[1] Ball became wealthy through the ownership of the Federal Cold Storage Company refrigeration company in St. Louis; he expanded his holdings to include oil wells, ranch lands, and urban commercial real estate.

[2] As the Federal League's bidding war with the established clubs took a financial toll on its owners, Ball remained committed to stocking a competitive roster.

His strategy undermined the bottom line of the Terriers, Browns, and St. Louis Cardinals.

As part of a final settlement, Robert Hedges sold the Browns to Ball, who was subsequently able to transfer a number of players from his folded club to his new franchise.

He considered Rickey's ideas, such as the development of an integrated farm system, to be too radical for the time; however, he also sought to prevent other teams from experimenting with these ideas by unsuccessfully seeking a court order to vacate Rickey's 1917 contract with the Browns' crosstown rivals.