1894 by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview

Page 59

Turner 1867–1945,” making him 78 years old at the time of his death.

The explanation of Turner’s major league decline seems to generally center on playing time. His outfield teammates were three future Hall of Famers. He was not going to replace any of those stars. The final blow for Turner might have been his transfer to St. Louis, which in 1896 was “baseball hell.” The National League and American Association Browns were at the mercy of their megalomaniac owner, German beer baron Chris von der Ahe. Von der Ahe, who made, spent, and lost a fortune was, by 1896, the most erratic owner in all of baseball. His wife was suing him for divorce and his mistress was suing him for false promises. He had been “kidnapped” by agents of Pittsburgh Pirates owner Barney Dreyfus to stand trial for “kidnapping”

Pirates pitcher Mark Baldwin, whom he tried to drag into State Court for breach of contract.

Von der Ahe, now cash strapped, was wheeling and dealing players like Monopoly properties. When Turner arrived in St. Louis, before he could put on a Browns’ uniform, he immediately found himself in St. Paul, Minnesota, as a minor leaguer; another Von der Ahe deal. He returned to St. Louis in time to play in 51

games, where he hit only .246. He followed up nicely, however, in 1897 with a .291 average, playing in 103 games. But, after a

1894