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Jack Glasscock--A collection of clippings, 1887-1892
Major League Baseball Player
A COLLECTION OF CLIPPINGS, 1887-1892
from Sporting Life[?], April 6, 1887:
JACK GLASSCOCK
In his usual frank, honest way, said: -- "I was offered a fine salary to go to Boston, but knew I could not accept. I knew I had to come here, and here I am. I like the surroundings, and am pleased with the outlook . I am satisfied with the way I have been treated, and am going to play the best ball I can. You may say," he added; "that this is the feeling of the whole team. There has been a great deal of stuff written again Indianapolis, but I never pay any attention to it. The report that I was afraid I would not get my salary was conceived by some out and out liar. I never said anything of the kind. I have not yet found a single man who seems opposed to playing here. It is a singular fact, but a true one, that ball players who stay here one season always want to remain. It was so with the men sold to Detroit, and has always been the case. If it fails this time it will the first. The board of directors met last night, and without any trouble selected [ . . . ]
from Sporting Life(?), April 20, 1887:
JACK GLASSCOCK'S PECULIARITY
The unwritten history of the Union Association would make a great big book. I remember after the Cleveland sensation, when McCormick, Glasscock and Briody jumped their contract, the Union people here imagined that the fortune of their club was made. The very first day Glasscock played here he accomplished one of his peculiar ground and lofty tumbling stops and pickups. He nailed a ball over near second base, knocked it down and chased it half way over the diamond to first before he finally picked it up. On such a contortion-like play, the majority of short stops would have made an error, but Jack recovered in time and banged the ball to McEnery, who was on first, with a force that almost knocked that worthy out, and after the inning Mac came in spitting on his hands, which were still stinging from the effects of the drive and going over to Dan O'Leary he nodded toward Glasscock with the remark:
"Smoking beeswax! That son of a gun must be shoulder bound.!"
from Sporting Life, June 8, 1887:
GLASSCOCK AND THE INDIANAPOLIS CLUB
I notice in one or two papers where the writers claim that Jack Glasscock is playing a listless game and writer claims that Jack is playing for his release. This talk is all nonsense. No matter how anxious Jack is to get away from Indianapolis he will never put up a poor game of ball in order to get away from the Hoosiers. I am confident that the great short stop could get more money in Boston, New York, Chicago and Detroit than he is receiving in Indianapolis but he is obliged to remain right where he is at present and there is no one that appreciates this fact any more than does Jack. The bad luck and long string of defeats that Indianapolis has against her has undoubtedly been cause more on account of bad management than from any other cause. One of the players wrote me some time ago, and his statement has been made good by recent changes, "that he didn't know who to look to as the manager. In fact we haven't any." A club without a head is in bad shape, and if Glasscock has played a few bad games, I am certain that it has not been done intentionally. When Jack is playing on a losing club he becomes low-spirited and remains that way until his club strikes a streak of luck, and I suppose his spirits must be pretty low just at the present time. I would like to see Indianapolis last the season through at least, and would be pleased to see the club take a good position in the race, but from the present outlook the club will not last the season though. The patronage is said to be next to nothing at home and this is where all the money has to made. The club has struck a losing gait and it is very likely to keep up its present bad showing. Another fact besides poor management seems to be a lock of team work. The club has several of the best players in the profession, while one or two its positions can be called weak. The working machinery does not balance well. Schomberg and Bassett may be very good men at first and second respectively, but it is a well-known fact that they cannot shine alongside of such big diamonds as Glasscock and Denny. Bad team work and poor management will be the death of the Hoosiers.
from Sporting Life, Sept. 28, 1887:
GLASSCOCK'S CASE
Indianapolis Surprised at the Short Stop's Latest Break.
Special to SPORTING LIFEINDIANAPOLIS, Ind., Oct. 8. -- Glasscock is out in an interview with the local press in which he asserts that he is not satisfied here, never was and never will be. This outbreak was a great surprise to his friends, as it has been generally understood that he was well pleased. He told me not less than two weeks ago that if he know Indianapolis would be in the League next year he would move his family here at once, as he would rather live in this city than Wheeling. He asserted that he has not been treated well, but in this he is mistaken. On several occasions he has been given errors by the local scorers when he thought he should not have had them, and when one of the papers gave him an error for what was clearly a hit the other day it made him very mad, and the interview followed. His friends and the other players laugh at him and say he will get over it in a few days. The management will not release or sell him under any consideration, and he will be here next season just the same.
A. G. O.
from Sporting Life, April 2, 1890:
HOT SHOT FOR GLASSCOCK.
