United League Baseball

Owners Endorse Expansion
NEW YORK (Aug. 15) -- United League owners voted 6-1 in favor of expansion today, and established a blue-ribbon panel to explore options. Potential expansion has been one of the United League's hot topics from the very beginning, when the bankruptcy of the two major leagues and the subsequent radical contraction to a new eight-team circuit left four former big league cities without teams. League president Timothy J. Smith did not want to bias the findings of the blue-ribbon panel, but offered that two teams would be added to the league "in the next couple of years." Owners must approve the expansion plan formally before new franchises are awarded. The most contentious issue to be worked out will undoubtedly be the expansion draft. Smith has said that any draft should impact existing teams "roughly equally" in terms of number of players and payroll.
   Another key issue is what two cities will be awarded the new ballclubs. A growing chorus has suggested breaking baseball out of its traditional Northeast base and bringing the big leagues to the Far West and South. But favoring those cities will come at the cost of further snubbing traditional major league cities like Philadelphia and Cleveland. The City of Brotherly Love felt particularly slighted when the League pass it over in 1951 in favor of tiny Louisville, Kentucky, a city one-sixth its size.
   The list of prospective host cities includes Atlanta, Baltimore, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco. Of the 13, a few must be considered longshots. Baltimore, for instance, stands virtually no chance of joining a ten-team circuit as long is there is a successful franchise in neighboring Washington. Milwaukee and Cincinnati are likewise inhibited by their proximity to UL clubs. Meanwhile, Los Angeles is poised to make a strong bid. The City of Angels is the third largest city in the country, and boasts the 105,000-seat Los Angeles Coliseum, which, though not an ideal baseball venue, is available for immediate occupancy. For the last half-century, St. Louis has been both the most westerly and most southerly city in the major leagues. The recent advent of jet travel has made it feasible to increase the distances between member cities, prompting the League this year to add four new cities to its list of potential UL host cities.

Colonels Reject Atlanta's "Sweetheart Deal"
ALLEN, ATLANTA EXCHANGE HARSH WORDS
LOUISVILLE (Mark Allen, Aug. 15) -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution owner James Cox published a scathing article in his paper today about his and the city of Atlanta's attempt to bring big league baseball to Atlanta. They have been trying for almost a year now to get the Louisville Colonels to relocate and begin play in Atlanta in 1955. Below is the article and then Mark Allen's response to it. "As of today we have broken off negotiations with Mark Allen and the Louisville Colonels organization. We had grown tired of Mark's unprofessional attitude and behavior. We have said yes to everything they have asked for (see deal summary below) and every time we said yes they came up with some other outrageous demand. After 11 months of that kind of childish action, we decided enough was enough. I don't know how this man ever made enough money to buy this team. He has absolutely no business sense, is completely uncouth and a borderline alcoholic. He showed up at our meetings sometimes wearing jeans, a tee shirt and drinking beer. The league should remove him from ownership for the good of baseball. Louisville is NOT a major league town. They've got the smallest stadium in baseball and can't even fill it. We did a survey and only 9% of the Louisville population even knows that the team exists. We will be contacting the league office shortly over this matter. There is also the matter of Mark giving us back the $2 million we gave him in good faith upfront."

What was in the deal:
* Brand new 25,000 seat stadium built to the Colonels' specs with promise that it be at least the largest stadium for 10 years.
* Team would retain all attendance revenue and merchandising revenue.
* All players, team management and coaches would be given a new car every 2 years.
* Local TV contract guaranteed to be 25% more than league average.
* Each year, the city would guarantee at least a 10% increase in attendance and merchandising revenue by paying any shortage.
* City would build a custom house for team owner Mark Allen.
* City would pay Mark Allen $10,000 for every game Louisville wins over the next 10 years.
* Private financiers would match 50% of all managers and coaches salaries to go into a pension fund.

