It was the golden age of print media, radio broadcasting was in its infancy, the newspaper, the book and the magazine were the dominant way we learned of the world around us. Print media’s readership and effectiveness had exploded over the past decades, with increased literacy rates, printing advancements, and rapid urbanization. Print media could spread hope or fear, and it could manipulate the reader into the purchase of products with powerful advertising.
Newsstands were vibrant hubs of information and centers of knowledge, The American Magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, Collier’s, The Ladies’ Home Journal, Good House Keeping, National Geographic, The American Field Sportsman’s Journal – racks were at bursting point, competition for space fierce, competition to catch eye and the attention of the pocketbook even fiercer.
During the 1915 season veteran sportswriter Vincent Flynn would observe the lack of dedicated baseball media in magazine form. The once prolific Flynn had stepped out of the writing circuit, Martha, his wife, was in failing health, he had spent the baseball season at her bedside rather than travel the country. Previously he had paid little attention to anything other than the dailies and weeklies at newsstands, now he craved all the baseball coverage he could consume and noted the absence of a prominent magazine.
After some contemplation, Flynn decided to act, he would launch his own magazine and he had a two-point plan to make it a success. He would employ the work of the best artists he could find for the front cover, he had noted what sports magazines that did exist had not utilised their covers effectively, unlike the culture magazines. His magazine would have bold and vibrant cover art, not to entice those that venture to the newsstand looking for a baseball magazine, they would already know what they seek. His magazine should grab the eye of every visitor to the newsstand, especially those that don’t know they need to purchase a baseball magazine, every prospective customer will know someone they could purchase the publication for, especially mothers and wives.
The second point in the plan was to utilise his well-established contacts from his years of writing. He approached the commissioner of baseball, Jacob Parker, and the executive of the Legacy League, he pitched his magazine as the ‘Official’ league magazine, a means to “fill the need of a monthly, filled with the highest thought surrounding the game, well edited, well printed, and filled with first class illustrations”. He was willing to compromise on journalistic integrity for a little investment, extra access for his writers and the right to print on the cover of his magazine – “This magazine is an official organ of the Legacy Baseball League”. Parker and the executive were onboard, a deal was done, with the condition that the League could veto any story from publication. The usefulness of an official magazine to counter the stories of the muckrakers and sensationalists that would seek to bring the wholesome national pastime down, could prove to be priceless.
Once investment was secured Vincent put out a call for writers, assembling a small group and offering freelance work. As is common with many new business ventures unexpected obstacles would hinder progress and cause delay, the magazine launch would miss the opening of the 1916 season, instead the first edition hit the racks of newsstands in the final week of May.
This first edition featured an illustration of New York Kings’ Neil Pound, stood ready to hit, and a special edition was created as a promotion for early postal subscribers, this featured a more elaborate cover, Pound stands relaxed, bat on shoulder, as teammates warm up behind him.
The cover story of this first addition was ‘The Year of Neil Pound’, a piece documenting Pound’s incredible rise from the first pick of the 1914 draft to a league star in 1915, it asked if the “year of Neil Pound” would continue into 1916. At this time Pound was on top of the baseball world, looked destined to dominate, considered the best young bat to rise through the ranks for many years. The subheadings promoted 3 more articles in this first edition; ‘Big League Trades’ – a roundup of the trades and signings of that offseason; ‘Automobiles, The Ball Players’ Folly’ – this piece was critical of the latest obsession of the best paid ball players, suggesting they would be better placed for later life by saving their earnings or investing; finally a piece titled “Why Young Pitchers Fail”, covering how difficult it is for young pitchers to survive high school and college baseball and make it to the big league draft.
Through the 1910s, Baseball Monthly would prove a commercial success, reaching a six-figure circulation that modern magazines would envy.