National Base Ball Union est. 1861

[Eddie Paxil]

Base Ball Controversy: Paid To Play

June 30, 1860

It has been discovered that at least two players on the Excelsior Club of Brooklyn in base ball are being paid to play. The two players in question are pitcher Jim Creighton & out fielder George Flanly. Sources inside the club have confirmed a timeline where the players were offered a salary to make the jump away from the Star Club.

On September 4, 1859 the Stars defeated Excelsior by the score of 17-13. The victory was achieved primarily due to the unique pitching style of Jim Creighton. It was after that game that the Excelsiors first approached Creighton & Flanly about joining. They refused the initial offer.

On September 19, 1859 the Star club defeated the Hoboken club 38-4. After that dominant performance, leaders of the Excelsiors approached Creighton & Flanly again. This time with an offer that would provide them a salary to play with the Excelsior club. The two men accepted the offer and made the jump in 1860.

The National Association of Base Ball Players currently oversees the amateur game of baseball. The most recent convention of the NABBP was on March 14, & at that convention the Excelsiors’ own President, Dr. Jones was elected President of the Association. When asked about the report on his club, Dr. Jones refused to comment.

We contacted First Vice– President of the most recent incarnation of the NABBP Mr. Thos. S. Dakin of the Putnam Club. On the subject of the Excelsiors’ indiscretions he said, “We will look into the matter. It will be taken seriously.” On how it would be dealt with he added, “Most likely we will try to organize a mid-year convention to address the matter. We need some time to organize a response”

[Eddie Paxil]

Investors Interested in Professionalizing Base Ball

July 15th, 1860

The amateur game of base ball currently resides in the midst of controversy. Two of their star players have been exposed for accepting salaries, and the association president was the one paying them. Such dissension has certainly not slowed attendance at matches, and some have taken notice.

According to sources inside the leadership of the National Association of Base Ball Players, a group of investors has proposed a plan to professionalize the game. The NABBP is far from ignoring the offer. If anything, in the minds of some, the offer could be just what the game needs. “The perception will be forever skewed as to the legitimacy of rosters, and outcomes,” said one insider. He added, “Why not make it a professional game and take the doubt out of followers’ minds.”

The NABBP already has an impromptu convention scheduled for the end of July. The convention’s original purpose was to deal with the Excelsiors’ affair. It has been confirmed that other matters have been added to the agenda. The foremost matter will be the issue of professionalizing the sport.

[William Foster]

Interesting start.

[Eddie Paxil]

Convention of Base Ball Association

July 29th. 1860

The National Association of Base Ball Players typically convenes annually in a celebration of their surging game. At this unscheduled meeting however, the group arrived showered in controversy. Over 50 clubs and nearly 4,000 players were represented in an attempt to restore some order and structure to the game.

The first order of business was to elect a new president. The presidency stands damaged after the unanimously elected Dr. Jones of the Excelsiors was discovered to be paying players. Former presidents Daniel “Doc” Adams & Judge Van Cott were both asked to run. Judge Van Cott accepted, and was unanimously chosen president once again.

Next on the agenda was the matter of the Excelsior club. The topic generated much debate. Most of the discussion kept turning to the issue of professionalism. Judge Van Cott did a fine job of keeping the group solely on the topic at hand saying, “Regardless of what may be the future of this organization, we can not ignore infractions of the past.”

Not long after the president’s statement, the matter was resolved. The Excelsiors would forfeit all games played in 1860 and all games still scheduled in 1860. The two players would be suspended from playing with any club for 1860, but could return in 1861. So was said after a vote of 50 Ayes and 34 Nays.

The convention was set to turn to the subject of professionalism, but before opening the topic to the floor, Judge Van Cott asked former president “Doc” Adams to speak on the matter. “In this calendar year of 1860 our game has taken a sudden turn,” he said. “The time of the professional has come.” He added, “We have at hand a way to remain a part of this game. Or we can decline this opportunity, and eventually see the game in the hands of others.”

The statements of “Doc” Adams did not fall on deaf ears. The ensuing debate was civilized, the agenda of the group of investors was presented, and a vote was held. The resulting vote was 55 Ayes and 29 Nays in favor of professionalizing base ball. There are still many details to attend to, and time must be set aside to deal with them. The association voted to meet again at the end of August.

[Eddie Paxil]

Originally Posted by William Foster

Interesting start.