Mark Allen's response:
"It figgers thet sumpin like th' drivel above'd come outta Atlanta. ah doesn't care whut ennyone says Atlanta is NOT a southern city. Bein' southern is not a geographical thin' but an attitude thin'. I've met nicer varmints in Noo Yawk than most of th' varmints ah dealt wif in Atlanta. Thar is mo'e grace an' charm in Louisville than thar will evah be in Atlanta no matter how trimenjus they git."
   As fo' th' deal, ah jest strung them along, makin' mo'e an' mo'e deman's so th' wo'ld c'd see how stoopid an' desperate they is to put their crappy city on th' map. Besides ah w'dn't trest them t'keep their wo'd ennymo'e than ah w'd trest a pig promisin' t'stay outta th' mud, cuss it all t' tarnation. An' as fo' th' beer thin', it was better thet than th' sissy lite beer six packs they had, cuss it all t' tarnation. An' as fo' thet $2 million they had better come up wif some kind of docoomnt ah signed (which they kin't on account o' thar ain't one) o' th' next time we meet it will eifer be in court when ah sue them fo' slan'er o' it will be in th' alley behind th' bar.

AROUND THE HORN

	WASHINGTON MONUMENTS 78-37 -- 10-5	First in ERA (Miller, Gromek, Jansen #1-3), OBA (.226: Miller .183, Gromek .204, Jansen .224), walks, runs allowed...
	CHICAGO COLTS 62-53 16 7-8	2nd most runs scored (575, 5.0 R/G: Reese 79, Lindell 64, Berra 54, Avila 51)...
	ST. LOUIS MAROONS 59-56 19 10-5	First in batting, slugging (Musial .665, Campy .504, Stephens .491), OPS, runs scored, RBI, ... Most home runs allowed (132: Raffensberger 40, Zoldak 22, Pierce 20)...
	NEW YORK GOTHAMS 58-57 20 7-8	Fewest HR allowed (0.7 HR/9: Fornieles 0.3, Blackwell 0.6, Loes 0.7 in top 10)... 4th-6th in every other category except payroll (2nd: $59.4m)...
	BROOKLYN SUPERBAS 57-58 21 6-9	1st in OBP (.344: Woodling .385, Minoso .375)... 2nd in home runs (125: Hodges 34, Minoso 16), walks, and stolen bases (102: Ashburn 28, Minoso 21, Jackson 20)... 3rd in both runs and runs allowed...
	BOSTON BEACONS 53-62 25 8-7	League high 134 home runs... Worst batting average and OBP, second worst pitching (4.92 ERA, 5.5 RA/G)...
	DETROIT SOUND 50-65 28 6-9	1st in walks (437: Kiner 87, Fain 50)... 2nd best ERA (4.12: Roberts 3.14, Raschi 4.05, Porterfield 4.08)... Fewest home runs, worst SLG...
	LOUISVILLE COLONELS 43-72 35 6-9	League high 121 stolen bases (Jensen 41)... Rank last in batting walks, runs scored, ERA, OBA, walks allowed, runs allowed, and fan interest...

