The Days of Wee Willie, Old Cy and Baseball War: Scenes from the Dawn of the Deadball Era, 1900-1903 - Chuck Kimberly - McFarland, Sep 25, 2014 - Sports & Recreation - 296 pages
Count Your Cows: Kid Elberfeld
Almost any reference to Kid Elberfeld is likely to mention his temper or surly behavior. His career was peppered with fines, suspensions, and ugly incidents, both on the field and off. Some examples:
Summer, 1899: Playing for Detroit, then in the Class A Western League, Elberfeld went to the entrance door for players at Bennett Field. He knocked on the door but the groundskeeper didn't respond fast enough to suit him. Elberfeld kicked the door open and broke the lock. When the groundskeeper complained to team president Van Derbeck, he was told to get a new lock."
August 1899: Upset over a call by umpire Haskell, Elberfeld assaulted him, giving him a black eye and a bloody lip. After being pulled away from the umpire, Elberfeld continued to curse at him, hoping to provoke another fight. Ban Johnson fined Elberfeld $100 and suspended him for the remainder of the season. When Johnson was told that Elberfeld's mother was a widow and relied on Elberfeld for some of her support, he lifted the suspension."
Either 1899 or 1903: Sam Crawford and Elberfeld played together in Cincinnati and Detroit. One day the two and some of their teammates were sitting in a hotel dining room. The hotel's waiters ignored the players for some twenty minutes while they served other diners at nearby tables. Elberfeld soon lost patience. Crawford later explained what happened next: "Elberfeld says, 'I'll get you some waiters, fellows: Darned if he didn't take one of the plates and sail it way up in the air, and when it came down on that tile floor it smashed into a million pieces. In that quiet, refined dining room it sounded like the Charge of the Light Brigade:' Elberfeld's antic got the immediate attention of three or four waiters."
June 1901: Against the Athletics, Elberfeld tried to score from third on a grounder to second base. Elberfeld came in with spikes high, tearing the glove off catcher Mike Powers' hand and "taking a chunk out" of his leg. For the rest of the series Philadelphia baserunners slid hard into second base every time Elberfeld covered the bag. When the series was over, Elberfeld was out for almost two weeks—because of illness, the Tigers said; others said it was to recover from the retaliatory beating he had taken."
May/June 1903: As described above, Elberfeld sulked and played poorly for several weeks, leading to his suspension and eventual trade by the Tigers. The Highlanders were happy to get him, and he played well for them.
July 1903: While in St. Louis with the Highlanders, Elberfeld was arrested for assaulting a waiter. According to the waiter, Elberfeld had called him a thief. When the waiter refused to wait on him, Elberfeld threw a bottle at him and hit him in the jaw."
August 1906: In the first inning of a game Elberfeld was hit in the arm by a pitch. Umpire Silk O'Loughlin refused to award him first base, saying he had purposely been hit by the pitch. Elberfeld argued the call but went to the bench after the at-bat ended. After sitting there for a few moments, he grabbed a bat and headed toward O'Loughlin while yelling at him. He was stopped by other New York players and St. Louis catcher Branch Rickey. After some coaxing they got him away from the plate and out of the park."
September 1906: On an attempted steal of third base Dan Murphy was called safe on a close play. New York players surrounded umpire O'Loughlin, protesting the decision. Elberfeld approached O'Loughlin aggressively, and O'Loughlin waved him away. The umpire's gesture infuriated Elberfeld, who rushed at O'Loughlin, attempting to kick him. O'Loughlin backed up and ordered Elberfeld out of the game. Elberfeld ran up to O'Loughlin again, making six deliberate attempts to spike him on the feet. Then he grabbed O'Loughlin's arm and tried to push him back. O'Loughlin wiggled free from Elberfeld's grasp and summoned the police, who escorted Elberfeld to the New York bench. When O'Loughlin insisted that Elberfeld leave the park, Elberfeld again went after the umpire. He was restrained by a teammate, broke free, and was again stopped by the police.
July 1907: Behaving somewhat like he had in 1903, when manager Ed Barrow suspended him and then traded him to New York, Elberfeld was suspended by New York president Frank Farrell for "indifferent work in the field and at the bat:' This time he was reinstated, and in 1908 appointed manager of the Highlanders.
Undated: In his book Before They Were the Bombers, Jim Reisler described an incident that occurred on Elberfeld's farm near Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was customary at the time for cattle to roam free. Each farmer identified his cattle by its brand. Elberfeld and a neighbor disputed the ownership of a calf whose brand had faded. The two men took the dispute to a court, which ruled in the neighbor's favor. A few weeks later the calf became sick and died. Many of Elberfeld's neighbors suspected the calf had been poisoned and most of those thought they knew who was responsible."
