Redleg Nation

October 25, 1884: The owner of the Cincinnati Red Stockings, Aaron Stern, sells the team to minority stockholder, George Herancourt, as reported by “Redleg Journal” authors Greg Rhodes and John Snyder. Herancourt later sells the Red Stockings to another brewery owner John Hauck. During Hauck’s time, some different nicknames for the Red Stockings are tried, such as Porkopolitans and Pioneers, but “Reds” or “Red Stockings” seemed to fit and be the most lasting.

October 25, 1886: Former Reds owner Aaron Stern decides to buy the Cincinnati Red Stockings from John Hauck. According to “Redleg Journal”:

One of Stern’s first decisions was to oust O.P. Caylor as manager. Caylor was replaced by 36-year-old Gus Schmelz, who sported a fiery red beard. Schmelz never played in the majors, but managed six league clubs between 1884 and 1897. he remained with the Reds through the 1889 season.

Caylor was a Cincinnati sportswriter whose opinions had offended many in the Cincinnati management organization, but also rallied many of the fans. Frankly, it was a case of the newspaper writer taking over the team. However, Caylor was well-respected and was instrumental in the founding of the American Association. Schmelz had two prior years of major league management experience with the Columbus Buckeyes (American Association) and the St. Louis Maroons (National League) before joining the Red Stockings. Schmelz had a very successful three year stay with the Red Stockings going 237-171 with one second place finish. Caylor had managed the Red Stockings for two years, going 128-122, also with one second place finish.

In his book, “Evaluating Baseball’s Managers”, Chris Jaffe writes that Schmelz was one of baseball’s greatest innovators. He started practicing his teams, including a preseason spring training camp. He began using bunting as a primary weapon to the point that bunting was often called “the Schmelz system,” and dictated in game strategy rather than just letting the players play. He invoked the role of managers in games.

Aaron Stern would eventually withdraw the Red Stockings from the American Association after the 1889 season, move the Reds to the National League for 1890, and then sell the Reds organization to a Players League group when the 1890 season finished. That group, led by Albert Johnson, decided to re-sell the Reds to John T. Brush, who had secured the Cincinnati franchise rights to the National League. Meanwhile, another Cincinnati team, sometimes called the Cincinnati Porkers and sometimes Cincinnati’s Kelly’s Killers (named for player-manager King Kelly), played in the American Association during 1891 before moving the AA franchise to Milwaukee. And, yes, it was as confusing that offseason as it read there…we didn’t even get into the player movements during that offseason.

October 25, 1927: Cincinnati Reds president August “Garry” Herrmann resigns his position, citing poor health and deafness as the reasons. Herrmann had been the primary Reds decision maker since he led a coalition that purchased the team back in 1903.

Herrmann was chairman of Cincinnati’s municipal waterworks board when he was named president and chief of baseball operations for the Reds. During his tenure, Herrmann was very well respected amongst his peers. He was named Chairman of the National Commission, making the deciding votes on baseball matters on a three-man committee consisting of Herrmann and the two presidents of each Major League. He held this position until baseball’s first commissioner, Kenesaw Mountain Landis, was named in 1920. It was Herrmann’s decision to not sue over the loss of star outfielder Sam Crawford having signed contracts in both leagues, with Crawford jumping to the Detroit Tigers, that led to the harmonious agreement between the American and National leagues. Herrmann also helped usher in the World Series as we know it today and even experimented with night baseball under the lights (he used this with local teams not the Reds).

Herrmann had his own distinctive style. From the book “The Ball Clubs” by Donald Dewey and Nicholas Acocella:

“Even for a business renowned for it’s outsized personages, the new Cincinnati boss seemed like a character out of Dick Tracy. Called a ‘walking delicatessen’ by some, he seldom ventured anywhere without an ample supply of sausages that he would munch on whenever the opportunity presented itself. On more than one occasion, he bolted from a public function because of some mixup that had left sausages unavailable. When he wasn’t proclaiming his addiction to meat, Herrmann was boasting of his beer-drinking prowess. In case anybody missed his bluster in bars, taverns, and hotel dining rooms, he could be recognized as the portly gentleman with a taste in checked suits and big diamond rings. Even his name Garry came to him expansively–it stood for Garibaldi, and had been given to him arbitrarily by an employer who wanted to think of all his charges as great European historical figures.”

Herrmann was a big spender and loved to host the party. According to Dewey and Acocella, after Herrmann rejected a couple of trade ideas, former Reds manager Joe Tinker protested that Herrmann was “more interested in saving money for his extravagant parties than in buying players who would make the team a winner.” According to various sources, Herrmann died nearly penniless in 1931. Wikipedia says his estate was worth ten dollars when he died. According to “Redleg Journal” by Greg Rhodes and John Snyder, Herrmann’s estate was worth $120.

Herrmann also oversaw the Reds’ first World Championship, the 1919 World Series. He also was a patient owner and waited through seasonal contract holdouts of such Reds stars Edd Roush, Heinie Groh, and Hughie Critz, among others.

Continue reading This Day in Reds History: Changing of the Guard Day; Joaquin Andujar Traded