File:Commercial recreation (1920) (14577745120).jpg

Identifier: commercialrecrea00mole (find matches)
Title: Commercial recreation
Year: 1920 (1920s)
Authors: Moley, Raymond, 1886-1975
Subjects:
Publisher: Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland Foundation Committee
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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markedthat pro\ision was made for only 1,000 seats. Thissection was for a while sold out only when the totalcrowd exceeded 10,000. The attractiveness of theseseats has dechned until now they are filled only onthe extraordinary occasions when the crowd over-flows all of the higher priced seats. Nor can the importance of baseball in the recrea-tion life of the city be measured alone by a study ofattendance at League Park. To many who followthe vicissitudes of the Cleveland Club from seasonto season, actual attendance at a game is not a fre-quent occurrence. This opportunity may come notmore than two or three times a season. Yet throughthe pages of the newspapers the devotee may occa-sionally participate in ever> pursuit of a champion-ship. This interest is plainly shown in the attentionthe modern newspaper gives to professional baseball.Pages of space are freely given by the modem news-paper to professional baseball—infinitely more thanis given to any other form of recreation. 128
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A typical Saturday afternoon crowd of ten thou-sand usually includes not over 300 women. Ladiesday is every Friday when an average of 15 per centof women are in attendance. The number of boysunder 20 is also small. It may be ventured as ageneralization that professional baseball is still thesport of middle class, American men of all agesabove 21. The quality of recreation furnished by the ClevelandBaseball Club.—It would indeed be carrying coalsto New Castle to discuss in a book intended forAmericans the value of baseball as a form of recrea-tion. Americans have adopted the game as a na-tional sport. The major leagues represent the gameat its best both in mechanical perfection of play andin the conditions surrounding the exhibition. Themajor league clubs with their stars of heroicstature furnish a stimulus which penetrates to everycomer of the land. Ever)^ normal boy consciouslyor otherwise is attracted to the game, not alonebecause of the sport itself, but with a spirit ofemulating

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