Thanks. Good to know someone is reading.

[Big Six]

This looks like it will be a lot of fun. Good luck! I'll be following along.

[Carplos]

It does look good, although the title of the thread gives away the result of the meeting!

[Eddie Paxil]

Originally Posted by Big Six

This looks like it will be a lot of fun. Good luck! I'll be following along.

Thanks

Originally Posted by Carplos

It does look good, although the title of the thread gives away the result of the meeting!

I wanted a name that would separate it from other historical replays, and thought putting up the year would be the best option. I don't know if anyone has attempted a replay that starts this early before.

[NYY #23]

This does look like a great start, and I'm looking forward to seeing where you go with this, beyond the obvious from the title. I'll definitely be following along.

[Eddie Paxil]

Originally Posted by NYY #23

This does look like a great start, and I'm looking forward to seeing where you go with this, beyond the obvious from the title. I'll definitely be following along.

Thanks, and great avatar/ screen name. The only 23 that matters.

[Eddie Paxil]

The Road to Professional Base Ball

August 26, 1860

The National Association of Base Ball Players and their new investment partners met to begin the process of professionalizing the sport. Some teams and players withdrew their NABBP credentials as they refused the move away from a completely amateur system. However, other teams were new to the fold, and excited about the move.

The most difficult topic dealt with was the voting structure. How could amateur teams maintain a place in baseball alongside professional teams? Ultimately, votes were separated into primary & secondary votes. Amateur teams would receive secondary votes, allowing them to only vote on game rules and grounds rules. Primary votes would be given to professional team owners and a player representative from each professional organization. Those with primary votes could vote on any matter.

The next major matter would be the location of the first professional clubs. It was decided that eight cities would host the inaugural campaign. New York, Brooklyn, Hoboken, & Newark are all base ball hot beds and were easy selections. After some debate, Lowell, Hartford, Philadelphia, & Washington were selected to round out the inaugural eight. In addition to the professional eight teams, each city will host a second team for development and reserve purposes. These clubs would be known as 2nd IX clubs. The players on the 2nd IX clubs will have the right to vote for the organization's player representative.

Finally, populating the new teams was a matter that needed attending. A dispersal draft has been scheduled for January 2nd. Leading up to the dispersal draft would be a series of camps where the teams could have a look at the players who were making themselves available for the draft. The camps will begin at the end September giving clubs time to put a coaching staff into place.

The next full convention will be February 9th. At that time the new voting structure will be in effect. It will be at that time that professional baseball takes the final steps to existence.

[Eddie Paxil]

I figured it was about time that I said a little something about where the idea for this came from and where it's going.

Four things contributed to the where the idea came from:

1. PLAGUE!!! I spent some time reading through the metsgeek masterpiece and it inspired me to do an alternate history. There's still a lot I haven't gotten to, that will be directly influenced by Plague. One thing metsgeek said rings true for me in this dynasty, "I'm God in this world."

2. Fictional leagues starting over steroids. I saw a rash of fictional leagues who's basic premise was steroids drove everyone away from the MLB and we're starting over. It inspired me to turn that on it's head. What if a major controversy drove everyone to professional baseball at the start of it's history.

3. Jim Creighton. After reading about this pioneering pitcher I wondered two things. What if it had been discovered that he was being paid to play by the president of the game's association? (There's my controversy) I also wondered what if he didn't die?

4. New Jersey. New Jersey was where the first organized games under the "Knickerbocker Rules" were played. Elysian Fields in Hoboken was the first real Baseball hot spot. Yet, professional baseball has no New Jersey team. In fact the only professional major league New Jersey team ever was the Newark Pepper in the Federal League. That will not be a problem in my league. The NJ will always be represented.

Just some notes on where things are going:

1. I have the file ready to go. I have two more articles I want to do before I hit the Inaugural Draft.

2. I'm trying to build a the dynasty with as much fact as possible injected in it. For example, I went through all the box scores I could find at the New York Times website between 1851-1861 and got player names from there. Almost all of it was last names though, that's why you'll see names like Juan Kellinger. I'll keep doing that for every season until 1871. At that point, the file will import rookies from Spritze's database.

