When the Phillies and Athletics Played Football
In the business of baseball, Colonel John Rogers and Benjamin Shibe were not allies. To the contrary, Shibe was the largest owner of the Philadelphia Athletics who played in the upstart American League. The A’s had signed away one of the stars of Rogers’ Philadelphia Phillies, Nap Lajoie, in the premier season of 1901. Many of Lajoie’s teammates also jumped leagues, which prompted Rogers to seek an injunction preventing former Phillies from playing in American League games in the state of Pennsylvania. But on the gridiron, Rogers and Shibe became unlikely compatriots. In 1902, football was becoming more popular in the United States. Rogers and Shibe saw an opportunity to benefit from the rising popularity of the sport, and formed the first professional football league: the National Football League. The league...