On May 22, the team began a losing streak that would eventually reach 26 straight games, which still stands as the all-time Major League record as of 2018.
Financial difficulties had caused the team to miss payroll on three occasions, and the players alerted AA president Wheeler C. Wyckoff to the problem.
On the way to the meeting, Davidson was confronted by his players calling for the rescinding of previous fines, threatening to strike if refused.
The team was scheduled to play against the Baltimore Orioles that day, and following Davidson's actions, five members of the club refused to take the field.
At the meeting, Davidson admitted that he could not fulfill his obligations of ownership, but left promising to strengthen the team upon threat of the league taking control of the franchise.
Guy Hecker began taking steps towards founding a branch of John Montgomery Ward's Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players for the AA.
While Wolf continued to handle on-field duties, McKinney traveled with the team to keep an eye on the players for the owner.
By July 2, however, another payroll was due, and when it became apparent that he would be unable to meet it, Davidson decided to turn the team over to the AA.