3. Jim Creighton was the only player who was edited beyond his name and birth date. I took the pitcher with the best current ratings and gave him the best ratings overall at every attribute. I also gave him the best fastball and the best changeup (Creighton likely invented the changeup). His curveball is par for the course with other top pitchers. Again I'm god in this world, and he was to be the best overall pitcher. Does that mean he'll be picked first? We'll see.

4. There's going to be a world beyond the baseball. I'll introduce that slowly. The further we get from the original history of base ball the more the world beyond baseball changes. Again I will try to inject as much fact as possible in this area as possible.

5.I'll probably be running the Newark team in this league

That's all for now. More of the dynasty to come soon. I think the hard part is over. Transitioning from an amateur game to a pro game at such an early stage in the game's history was the hard part. That and entering all the names. BTW. Any time I want to say something away from the actual dynasty content, I'll make sure it's italicized. Oh, and thanks for reading.

[Eddie Paxil]

Professional Base Ball Releases Club Names

September 30, 1860

In a coordinated effort the new professional baseball league has announced its club names. The inaugural 8 mostly selected club names to honor the amateur teams that are hosting them. However some of the selected names were new to base ball. The final club names selected were as follows:

Brooklyn Allied
Hartford Intrepids
Hoboken Knickerbockers
Lowell Industrials
New York United
Newark Leathernecks
Philadelphia Athletics
Washington Nationals

[Eddie Paxil]

November 6 – U.S. presidential election: Abraham Lincoln beats John C. Breckinridge, Stephen A. Douglas, and John Bell and is elected as the 16th President of the United States, the first Republican to hold that office.

December 20 – South Carolina becomes the first state to secede from the United States Union.

[Eddie Paxil]

Base Ball Dispersal Draft Preview

December 30, 1860

On January 2nd- January 5th of the New Year base ball’s first professional league’s clubs will select players in a dispersal draft at the Cooper Institute. Over 500 players will populate the 8 clubs. The league has held multiple camps to determine who the best of the best are, and who is ready to be a professional player. Let’s have a look at 10 players expected to highlight the event.

Jim Creighton, P: At 19, he most talented pitcher available in the draft. Fully expected to be the first pitcher selected if not the first player selected. He comes off of a suspension for his part in the “pay to play” controversy. Could be rusty come time for the first games. However the risk is worth the reward.

George Flanly, OF: Only 16, the other half of the “pay to play” fiasco, this young man is a star in waiting. He is by far the best non-pitcher available, but like Creighton may suffer from rust by the time they hit the field. His bat and glove are equally dangerous

Michael Waddell, OF: This 27 year old veteran of amateur play is easily one of the top strikers in the draft pool. He brings a strong arm and good range at the corner out field positions.

Howard Wright, IF: Another veteran of amateur play, the 30 year old brings a strong bat to any club. Defensively, he gives a club options with the ability to play any in field position, though overall he is known for his defense.

Michael Vincent, OF: This 31 year old out fielder is not known for his glove. However, his ability with a bat rivals George Flanly. This could be a team leader and a player to build around

Kelly Pearce, 1B: Another veteran checking in at 32 years old. He is very limited defensively, but brings a bat with few equals.

Joe Leggett, C: The third former Excelsior to grace our list. He can hit the ball from a position where defense is prized. Defensively he was masterful at handling Creighton’s unique pitching style, and is a force. At 25 years old there’s still a lot of mileage in this player

George Hunt, SS: This is the most experienced player at the shortstop position. He checks in at 33 years old, but excels defensively. He can strike the ball well, and brings a strong work ethic to any club.

Luke Phillips, 2B: Not known for his glove, but can play any in field spot. He brings a special bat and checks in at only 23 years old.

Matty O’Brien, SP: With such a special player in Jim Creighton headlining the position of pitcher, it’s easy to chalk up O’Brien as the best of the rest. However, this 28 year old veteran can hold is own, and should be the second pitcher selected.

The order of the draft was selected randomly, and will take on a serpentine structure throughout. The order is as follows:

1. Hoboken Knickerbockers
2. Lowell Industrials
3. New York United
4. Washington Nationals
5. Newark Leathernecks
6. Philadelphia Athletics
7. Brooklyn Allied
8. Hartford Intrepids

[Eddie Paxil]

Base Ball Dispersal Draft Kicks Off

January 3, 1861

The first 10 rounds of the new professional base ball league’s dispersal draft have been completed. 30 more rounds will take place to populate the primary clubs and their 2nd IX affiliates. Once all the clubs are full they will select a player representative that will receive a primary vote in all league matters.

