IN THE NEWS: The St. Louis Browns are the first of two ML franchises awarded to Federal League owners. Philip de Catesby Ball, ice-manufacturing tycoon and principal stockholder of the Feds' St. Louis Terriers, pays a reported $525,000 for the Browns and replaces manager Branch Rickey with his own Fielder Jones.
IN THE NEWS: The National League, happy to be rid of fractious Cubs owner Charles W. Murphy, allows Charles H. Weeghman, owner of a restaurant chain and president of the Federal League Chicago Whales, to buy the Cubs for $500,000. By putting up $50,000, William Wrigley, Jr. becomes a minority stock holder. Whales manager Joe Tinker succeeds Roger Bresnahan, and the Cubs will play in the FL's newly built park on the North Side, soon to become Wrigley Field.
IN THE NEWS: Leonard "King" Cole, who gave up Babe Ruth's first hit in 1914, dies in Bay City, Michigan at age 29. Cole pitched in 10 games with the Yankees last season.
IN THE NEWS: Profiting handsomely on his 1913 investment of $187,000, owner James E. Gaffney sells his Boston Braves for $500,000 to Harvard's famous football coach, Percy Haughton, and a banker associate.
The Giants pick up Jesse Barnes, last year's National League leader in losses (21), along with Larry Doyle from the Boston Braves. Boston receives veteran Buck Herzog. Barnes will go 6–1 this year and then win a league high 25 games in 1917.
IN THE NEWS: A list of 123 Federal League players with free-agent status under the terms of the peace agreement is released by the National Association.
IN THE NEWS: The Giants buy Edd Roush from the Newark Tip Tops (Federal League) for $7,500. Roush will hit just .188 in New York before being packaged to Cincinnati, where he will blossom into a Hall of Famer. Along with Roush come the contracts of C Bill Rariden from the Peps, infielder Bill McKecknie, spitballer Fred Anderson from the Buffalo Bufffeds (AKA the Blues), and Federal League star, the colorful Benny Kauf. The total proce is $65,000.
IN THE NEWS: The Yankees buy left-handed P Nick Cullop from Kansas City (FL), infielder Joe Gedeon from Salt Lake City (PCL), and veteran Germany Schaefer from Newark (FL). Schaefer will announce that he is changing his nickname to "Liberty" because of the war. Schaefer noticed that sauerkraut had been renamed "liberty cabbage."
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