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Originally Posted by Biggio509
Actually free agency was alive and well in 1871. The NA was a player's association dominated league. All players got 1 year contracts and were free agents after the year. That is why there is a lot of movement on rosters. Trades were rare if any but teams could purchase any player's contract. In the NL the agreements would set rules for purchases of contracts for minor leagues.
The NL had free agency but first implemented the reserve clause. Originally secret it was a list of players who other teams could not sign. The size of that list changed over time to fit the entire roster. Basically from 1871 to 1879 there was full FA. After 1879 there was limited free agency starting with 5 players whom a team could pick that other teams would not sign. In the 1880's free agency eventually died because the entire roster could be reserved claused. Roster Limits Reserve clause - BR Bullpen This article also notes how the reserve clause in the minors was a large reason why the farm system started. MLB teams could hold a lot more guys under contract if they owned minor league teams.
In reality free agency was in place for a couple of years with the rise of the AL. The AL did not respect the reserve clause until the National Agreement. Although players were not free to sign with other NL teams nothing stopped the AL from NL raiding rosters. Which in essence was a sort of free agency. This is hard to replicate though.
I suppose it is not a big deal for your game because you are loosely following history but it might be of interest for someone who wants to follow it closely. |
You'll also notice that when large groups of players did change teams there was owner collusion involved. Look at the 1890s Baltimore Orioles, the team's owner also had minority ownership of the Brooklyn ball club... most of the good players where in Brooklyn and the remaining players jumped in 1900 to Brooklyn to stack the 1900 Brooklyn Bridegrooms for the first World Championship victory (after the team folded before the 1900 season).
There was also a hint (or loud scream) of foul play in the late 1950s with the Kansas City A's and New York Yankees. Many accused the A's of being the Yankees farm club (even though KC was a major league AL team). The A's owner had some type of ownership with the Yankees.