And so it is at last definitely settled that Glasscock will fill the place on the New York team so long occupied by Mr. Ward. Well, I am very sorry for it. As players, I have always regarded the tow men as being about on a level with each other. If there was any superiority in either it was in Glasscock's ability to hit a little the harder. However, all comparison ended there, for Ward was always a gentleman both on and off the field; Glasscock was just the opposite. I have heard him use language during the progress of a game that would have put the meanest tough in the country to shame, but it never seemed to trouble Mr. Glasscock the least. He acted in this manner no later than last season at Recreation Park in this city, and managed to get the entire audience down on him. He has made himself very unpopular here and I did not wonder when I saw how strongly he had expressed himself against having to play here. He will not be any credit to Mr. Day's team. The latter has always had a reputation for the gentlemanly behavior of its members, but unless there has been a wonderful change in Mr. Glasscock, this reputation will soon be a thing of the past.
GLASSCOCK TABOOED BY THE LADIES
Just to show you how thoroughly he succeeded in turning even the women against him for the way he acted, it will only be necessary to tell of the action taken by the ladies' club at its last meeting. It will be remembered that some three weeks ago I told of the formation of this body of feminines for the purpose of attending the games next season. A meeting was held on Monday evening last and it was unanimously resolved that neither the club as a body, or any of its members should attend a game this season either in this city or elsewhere, that Glasscock took part in. Probably the magnates may laugh at this and say they can stand such a loss without much effort. True enough, but just the same we will try to keep every one we can away from those games. There are now twenty-four of us girls in the club, and each one will be able to keep at least two gentlemen away from the game in addition to themselves. Now that makes a total of seventy-two people who would have otherwise gone to the games. They will average fifty cents each to the club, or thirty-six dollars each game. New York will play ten games here, so that will mean three hundred and sixty dollars the club will not get that it might just as well have. I may possibly be too severe in my feelings, but I still think the game would be much better were such men as Glasscock, Fantz and others, each one of whom I have heard swear and act like a blackguard before and audience partly composed of ladies, to be put aside and their places filled by players who could also be classed as gentlemen.
July 5, 1890
UMPIRE TROUBLES
Umpire Kerins' Lack of Sense -- Glasscock Properly Squelched by Umpire McDermott
Umpire troubles continue notwithstanding all the rules that are devised to obviate them. There have been some disgraceful scenes in various league this season, and the past week was no exception. At St. Louis last Tuesday, for instance, Umpire Kerins and the players of the St. Louis and Rochester team figured in stormy scenes, and the umpire especially had a warm day of it all around. He became involved in an altercation with a spectator and started to jump in the seats and settle the dispute in the good, old way. He was hissed until he took his place behind the bat, but he kept up a running dispute with the spectators until the contest was finished.
GLASSCOCK AT HIS OLD TRICKS
At Pittsburg, the same day, in the game between the New York and Pittsburg League teams, Glasscock started to make it warm for McDermott, but the latter proved, as usual more than a match for the player. Glasscock make a close play, but the umpire decided the runner safe. Glasscock objected, and on the instant McDermott ordered him to leave the game, with a fine of $10 to increase his joy. This act provoked much resentment on the part of the players of the visiting team, and even the spectators took sides with Glasscock. Everybody clamored for the umpire to put him back in his position, but McDermott was immovable. As a last resort Glasscock appealed to Hecker to join him in removing the umpire. Pandemonium reigned for the time being, and only ceased when Hecker refused to accede to the request.
FIRED FOR FOR INSULTING LANGUAGE
In the seventh inning Umpire McDermott started the excitement anew by suddenly calling "time" and striding over to the bench to order Glasscock off the grounds. The latter refused to move, and McDermott called upon a policeman to eject him. The officer started towards Glasscock, and by the way Jack acted it looked as if he would show fight. Trouble was averted by the New York players who crowded in a prevailed upon their captain to leave. Afterwards McDermott was asked why he had so acted, and he stated that Glasscock had kept up a running fire of insults from the bench, and he determined to call him down or be called down.
McDermott's course did not meet with the approval of the local press, which, singularly enough, does not appear to know what sort of a man this Glasscock is and how abusive he can be. When newspapers can be found to defend a player of Glasscock's stripe against an umpire of acknowledged ability and integrity, like McDermott, it is well-nigh time to despair of all efforts to life the professional game to a higher plane or conduct it with decency.
from Sporting Life? July 19, 1890:
DEFICIENCIES OF DAY'S MEN.
Jack Glasscock told me the other day that he would be tickled immensely to be relieved of the captaincy of the New York team, and he said it as though he mean it. Jack's fault as a captain is in his inability to make his men obey orders. They are all willing enough, but it seems to me as if there should be a little more that spirit best described by the expression "pulling together." This is something a little different from team work. They do team work as they understand it, but there appears to be a lack of understanding as to exactly what team work is. The team is lacking in proper signs, or at least appears to be so.
