Legacies: A History Journal for Dallas and North Central Texas, Volume 6, Number 1, Spring, 1994 Page: 27
This periodical is part of the collection entitled: Legacies: a History Journal for Dallas and North Central Texas and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Dallas Historical Society.
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Cobb, who was living in California in retirement,
and invited him to participate in a pre-game appearance.'0
Burnett later admitted that he had not expected
Cobb, whose lifetime batting average of .367
remains the all-time major league record, to accept
the invitation. But, to his surprise and delight, the
"Georgia Peach" readily agreed to attend. Other
famous ball players proved equally enthusiastic, and
Burnett soon had an entire "team" assembled. Tris
Speaker, Duffy Lewis, and Cobb comprised the
outfield for the "immortals," as the local media
termed the team. Lewis was ajourneyman outfielder
who played for Boston, New York, and Washington
in the American League between 1910 and 1921.
Speaker, the "Grey Eagle," spent twenty-two seasons
in the American League between 1907 and
1928, where he dazzled fans with his speed and
defensive skills while his lifetime batting average of
.345 established his reputation as a great hitter.
Burnett's all-star infield was composed of Frank
"Home Run" Baker at third base, Travis Jackson (of
the New York Giants, 1922-1936) at short stop,
Charlie Gehringer (whose nineteen seasons with the
Detroit Tigers and .320 lifetime batting average
made him a legend) at second base, and Charlie
Grim (who was also the Dallas Eagles' manager) at
first base. Dizzy Dean, who had starred with the St.
Louis Cardinals' "Gashouse Gang" in the 1930s,
was the pitcher, with Mickey Cochrane as his
catcher." Cochrane led the Philadelphia Athletics
in the 1920s and 1930s where, many argue, he
became baseball's most accomplished catcher.
This was a group of players who had dazzled
fans from the turn of the century into the 1940s.
Some of them, Dean and Cobb in particular, were
colorful, legendary figures. Sixty-four year old
"Home Run" Baker, who played his best years with
the Philadelphia Athletics before Babe Ruth
revolutionalized baseball, was a player who seemed
rooted in the nearly mythic beginnings of professional
baseball; he had played in an era when ten
home runs in a season by a single batter was uncommon.
Not counting Dizzy Dean, who was a good
hitting pitcher, the eight position players on Burnett's
all-star team had combined for a total of 59,987
times at bat and 19,617 hits for a .327 batting
average.2 In fact, only two of the nine men Burnett
attracted to Dallas for the game (Charley Grimm and
Duffy Lewis) have not been inducted into baseball's
Hall of Fame.13Burnett never entertained the idea that the
retired players would actually compete in a game.
Rather, they would work out before the game, take
the field against the Tulsa Oilers, and Dizzy Dean
would face one hitter (who understood he was to be
walked to first base). The "immortals" would then
retire from the field as the Eagles replaced them, and
the Tulsa hitter would bat again to begin the game in
earnest.
The other aspect of Burnett's strategy, appealing
to Dallas's civic pride, was easy to accomplish.
Burnett simply turned to the local media,
especially The Dallas Morning News and the Dallas
Times Herald, to support
his efforts. Burnett was
also well connected with
the principal civic leaders
in Dallas, and he sought
and gained their support.
Dallas's influence was
rapidly increasing
throughout the Southwest,
and its leaders were anxious
to extend its reputa- Dick Burnett
tion nationwide. Burnett
asserted that, in addition to the economic bonanza
major league baseball would bring to the city, possession
of a big league team would validate Dallas's
claims to be a major city. His argument was a
seductive one, which many of the city's movers and
shakers endorsed wholeheartedly.
Ben H. Wooten, president of the First National
Bank, proved to be a vital force in Burnett's
Cotton Bowl event. Wooten virtually guaranteed
that the Texas League record would be broken when
his bank purchased 15,100 tickets to the game,
stipulating that the tickets were to be distributed
among high school students in Dallas and the Park
Cities.'4
A S THE DATE OF THE GAME approached, promotion
intensified. The newspapers began predicting
a crowd in excess of 50,000. Local radio
stations featured the game in daily news reports. On
April 12, Burnett hosted a luncheon at the Town and
Country Restaurant for 200 invited guests, including
Texas Governor Allan Shivers, with the "immortals"
and the Dallas Eagles in attendance. Gordon
McLendon, president of Liberty Broadcasting
System, served as master of ceremonies and intro27
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Dallas County Heritage Society. Legacies: A History Journal for Dallas and North Central Texas, Volume 6, Number 1, Spring, 1994, periodical, 1994; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth35112/m1/29/?q=dallas+business+journal+and+2008: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Dallas Historical Society.