 Nicol was signed by the St. Louis Browns near the end of the 1890 season , even though he had no prior experience in minor league baseball . The team were in desperate need for players ; their situation was a microcosm of the American Association ( AA ) that already had few players with major league experience to begin with . The league 's precarious situation was not helped by the fact that they had to compete with both the well @-@ established National League ( NL ) and the newly formed yet highly popular Players ' League . Although the latter league lasted just one season , they were able to outdraw both the AA and NL in terms of attendance . This put a dent in the fortunes of the American Association , whose teams consequently struggled to pay the players ' salaries and thus , had to utilize amateur , semi @-@ professional or minor league players . 
