Baseball's Hibernian Collaboration

Abstract

Hall of Fame player and owner Charlie Comiskey said that Ted Sullivan's standing in the profession of baseball cannot be measured by modern standards: is in a class all by himself, he is ever and always ahead of his time, with knowledge of the game and a versatility that no other man of my acquaintance has ever possessed.1This appraisal was quite a testimony when you consider the longevity and stature of Comiskey. But he and Sullivan had a personal and professional relationship that spanned more than sixty years. Although the careers of both men bonded them together, they made an odd-looking couple. Sullivan, described as a little magpie,2 contrasted to the tall and stately, Roman-looking Comiskey. But a closer look revealed the pair to be quite similar in background and character. Both men had strong Irish identities. Sullivan was born in Ireland and Commy's father, Honest Comiskey, an Irish-born Chicago alderman, owed his political career to his ethnic associations. Sullivan and Comiskey were also renowned storytellers and baseball entrepreneurs. Both men grew up in the Midwest and became enamored with the game at young ages. Each man had also become wealthy because of his baseball dealings. They even married sisters. Throughout Comiskey's long and successful sporting career, Sullivan was at hand with advice and support. A lifelong confidant to his protege, Sullivan was embedded in most of Comiskey's dealings.The relationship began in 1874 when Sullivan, raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, enrolled at St. Mary's Academy/College in St. Mary's, Kansas. It was here that he met a 15-year-old freshman, Charlie Comiskey. Commy was sent to St. Mary's because his father was concerned that his growing fascination with baseball was intruding on his education. The elder Comiskey opposed his son's sporting interest and threatened to apprentice him to a plumber. Finally, John Comiskey sent young Charlie off to St. Mary, Kansas, where his older brother was enrolled. Here Comiskey came under the tutelage of Ted Sullivan.Ted was impressed with Comiskey's talent and intelligence and recruited him for the varsity baseball squad. He also became the youngster's roommate. At the end of the school year Comiskey followed Sullivan to Milwaukee where he pitched and played third base on the semipro Alerts. Sullivan used money allotted for fence-planking to pay Comiskey. Ultimately, however, Charlie succumbed to his father's demands and returned to Chicago. When the new school year began, father Comiskey transferred Charlie to the Christian Brothers College in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, near the Iowa border. The elder Comiskey believed there would be fewer opportunities for baseball at a religious school.3But Comiskey's sporting passion could not be denied; nor could Sullivan's interest in Charlie. Before returning to school, Comiskey pitched for a watch-making factory team in Elgin, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Sullivan, in the meantime, had relocated to Dubuque, Iowa, where he set up a news agency that sold papers and confectionary items on the Illinois Central trains. One of his first hires was Charlie Comiskey as a train boy or butcher. Commy made 20 percent commission on whatever he sold, an income that gave him a degree of financial independence.4Not satisfied with his circumstances, Sullivan in 1878 brought together local merchants and organized a semipro team, the Dubuque Rabbits. His first recruit was the 19-year-old Comiskey. He was paid $50 a month. Capitalizing on the Rabbits' successes, Sullivan in 1879 organized the first Midwestern minor league, the North West or Western League. Dubuque, Rockford, Omaha, and Davenport, Iowa made up Sullivan's association. As a player, manager, and scout, Sullivan assembled an impressive collection of young prospects. Besides Comiskey, Ted signed Charlie Radbourn, the Gleason brothers (William and Jack), Tom Loftus, and another Ted Sullivan. He also gave game passes to contract laborers to help get the ball field into playing shape. …