DAY BY DAY
Friday, July 31 WAS 6, STL 5 (12) - Gordon 3-6, HR, 3 RBI, GWRBI, McDougald HR; Musial 3-5, HR BRO 5, CHI 3 - Hodges 3-4, HR, 4 RBI, Ashburn 4-4, 2 SB, 2 R; Gernert 2-3, HR LOU 10, DET 6 - Jensen HR, 3 RBI, Valo 3-4, 2 R, Fox 2-4, 2 RBI, Colllins 2-4, HR NYG 7, BOS 5 - Thomas HR, 3 RBI, Adams, Boudreau 2-4, Doby HR; Torgy 2-4, 2 RBI
Saturday, August 1 STL 1, WAS 0 - Keegan 3-hit SHO, Wilson 3-3, Musial 2-4, RBI; Gromek 8-hit CG L CHI 6, BRO 5 (11) - Reese HR in 9th, GWRBI in 11th, Lindell, Delsing HR; Logan 3-3 LOU 9, DET 7 - Kluttz 3-4, 2 RBI, Dark 2-5, 2 R; DiMaggio 3 RBI, Priddy 3-5, 3 R NYG 10, BOS 8 - Batts, Noren 3-4, Robinson, Thomas HR; Torgeson HR, 3 RBI
Sunnday, August 2 WAS 15, STL 2 - Jansen 3-hit CG, McDougald 4-5, 2 HR, Gordon 4-5, HR, Lollar 4 RBI CHI 6, BRO 2 - Newcombe 8-hit CG, Gernert 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, Banks, Gernert 2 H, RBI LOU 4, DET 3 - Garcia 7-hit CG, Hemus GWRBI in 3-run 9th; Marshall 3-3, HR BOS 10, NYG 0 - Hiller 4-hit SHO, 1 W, 5 K, Mantle 3-4, 2 RBI, Torgeson, Zernial 3-5
Monday, August 3 NYG 8, WAS 2 - Doby 3-3, 2 HR, Batts 3-4, Blackwell 2-4, 2 RBI, SB; Garagiola 3-3 BRO 10, LOU 0 - Gorman 4-hit SHO, 4 W, 5 K, 2-3, Joost 3 RBI, Minoso 3-5, 2 RBI DET 9, CHI 4 - Irvin 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, Kiner HR, Priddy 2-5; Ryan HR, 3 RBI BOS 5, STL 2 - Spahn 8.2, 5 H, 2 R, Kuenn 3-4, Stanky, Simpson HR; Stephens HR
Tuesday, August 4 WAS 10, NYG 3 - Miller 4-hit CG, Kluszewski, Garagiola HR, 3 RBI, Mays 3-4; Batts 2-4 BRO 7, LOU 4 - Brissie 8.0, 5 H, 2 ER, Boone, Joost 2 RBI; Lowrey 2-4, 2 R CHI 6, DET 5 - Reese 2-4, GWRBI in 9th, SB, Lockman 3-4, Bell 2-3, HR; Elliott HR STL 5, BOS 4 - Raffensberger 8.0, 4 R, 3 HRA, 7 K, 2-4, Wyrostek 2-4, 3B, 3 RBI
Wednesday, August 5 WAS 4, NYG 2 - Gromek 8.1, 6 H, 2 R, Kluszewski 3-5, Goodman 2-4, 2 R LOU 6, BRO 5 - Dark 3-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI, Collins HR, 2 RBI; Hamner 3-4, 2 RBI DET 11, CHI 1 - Rush 3-hit CG, 6 K, Fain 3-4, 4 R, Marion 3-5, 3 RBI, Marshall 3-5 STL 5, BOS 3 - Buhl 8.0, 6 H, 3 R, Stephens 3-4, Red 2-3, 2 RBI, Ennis HR; Mantle HR
Thursday, August 6 WAS 5, BRO 4 (13) - Suder GWPHRBI in 13th, Klu 4-5, Goodman 3-4, 2 R STL 5, CHI 4 - Campanella 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, Wyrostek 2 RBI, Musial HR; Ryan, Bell HR NYG 5, LOU 2 - Wynn inj, 2 RBI, Bullpen 7.0, 0 ER, Boudreau 4-5, Thomas HR, 2 RBI BOS 12, DET 7 - Mathews 4-5, HR, 3 RBI, Zernial 3 R, Simpson, Gilliam 2 RBI
