Clark Griffith - Ownership

Ownership

When Griffith took over as manager of the Senators, he also bought a 10 percent interest in the team. In 1919, Griffith joined forces with Philadelphia grain broker William Richardson to buy controlling interest in the Senators. Griffith boosted his share to 19 percent, while Richardson bought a 40 percent interest. Richardson and Griffith quickly came to an agreement that allowed Griffith to vote Richardson's shares as well. This all but assured his election as team president that November. At the same time, the Senators' home park, National Park, was renamed Griffith Stadium. Griffith stepped down as manager after the 1920 season to devote all his energy to the front office.

Griffith was known for running the Senators on a shoestring. This was almost out of necessity; even with Richardson's assistance, he was forced to mortgage his Montana ranch to raise the money he needed to buy control of the team. Unlike most other owners, he had no income other than the Senators and Griffith Stadium. However, the Washington Redskins and other tenants enabled him to turn a profit for 21 years in a row.

He was, however, known for his faith in young players. He twice entrusted 27-year-old players to manage his teams—Bucky Harris in 1924 and Joe Cronin in 1933. Griffith's wagers appeared to pay off, as the Senators won the pennant in both years under their new youthful managers. In Harris' case, they won the 1924 World Series.

In 1949, after a string of mostly humdrum seasons, Griffith almost lost control of the team when the Richardson estate sold its stake to John Jachym, who in turn sold his shares six months later to H. Gabriel Murphy when he could not obtain a voice in the team's affairs. Griffith was reelected team president, but it was understood that unless the team improved, the next vote would go against him. Griffith proceeded to buy stock from Murphy until he owned 52 percent of the club.

One of Griffith's most trusted friends and respected scouts was Joe Engel, whom he placed in charge of the Chattanooga Lookouts at Engel Stadium. Engel was the first to scout Joe Cronin for the club and said, "I knew I was watching a great player. I bought Cronin at a time he was hitting .221. When I told Clark Griffith what I had done, he screamed, "You paid $7,500 for that bum? Well, you didn't buy him for me. You bought him for yourself. He's not my ballplayer - he's yours. You keep him and don't either you or Cronin show up at the ballpark." As mentioned above, Cronin eventually became player-manager of the Senators, and even married Griffith's niece.

He finished his managerial career with a 1491–1367 record. His 1491 wins ranked 19th all-time as of 2005.

Griffith died in 1955 at the age of 85. Ownership of the club passed into the hands of his adopted son, Calvin Griffith, who led the charge to have the club moved to Minnesota and become the Twins.

Clark Griffith was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1946.