On May 18, 1912, Tigers manager Hughie Jennings chose to field a team of replacement players in a game against the Athletics in an effort to avoid a forfeit. 19 Tigers players refused to play due to the suspension of Tigers OF Ty Cobb for an incident where he attacked a heckler in the stands. It turns out the man he attacked had no arms, which led to his suspension by commissioner Ban Johnson. In all honesty, I feel it was a tremendous stand for a team to take and something you would never see in today's game. Players are now so obsessed with their pay and the player's union may take actions to keep players from doing such a thing. In spite of what can be deemed as terrible actions taken by Cobb, it proved that his Tigers teammates stood behind him whether they agreed with what he did or not. In addition, it was known that many of Cobb's teammates disliked him. This further exemplifies how a team used the definition of the word and threw aside any personal feelings. Cobb may have been hated, but there was not a player on that team that was not going to be in a foxhole with each and every teammate.
Jennings was in a tough predicament. The pride of being a 17 year MLB player and in his 6th year as a manager kept him from wanting to simply forfeit the game. Conventional wisdom would say that any amateur, semi-pro or other team assembled would probably embarrass the Tigers. Perhaps the thought of a forfeit would be more embarrassing. Jennings decided to field a team of semi-pros and amateur players, some not even playing the sport, to play the game against the Athletics, led by manager Connie Mack. Remember, the Athletics were in the midst of a one of their best runs in the history of the franchise- winning the WS in 1910 and 1911. So anything less than the best Tigers lineup would not stand a chance. Remember, the Tigers were just a couple years removed from winning three consecutive AL Pennants from 1907-1909.
Jennings himself would play in the game, getting a pinch AB late in the game. Coaches Deacon McGuire and Joe Sugden would play in the game as well. The coaches would get 2 of the team's 4 hits against the Athletics, a game won by Philadelphia 24-2. Sugden, who hadn't played in a game since 1905, went 1-4. McGuire, who played in 26 seasons, hadn't played in a full season since 1906, though he made sporadic appearances in games from 1907-1910. The rest of the players failed to make a big league appearance in another game except 3B Billy Marang, who went 0-1 in the 1912 game. Marang appeared for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1916, going 0-1 in a game that season.
What stands out about the 24-2 loss by the Tigers that day is that starting pitcher Allan Travers pitched all 8 innings (the game was in Philadelphia) and gave up all 24 runs (14 earned). He yielded 26 hits, walked 7 but struck out 3 in the game. That was his only big league appearance. 3B Ed Irvin was 2-3- both hits were triples. After the game, the Tigers players rescinded their protest at the urging of Cobb.
Think about an event leading to a suspension to a player in today's age. The players union supports the players and the league gives them the option to appeal the suspension. For that reason, it is highly unlikely that a team would refuse to play a game in protest. There is more of a chance that a team forfeits a game- see the Washington Senators last game before they moved to Texas on 9/30/71, 10 cent beer night 6/4/74, disco demolition night 7/12/79 or Dodgers baseball giveaway 8/10/95. Also, during a game in September of 1977, Orioles manager Earl Weaver deliberately forfeited a game to the Blue Jays in Exhibition Stadium after a lengthy argument over a tarp that Weaver deemed unsafe.
Jennings was in a tough predicament. The pride of being a 17 year MLB player and in his 6th year as a manager kept him from wanting to simply forfeit the game. Conventional wisdom would say that any amateur, semi-pro or other team assembled would probably embarrass the Tigers. Perhaps the thought of a forfeit would be more embarrassing. Jennings decided to field a team of semi-pros and amateur players, some not even playing the sport, to play the game against the Athletics, led by manager Connie Mack. Remember, the Athletics were in the midst of a one of their best runs in the history of the franchise- winning the WS in 1910 and 1911. So anything less than the best Tigers lineup would not stand a chance. Remember, the Tigers were just a couple years removed from winning three consecutive AL Pennants from 1907-1909.
Jennings himself would play in the game, getting a pinch AB late in the game. Coaches Deacon McGuire and Joe Sugden would play in the game as well. The coaches would get 2 of the team's 4 hits against the Athletics, a game won by Philadelphia 24-2. Sugden, who hadn't played in a game since 1905, went 1-4. McGuire, who played in 26 seasons, hadn't played in a full season since 1906, though he made sporadic appearances in games from 1907-1910. The rest of the players failed to make a big league appearance in another game except 3B Billy Marang, who went 0-1 in the 1912 game. Marang appeared for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1916, going 0-1 in a game that season.
What stands out about the 24-2 loss by the Tigers that day is that starting pitcher Allan Travers pitched all 8 innings (the game was in Philadelphia) and gave up all 24 runs (14 earned). He yielded 26 hits, walked 7 but struck out 3 in the game. That was his only big league appearance. 3B Ed Irvin was 2-3- both hits were triples. After the game, the Tigers players rescinded their protest at the urging of Cobb.
Think about an event leading to a suspension to a player in today's age. The players union supports the players and the league gives them the option to appeal the suspension. For that reason, it is highly unlikely that a team would refuse to play a game in protest. There is more of a chance that a team forfeits a game- see the Washington Senators last game before they moved to Texas on 9/30/71, 10 cent beer night 6/4/74, disco demolition night 7/12/79 or Dodgers baseball giveaway 8/10/95. Also, during a game in September of 1977, Orioles manager Earl Weaver deliberately forfeited a game to the Blue Jays in Exhibition Stadium after a lengthy argument over a tarp that Weaver deemed unsafe.
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