Here is a run down of the first 5 rounds.

Round 1, Pick 1 - Hoboken Knickerbockers: SP J. Creighton
Round 1, Pick 2 - Lowell Industrials: CF G. Flanly
Round 1, Pick 3 - New York United: CF A. Ford
Round 1, Pick 4 - Washington Nationals: SP N. Keith
Round 1, Pick 5 - Newark Leathernecks: LF G. Vanderlipp
Round 1, Pick 6 - Philadelphia Athletics: SP J. Ferguson
Round 1, Pick 7 - Brooklyn Allied: CF R. Haughton
Round 1, Pick 8 - Hartford Intrepids: SP J. McKeever
Round 2, Pick 1 - Hartford Intrepids: CF G. Pennington
Round 2, Pick 2 - Brooklyn Allied: RF M. Waddell
Round 2, Pick 3 - Philadelphia Athletics: LF B. Connell
Round 2, Pick 4 - Newark Leathernecks: SP M. O'Brien
Round 2, Pick 5 - Washington Nationals: CF G. Aspinwall
Round 2, Pick 6 - New York United: SP S. Post
Round 2, Pick 7 - Lowell Industrials: SP R. Goldie
Round 2, Pick 8 - Hoboken Knickerbockers: SS J. Snyder
Round 3, Pick 1 - Hoboken Knickerbockers: RF F. Sturgis
Round 3, Pick 2 - Lowell Industrials: 3B G. Green
Round 3, Pick 3 - New York United: SS T. Reynolds
Round 3, Pick 4 - Washington Nationals: 2B L. Phillips
Round 3, Pick 5 - Newark Leathernecks: C J. Leggett
Round 3, Pick 6 - Philadelphia Athletics: 3B J. Whiting
Round 3, Pick 7 - Brooklyn Allied: SP J. Pinckney
Round 3, Pick 8 - Hartford Intrepids: LF P. O'Brien
Round 4, Pick 1 - Hartford Intrepids: SP T. Van Cott
Round 4, Pick 2 - Brooklyn Allied: SP J. Grum
Round 4, Pick 3 - Philadelphia Athletics: SP B. Woodruff
Round 4, Pick 4 - Newark Leathernecks: 1B K. Pearce
Round 4, Pick 5 - Washington Nationals: SP R. Spence
Round 4, Pick 6 - New York United: SP W. Oddie
Round 4, Pick 7 - Lowell Industrials: SP J. Berger
Round 4, Pick 8 - Hoboken Knickerbockers: SP J. Sprague
Round 5, Pick 1 - Hoboken Knickerbockers: 2B H. Wright
Round 5, Pick 2 - Lowell Industrials: SS G. Hunt
Round 5, Pick 3 - New York United: C C. De Bost
Round 5, Pick 4 - Washington Nationals: SS D. Whiting
Round 5, Pick 5 - Newark Leathernecks: LF M. Vincent
Round 5, Pick 6 - Philadelphia Athletics: RF E. Caswell
Round 5, Pick 7 - Brooklyn Allied: 1B A. Pearsall
Round 5, Pick 8 - Hartford Intrepids: SS G. Van Cott

[Eddie Paxil]

• January 3 – American Civil War: Delaware votes not to secede from the Union.
• January 9 – Mississippi becomes the second state to secede from the Union, preceding the American Civil War.
• January 10 – American Civil War: Florida secedes from the Union.
• January 11 – American Civil War: Alabama secedes from the Union.
• January 18 – American Civil War: Georgia secedes from the Union.
• January 21 – American Civil War: Jefferson Davis resigns from the United States Senate.
• January 26 – American Civil War: Louisiana secedes from the Union.
• January 29 – Kansas is admitted as the 34th U.S. state.
• February 1 – American Civil War: Texas secedes from the Union.
• February 4 – American Civil War: In Montgomery, Alabama the Confederate States of America is formed by representatives from six break-away United States.
• February 8 – American Civil War: The Confederate States of America are formed.
• February 9 – American Civil War: Jefferson Davis is elected the Provisional President of the Confederate States of America by the Weed Convention at Montgomery, Alabama.

