The Imperfect Diamond: A History of Baseball's Labor Wars
From the introduction of the reserve clause in 1879 to the lockout and new basic agreement of 1990, baseball players have been engaged in one of the longest and most colorful labor struggles in our nation’s history. The Imperfect Diamond tells the stories of the players and their opponents, the powerful owners: how John Montgomery Ward led the Players League Rebellion of 1890; the rise and fall of David Fultz and the Baseball Players Fraternity (1912–18); the iron-fisted regime of...
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From the introduction of the reserve clause in 1879 to the lockout and new basic agreement of 1990, baseball players have been engaged in one of the longest and most colorful labor struggles in our nation’s history. The Imperfect Diamond tells the stories of the players and their opponents, the powerful owners: how John Montgomery Ward led the Players League Rebellion of 1890; the rise and fall of David Fultz and the Baseball Players Fraternity (1912–18); the iron-fisted regime of Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis; the case of Danny Gardella vs. Happy Chandler and the blacklisting of the players who jumped to the Mexican League; the founding of the Baseball Players Association in 1953 and the tempestuous but triumphant reign of Marvin Miller; the struggles of Curt Flood, Andy Messersmith, and Dave McNally, and how they brought about the demise of the reserve clause; the unprecedented midseason strike of 1981 and the collusion cases of the late 1980s. In the epilogue for this Bison Books edition, Lee Lowenfish guides the reader through the turbulent 1990s and first decade of the twenty-first century, covering expansion teams, the monumental 1994 strike, and performance-enhancing drugs. Listed by the Society of American Baseball Research as one of the fifty essential baseball books, The Imperfect Diamond will stand for years to come as the source for the real story behind America’s national pastime. Aethlon: Journal of Sport Literature "Remains to date the very best. . . . An unprecedented opportunity to see beyond the scrim of handlebar moustaches and 'Casey at the Bat' nostalgia."
Introduction vForeword Robert W. Creamer 13Prologue: The Messersmith-McNally Decision 15Part I John Montgomery Ward and the Bitter Legacy of the Players League Revolt of 18901 The Rebellion of the Brotherhood of Professional Baseball Players in 1889 272 The Rise and Fall of the Players League of 1890 39Part II The Age of Fitful Fraternity, 1900-19203 Ban Johnson and the Rise of the American League and the Failure of the Players Protective Association 574 David Fultz and the Creation of the Professional Baseball Players Fraternity of 1912 735 The Rise and Fall of the Federal League and the Players Fraternity 85Part III The Age of Landis, 1921-19446 The Shield of Holmes and the First Years of Commissioner Landis 1037 A Czar Tries to Achieve Democracy 115Part IV 1946: Year of the Great Challenges8 A Tale of Three Veterans 1299 A Prophetic Failure: Robert Murphy and the American Baseball Guild of 1946 13910 Gardella vs. Chandler: The Case that Almost Toppled a Monopoly 155Part V Seedlings of Change in a Quiet Decade11 The Celler Sub-Committee Hearings of 1951 17112 The Birth of the Major League Baseball Players Association 183Part VI The Coming-of-Age of the Major League Baseball Players Association13 The Arrival of Marvin Miller 19514 Curt Flood and the End to the Perpetual Reserve Clause 207Part VII The Wars of the Monopolies: Players Versus Owners, 1980-199015 The Showdown of 1981: The Unprecedented 51-day Strike 22516 Old Wine in New Bottles: From Strike to Collusion to Lockout 249Epilogue: The Cataclysmic Strike of 1994 and the Recovery 281Bibliographical Notes 307Glossary of Terms 313Index 317
\ Aethlon: Journal of Sport Literature“Remains to date the very best. . . . An unprecedented opportunity to see beyond the scrim of handlebar moustaches and ‘Casey at the Bat’ nostalgia.”—Aethlon: Journal of Sport Literature\ \ \ \ \ \ National Public Radio“If anyone wants to get a handle on baseball today—free agencies, the money, the relationships between players and owners, etc.—this book is a must.”—Red Barber, National Public Radio\ — Red Barber\ \ \ \ USA Today Baseball Weekly“The seminal study of baseball’s labor history.”—USA Today Baseball Weekly\ \ \ \ \ Lovemyteam.com"If the Baseball Hall of Fame were to assemble a compilation of books that belong in a business of baseball canon, Lee Lowenfish’s third edition of Imperfect Diamond would easily hold a prominent spot on the list."—Wayne McDonnell, Lovemyteam.com\ — Wayne McDonnell\ \ \ \ \ \ Lovemyteam.com"If the Baseball Hall of Fame were to assemble a compilation of books that belong in a business of baseball canon, Lee Lowenfish's third edition of Imperfect Diamond would easily hold a prominent spot on the list."—Wayne McDonnell, Lovemyteam.com\ \ \ \ \ Baseball Magazine“Not only an entertaining book, and not only a complete history of this important topic . . . it sets the standards for precision and presentation that other baseball authors should strive to match.”—Keith Olbermann, Baseball Magazine\ \ \ \ \ National Public Radio“If anyone wants to get a handle on baseball today—free agencies, the money, the relationships between players and owners, etc.—this book is a must.”—Red Barber, National Public Radio\ \ \ \ \ Baseball Magazine“Not only an entertaining book, and not only a complete history of this important topic . . . it sets the standards for precision and presentation that other baseball authors should strive to match.”—Keith Olbermann, Baseball Magazine\ — Keith Olbermann\ \ \ \ \ \ New Republic“A dramatic, stirring portrayal of traditional confrontation between labor and management. . . . An absorbing account of a hitherto little-publicized American labor movement.”—New Republic\ \ \ \ \ Aethlon: Journal of Sport Literature"Remains to date the very best. . . . An unprecedented opportunity to see beyond the scrim of handlebar moustaches and 'Casey at the Bat' nostalgia."\ \ \ \ \ Louisville Times“For those fans trying to understand baseball’s labor-management underbelly, but who feel the current situation has blown beyond their comprehension, a more readable and relevant book would be hard to find.”—Louisville Times\ \ \