Friday, August 7 WAS 6, BRO 5 (12) - Furillo GWRBI, Adcock GSHR, Michaels 4-5; Hodges HR, 3 RBI STL 5, CHI 4 - Crowe 2-3, 2 R, Coan 2-5, SB, Wyrostek 2-3; Avila 3-4, HR, 2 RBI NYG 10, LOU 7 - Wertz 2 HR, 4 RBI, Doby 3-4, 2 RBI, Mullin, Adams 2 RBI; Jensen HR BOS 3, DET 2 - Spahn 8.0, 2 R, 6 K, Mantle 3B, HR, 2 RBI; Kiner 3-4, DiMaggio 2-3
Saturday, August 8 WAS 2, BRO 1 - Miller 1-hit CG, 4 W, 6 K, Kluszewski 2-4, RBI; Gorman 5-hit CG L STL 8, CHI 3 - Pierce 6-hit CG, 7 K, Campanella 3-5, HR, Dom, Musial HR, Doerr 2 RBI LOU 5, NYG 4 (10) - Klein GWPHRBI, Antonelli 7.2, 9 K, 2 RBI; Batts 2-5, RBI BOS 9, DET 8 (12) - Mathews 3-6, 3 RBI, GWRBI; Fain 2-3, 3 RBI, Metkovich 3-4
Sunday, August 9 STL 8, WAS 1 - Raffensberger 5-hit CG, HR, Wyrostek 2-4, 3 RBI, Red 2-3, 2 RBI BRO 3, CHI 2 - Brissie 5-hit CG, 8 K, Woodling 2-4, RBI, Ashburn 2-3, SB NYG 8, BOS 3 - Noren 3-4, 2 HR, 3 RBI, Robinson HR, 3 RBI, Batts 2-4, Doby HR, 2 R DET 4, LOU 3 - Rush 8.0, 6 H, 2 ER, DiMaggio 2B, HR, 2 RBI; Bauer 2-4, HR, 2 RBI
Monday, August 10 WAS 5, STL 0 - Jansen 3-hit SHO, 2 W, 4 K, Goodman 3-4, 2 R, SB, Slaughter 2 RBI CHI 7, BRO 2 - Dickson 7-hit CG, Berra 3-5, HR, 5 RBI, Westlake 2-5; Hodges HR BOS 2, NYG 1 - Hiller 7.0, 4 H, 1 R, Kuenn, Mathews RBI; Fornieles 7-hit CG L, 7 K DET 6, LOU 1 - Roberts 7-hit CG, Kell, Kiner, Marshall HR; Jensen 2-4, RBI
Tuesday, August 11 STL 11, WAS 6 - Stephens HR, 5 RBI, Musial 3-5, HR, W Jones HR; Gordon 3-4, HR BRO 3, CHI 0 - Hutchinson 5-hit SHO, 3-run 3rd, Minoso, Ashburn, Hodges RBI BOS 5, NYG 4 - Spahn 8.0, 8 H, 3 ER, Simpson 2-3; Wynn 7-hit CG L, Batts 3-5 LOU 9, DET 8 - Jensen HR, 4 RBI, Collins 4-5, Hemus 3-5, 2 RBI; Marion HR, 3 RBI
Wednesday, August 12 NO GAMES
Thursday, August 13 WAS 11, BOS 3 - Miller 7.2, 2 R, 10 K, Slaughter 4-6, 4 R, Klu 4-5, 3 RBI, McD 3 RBI STL 5, NYG 4 - Stephens 2-3, 2 RBI, W Jones 2-5, 2 R, Musial HR; Busby 2-4, 2 R BRO 13, DET 7 - Reiser 4-6, HR, 4 RBI, SB, Woodling 4-6, 4 R, Hodges 3-6, HR, 3 RBI CHI 6, LOU 1 - Newcombe 8-hit CG, 2 RBI, Westlake 2-3, HR; Bauer 2-4, SB
Friday, August 14 WAS 3, BOS 0 - Gromek 4-hit SHO, 2 W, 4 K, Piersall 3-4, Adcock HR; Lopat 8-hit CG STL 11, NYG 8 - Stephens, Musial, Campy HR, Jones, Doerr 2 RBI; Thomas 4-5, 3 RBI DET 4, BRO 3 - Metkovich GWRBI, Rush 8.0, 1 ER, Kell 3-4; Ashburn 2-5, 2 SB CHI 3, LOU 2 - Ford 8.0, 4 H, 2 R, 8 K, Westlake 3-3; Dark 2-4, HR, Bauer HR
Saturday, August 15 BOS 6, WAS 3 - Hiller 8.0, 6 H, 2 ER, 8 K, Mathews HR, 3 RBI, Simpson HR, 2 RBI NYG 5, STL 4 - Robinson 3-3, Noren 3-5, 2B, 3B, 2 R, Doby HR, 2 RBI; Wyro 2-4, HR DET 10, BRO 9 - Fain HR, 3 RBI, Elliott 3-5, 2 RBI, Kiner HR; Westrum 3-4, Sou 3-5 CHI 8, LOU 7 - Seminick, Rosen HR, 2 RBI, Avila 2-4, 2 RBI; Jensen 2-5, 2 RBI