[Eddie Paxil]

Base Ball Convention

February 10, 1861

The newly formed base ball association met for the first time in its modern incarnation. Owners & players of professional clubs were represented alongside leaders of amateur clubs & players. It was clear to all in attendance that this meeting was important for the future of the sport. It was also clear that despite outside events the experiment of a professional base ball league was going to go forward.

The first order of business was the election of a new, on salary, league president. A governing arbitrator with the power to settle disputes, and oversee the enforcement of league rules was a vital purpose of this meeting. The ideal nominee was Daniel “Doc” Adams who, at first, balked at taking such an important role. However, he was convinced that he was the man for the job. The vote was held without an opponent and Adams was the unanimous choice.

The next order of business was a name for the new league. A name symbolic of the unique structure of the league would be needed. This vote was open to the secondary votes held by amateur teams. There was much heated debate especially due to the alternate symbolism of the top name choice. However, the National Base Ball Union, was elected with a majority of votes.

Next on the agenda would be the matter of a season schedule structure. It was decided this took priority over salary guidelines because in order to determine those guidelines a calendar of the year would be needed. It was then so voted in, a 32 game schedule with games on Saturday at 2pm stretching from the beginning of March to October. The 2nd IX clubs would play the exact same schedule, but would play their games at 10am. Much excitement over a schedule with so many games was felt throughout the representatives.

It was at this point in the meeting that matters took the difficult turn to salary & contract guidelines. It had been previously decided that players would begin playing for a league standard, but it was at this meeting that that standard would be set. The decision would be a league minimum/ standard in 1861 of $115. That standard would be revisited annually at the pre-season convention.

The next matter would be the length of initial player contracts. A player’s service time would be split between his time as a professional overall and his time at the highest level of play. Each year at the highest level would require a minimum of 172 days. During the initial contract a player would earn the league minimum/ standard. A player at the 2nd IX level with 5 years as a professional would see his initial contract end. A player at the top level would see his initial contract end after 5 seasons at that level. After any player fulfills his initial contract he is free to sign a contract with any team at any amount.

Another intriguing matter introduced was the issue of players being exchanged or traded from one club to another. This was born from the “pay to play” controversy of the Brooklyn Excelsiors. It was decided that clubs could exchange players for other players or cash. All trades will be reviewed by the office of the president and must be approved by the president. Players traded while under the umbrella of their orginal contract would remain under it while with their new club, and their service times would carry over.

It was at this point that “Doc” Adams opened up voting on the final issues of the day to secondary voters as well. The first such vote was a motion to name Henry Chadwick the league’s official statistician, and his “Beadle Base Ball Player” the official periodical of the league. The motion was carried unanimously.

Finally, the meeting took a turn to the in game rules. It had long been so voted that the most recent incarnation of the Knickerbocker rules would be used. However, a new wrinkle was introduced at this meeting. The umpires are now allowed to call unfair pitched balls. After a warning is given the batter takes his base after three called balls. After the striker receives his base on called balls, only base runners that are forced to, move one base. The rule change received a majority of votes and the “walk” rule was voted in.

That would mark the end of the most eventful convention in the short history of base ball. The next convention was set to meet the week of December 16, 1861. This was also the final convention before the start of the new league’s first season. The time for discussions, and mediation has come to an end. Now only the games are ahead, and everyone is excited and ready for that.

[risp2out]

Neat dynasty. I've been playing around with pre-1871 settings. I'm curious what you'll be using as league totals, modifiers, etc. If you don't mind sharing, I'd enjoy seeing it.

Good luck with the dynasty.

[Eddie Paxil]

Originally Posted by risp2out

Neat dynasty. I've been playing around with pre-1871 settings. I'm curious what you'll be using as league totals, modifiers, etc. If you don't mind sharing, I'd enjoy seeing it.

Good luck with the dynasty.

First, thanks for reading.

As far as modifiers & league totals I took the easy road in that department I went with the in-game 1871 settings, and I'll be following the game's own progression. Basically it'll be the 1871 settings from 1861 to 1871 then I'll go with the games settings progression. I chose to go this route because statistical data was scarce in the early years. In the New York Times (Where I did most of my research) the box scores from prior to 1861 only showed runs. Going closer to 1871 there's more statistical data available, but I chose the easy route regardless.

Most of my heavy research and editing came in the form of player names. I really went crazy with that. Every player in my file has the last name (at least) of a real player from the period. In most cases the positions are accurate as well. This will be hard to keep up with because the game generates more pitchers than were used in the period.