Almost any reference to Kid Elberfeld is likely to mention his temper or surly behavior. His career was peppered with fines, suspensions, and ugly incidents, both on the field and off. Some examples:
Summer, 1899: Playing for Detroit, then in the Class A Western League, Elberfeld went to the entrance door for players at Bennett Field. He knocked on the door but the groundskeeper didn't respond fast enough to suit him. Elberfeld kicked the door open and broke the lock. When the groundskeeper complained to team president Van Derbeck, he was told to get a new lock."
August 1899: Upset over a call by umpire Haskell, Elberfeld assaulted him, giving him a black eye and a bloody lip. After being pulled away from the umpire, Elberfeld continued to curse at him, hoping to provoke another fight. Ban Johnson fined Elberfeld $100 and suspended him for the remainder of the season. When Johnson was told that Elberfeld's mother was a widow and relied on Elberfeld for some of her support, he lifted the suspension."
Either 1899 or 1903: Sam Crawford and Elberfeld played together in Cincinnati and Detroit. One day the two and some of their teammates were sitting in a hotel dining room. The hotel's waiters ignored the players for some twenty minutes while they served other diners at nearby tables. Elberfeld soon lost patience. Crawford later explained what happened next: "Elberfeld says, 'I'll get you some waiters, fellows: Darned if he didn't take one of the plates and sail it way up in the air, and when it came down on that tile floor it smashed into a million pieces. In that quiet, refined dining room it sounded like the Charge of the Light Brigade:' Elberfeld's antic got the immediate attention of three or four waiters."
June 1901: Against the Athletics, Elberfeld tried to score from third on a grounder to second base. Elberfeld came in with spikes high, tearing the glove off catcher Mike Powers' hand and "taking a chunk out" of his leg. For the rest of the series Philadelphia baserunners slid hard into second base every time Elberfeld covered the bag. When the series was over, Elberfeld was out for almost two weeks—because of illness, the Tigers said; others said it was to recover from the retaliatory beating he had taken."
May/June 1903: As described above, Elberfeld sulked and played poorly for several weeks, leading to his suspension and eventual trade by the Tigers. The Highlanders were happy to get him, and he played well for them.
July 1903: While in St. Louis with the Highlanders, Elberfeld was arrested for assaulting a waiter. According to the waiter, Elberfeld had called him a thief. When the waiter refused to wait on him, Elberfeld threw a bottle at him and hit him in the jaw."
August 1906: In the first inning of a game Elberfeld was hit in the arm by a pitch. Umpire Silk O'Loughlin refused to award him first base, saying he had purposely been hit by the pitch. Elberfeld argued the call but went to the bench after the at-bat ended. After sitting there for a few moments, he grabbed a bat and headed toward O'Loughlin while yelling at him. He was stopped by other New York players and St. Louis catcher Branch Rickey. After some coaxing they got him away from the plate and out of the park."
September 1906: On an attempted steal of third base Dan Murphy was called safe on a close play. New York players surrounded umpire O'Loughlin, protesting the decision. Elberfeld approached O'Loughlin aggressively, and O'Loughlin waved him away. The umpire's gesture infuriated Elberfeld, who rushed at O'Loughlin, attempting to kick him. O'Loughlin backed up and ordered Elberfeld out of the game. Elberfeld ran up to O'Loughlin again, making six deliberate attempts to spike him on the feet. Then he grabbed O'Loughlin's arm and tried to push him back. O'Loughlin wiggled free from Elberfeld's grasp and summoned the police, who escorted Elberfeld to the New York bench. When O'Loughlin insisted that Elberfeld leave the park, Elberfeld again went after the umpire. He was restrained by a teammate, broke free, and was again stopped by the police.
July 1907: Behaving somewhat like he had in 1903, when manager Ed Barrow suspended him and then traded him to New York, Elberfeld was suspended by New York president Frank Farrell for "indifferent work in the field and at the bat:' This time he was reinstated, and in 1908 appointed manager of the Highlanders.
Undated: In his book Before They Were the Bombers, Jim Reisler described an incident that occurred on Elberfeld's farm near Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was customary at the time for cattle to roam free. Each farmer identified his cattle by its brand. Elberfeld and a neighbor disputed the ownership of a calf whose brand had faded. The two men took the dispute to a court, which ruled in the neighbor's favor. A few weeks later the calf became sick and died. Many of Elberfeld's neighbors suspected the calf had been poisoned and most of those thought they knew who was responsible."
