THE success of the New York Club in winning the championship of the League for 1888 opens a new era in the contests for the pennant. From 1872 to 1876 the Boston Club held the professional championship. But in 1876, under the auspices of the newly organized National League, the Chicago Club went to the front, and since then that club has almost monopolized pennant honors in the League, Boston winning but three times since 1876, while Providence was successful twice. Now, however, the trophy has come East once more. The struggle was virtually confined to a quintet of the eight competing clubs, viz., the New York, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia and Boston clubs. Finally the contest for the pennant lay between but three of them, while Pittsburgh, Indianapolis and Washington were tail-enders throughout of the eight competitors.
“FOUR times winner” is the honor claimed by the St. Louis Club, the champion winners of 1888 in the American Association. This result was mainly due to the important fact that the St. Louis Club was the only one which presented for the pennant race a well-managed and ably-captained team, all the others being to a greater or less extent merely picked nines of star players. In no season has the fact that team work—alike at the bat and in the field—is the most important element of success in winning championship honors, been more strikingly illustrated than in the race for the American Association championship of 1888.
AMONG the many clubs organized for the promotion of healthy outdoor recreation, no feature has been more conducive to the best interests of gentlemanly sports in the metropolitan district than the friendly rivalry between the Staten Island Cricket and Baseball Association and the Staten Island Athletic Club. Both organizations have secured handsome grounds and club-houses. During the past season they have given their members attractive exhibitions of amateur play on their baseball, football, lacrosse and tennis fields. The former club, however, has had an advantage in its cricket team, a game the Athletic Club has not yet developed. The greatest attraction in their field games has been their baseball exhibitions, which have surpassed those of any other amateur organizations in the country except the representatives of Harvard, Yale and Princeton colleges.
THE national game has at last become fashionable as one of the sports at Newport. During the autumn a syndicate of admirers of the game among the Newport cottage residents was formed to purchase a plot of ground and lay out a baseball park to be ready for the season of 1889. A diamond field is to be made and a grand-stand erected. Match games will be played there by the rival college nines of Harvard, Yale and Princeton next summer.
THE Boston ball grounds were the most liberally patronized last season of those only boasting a National League club. The attendance at the Boston-Chicago games during the season alone reached a total of 59,020 people. This shows that it has paid to construct the handsome ball grounds.
HENRY CHADWICK.
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SKATING.
THE season of winter sports has opened in a way that promises greater opportunities for indulgence in the fascinations of skating than have been afforded for the last few years. Whether this fair promise will be verified or not remains to be seen, but the enthusiastic skater must have been indulging in pleasurable anticipation of the joys of his favorite pastime.
Great, however, as is the individual enthusiasm in regard to this recreation, there seems to be a lack of concerted effort to give the sport the prominent place which it deserves. In England the prospects of good ice are anxiously watched every season, in order that contests, not only between the great skaters of England may be brought off, but also that international races between such champions as “Fish” Smart, and the pick of the Dutch and Scandinavian skaters, may take place. Considering the very limited chances afforded by English weather, the old country may well be proud of the feats performed by her sons. Why, then, may not America do far greater things? And not only in the professional, or semi-professional field, is there a chance for improvement, but there is a noticeable lack of energy in arranging races between amateurs. Surely skating can be made the vehicle for a winter athletic meeting, when running, jumping, etc., are put out of the question by the severity of the weather. We hope to see during this winter contests of this description taking place.