 1880s. The Brotherhood joined forces with supportive magnates to form the Players League in 1890. Unfortunately, the league lasted just one season before folding. The Players League though included many top players from that time including future Hall of Famers Hugh Duffy, John Montgomery Ward and pitcher "Old Hoss" Radbourn.
In part two, Craig and Rex talk about mispronouncing names, whether betting is allowed on a baseball podcast, and more speculation on baseball in the 2028 Olympics.
Robert Ross's Point Park Univ. page, on Twitter/X
Buy The Great Baseball Revolt from the publisher, from our bookshop.org affiliate link below, or wherever you buy books.
Errata: If the season ended on the day Craig and Rex recorded this episode, the AL wild card teams would be New York, Kansas City and Minnesota, not Boston. South African native Gift Ngoepe, an infielder, played for Pittsburgh in 2017 and Toronto in 2018, totaling 54 at bats and hitting .222 over the two seasons.
Episodes Mentioned:
211 - The Money Went Dry, The Liquor Went Wet: The Life & Times of Bob Caruthers w/ Dave Heller
205 - Baseball at War: Working and Playing Ball in the Bethlehem Steel League w/ William Ecenbarger (segment on the real life "Natural")
104 - When Sport Defeated Law: The Curt Flood Case w/ Prof. Jeremi Duru

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1. Introduction (00:00:00)

2. The Players League was head and shoulders above the rest (00:04:07)

3. Baseball players cannot be deskilled (00:06:45)

4. The owners' strategies for profitability (00:11:21)

5. John Montgomery Ward: The gentleman of the sport (00:15:07)

6. The Players League vs the Carpenters' Union (00:20:26)

7. The Players League should have put the National League out of business. (00:25:36)

8. The players were absolutely furious! (00:29:42)

9. Lessons: The NCAA and minor league players. (00:33:55)

10. Pronunciations and podcast news. (00:39:20)

11. The Royals won't go away (00:47:30)

12. More speculating about baseball in the 2028 Olympics. (00:49:14)