The Contract War for Seattle’s Baseball Manager
A power struggle in the minor leagues pits Seattle's local boosters against the board of control over the fate of Abner Powell.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Considerable speculation is afloat in local baseball circles concerning the outcome of Abner Powell's efforts to secure his release from Spokane Falls in order to accept the management of the Seattle team. On Saturday, Powell's case was brought before the board of control, now in session in Chicago. Powell's claims are that at the end of the season, Spokane players were paid with time checks, which bounced when presented. Powell asserts that according to the terms of the old national agreement, the failure to pay him resulted in freeing him from his contract. The Seattle club made a conditional contract for his services, and President Bushnell of the local club expects Powell to be in charge by the middle of March.
“Manager Barnes has had enough experience in baseball to know that a winning team is not made up of dissatisfied men.”
Professional sports ownership, wage disputes, and 'contract jumpers' remain as much a part of the local Seattle sporting scene today as they were in 1891. This struggle over Powell highlights the early efforts of Seattle boosters to establish the city as a viable major league territory by poaching talent through creative interpretations of league rules.
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