It strikes me, for instance, that the batsmen seldom know when base-runners are going to attempt to steal bases and also that base-runners are allowed to make very injudicious attempts in that direction. Each man seems to use his own judgment in this particular, and hence many runs are sacrificed. Again the pitchers are seldom signed as to the movements of base-runners and many chances to catch over-ambitious runners are lost.
It is in these points that Ewing has thoroughly drilled his Giants and it enables them to make many runs themselves and prevents many that might otherwise be made by their opponents. It would be of inestimable advantage to Mr. Day's team if they were to hold meetings and consider the various signs agreed upon and be drilled until each man thoroughly understands them. These observations are respectfully referred to Messrs. Day, Mutrie and Glasscock.
Sporting Life, Sept. 27, 1890:
WHEELING WIRINGS.
Interest Temporarily Revived -- Jack Glasscock Talks of His Future.
WHEELING, W. Va., Sept. 23 -- Editor SPORTING LIFE:--Base ball has apparently been about as dead in this locality since the close of the season as any corpse you ever saw. Nobody talks about it, and but few care about it; but the advent of the New York and Pittsburg teams yesterday changed this comatose condition into one of lively expectancy and nearly a thousand cranks of all ages and both sexes wended their way to the Island park to witness what turned out to be a fair game of ball. The New Yorkers won by 8 to 3, and the local representatives in the former nine, Glasscock and Burkett but especially the latter, put up a game that tickled our people. Burkett has undoubtedly been a failure as a pitcher, but he is undoubtedly one of the great hitters of the country.
Glasscock was interviewed by a reporter yesterday and made some comments of this style.
"It is hard to tell which League has come out ahead because they have both fattened up their attendance all season and there is not telling what the official count is. The National League and Players' League should effect a compromise of some kind because they both have undoubtedly been losing money [...] this looks like a very bad policy, as a man becomes nervous and plays poorly when he knows he is likely to be taken out of the game. It is also hard on the man that is brought in, as he is minus the practice of the man he replaces. This is something Manager Hanlon seldom ever does, and the result is shown by him having one of the best teams for working together in the League. When a man is kept in right along he gets a chance to recover himself and make up for any past errors.
GLASSCOCK'S BREAK.
Some time ago I spoke of Glasscock's conduct on the ball field in comparison with that of John Ward. Several writers saw fit to take up the cudgels on behalf of the former and claimed I had done him a gross injustice. At the time I knew whereof I wrote, but was content to wait, as I was certain the future was well as the past would bear out all I had said. This happened here on Tuesday last, when I was present at the New York-Pittsburg National League game. In the early part of the game Glasscock began disputing a decision rendered by Umpire McDermott. He grew so angry over it that he became very profane and was finally ordered out of the game by Mr. McDermott. Even then he was not satisfied, but kept up a string of talk from the players' bench, and finally was compelled by Mr. McDermott to take a seat outside the ground lines. I am not saying anything against Glasscock as a player, for I would place him among the best in the profession, but unless I am greatly mistaken, such an experience as this have never yet befallen Mr. Ward. It also strikes me that it showed very bad judgment in Glasscock to act as he did, as this is a period in the history of the national game when there should be nothing done to disgust the spectators. Goodness knows there are none too many of them for either league to risk disgusting them, so that they will either turn to the opposition or else quit going to the games altogether.
from Sporting Life, March 26, 1892.
CAPT. JACK TALKS.
Whilst the now flakes were playing tag over Sportsman's Park this afternoon Capt. Jack Glasscock, Crooks, Pinckney, Bird, Gleason and Buckley were indulging in a game of hand ball in the gymnasium next to the dressing room.
"This confounded snow is giving our practice ball a set back, and if there is anything we need it is field practice," said Glasscock as he brushed a rivulet of perspiration from his broad forehead.
"Indoor work is good enough to get the weight shrunken a bit, but the outdoor game is the thing.
"You can say in THE SPORTING LIFE that I like my team. My pitchers suit me. Buckley, Moran and Bird can receive them splendidly and I have nothing to complain of my infield or outfield. You will notice that our team is composed of all good-sized men. Buckley and Perry Werden are about a standoff, being the biggest men on the team. Pinckney, Carroll, Van Dyke, Burke, Brodie and Moran are all well developed and of good weight. I venture to say that we will compare favorably with any team in the League in hitting.
"We've got a good sticking battery in Gleason, Dwyer and Easton. I think I will get on splendidly in St. Louis and am glad to have Crooks in the infield for a field assistant.
"My first effort will be to get the boys working together -- to play with each other so to speak. Being strangers we will have to become intimate with each other in a short [ ... ]
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