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The Newsletter of the Halsey Hall Chapter
Society for American Baseball Research (SABR)


April 2019

Editor:
Stew Thornley

  • Kenny Jackelen to Speak at Spring Chapter Meeting May 18
  • Other Events
  • Minnesota 19th Century Base Ball Interdisciplinary Symposium November 16
  • Membership
  • Cow Pies
  • Words to Live By
  • Calendar
  • Board of Directors
  • Resources

    Kenny Jackelen to Speak at Spring Chapter Meeting May 18
    Kenny Jackelen, the primary developer for baseball-reference.com, will be the featured speaker at the Halsey Hall Chapter 2019 Spring meeting on Saturday, May 18 at Faith Mennonite Church, 2720 E. 22nd Street in south Minneapolis.

    Registration for the meeting is at 8:30 with research presentations beginning at 9:00. A business meeting will be held during lunch with a Kenny Jackelen to follow and Howard Luloff’s always-a-hit trivia contest.

    The cost for the meeting and lunch is $10. The meeting only is $5. Those wanting lunch must RSVP to Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036.

    Research presentations:

    The Bats . . . They Keep Changing! by Steve Bratkovich. The article is based on Steve’s article in the recent SABR Baseball Research Journal. Steve is requesting that attendees bring any baseball bats they have: old, current, game-used, broken, aluminum, wood, etc.“This ‘participation’ is critical,” Steve says, “since most of my bats (show and tell) are from the 1960s and are Little League or American Legion baseball. Attendees will NOT have to speak, just bring them for my ‘props.’”

    Steve has just completed his book, Major League Lumber, and sent it to the publisher. He has also written Bob Oldis: A Life in Baseball.

    Baseball for Becca and Other Beginners by Anders Koskinen

    They Deserved Each Other: The Tempestuous New York Giants Ownership of Charles Stoneham, John McGraw, and Frank McQuade by Dan Levitt

    Baseball Performance Research: Studies of Pitching, Batting, and Baserunning by Sam Haag

    Baseball Diplomacy by Alan Holst, who recently retired fromt he foreign service and will talk of his baseball experiences with the State Department and how the the U. S. government promotes diplomatic relations through sports, specifically baseball.

    During the business meeting, the chapter will elect four members to a two-year term on the board of directors. Anyone interested in being a candidate may contact nominating committee chair Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791.

    One candidate for the board has stepped forward so far, Anders Koskinen. All candidates will be invited to submit a candidate statement to be published in the May 2019 newsletter.

    Those elected to the board will be part of the chapter board meeting on Sunday evening, June 9 and will elect officers (one-year terms for president, vice president, treasurer, secretary) from among the new and holdover members for 2019-2020.

    Jim Cox has come up with a way to make the chapter meeting even more special: valuable door prizes. He will lead a drawing to give a baseball-related gift to one new member (joined in the last 12 months) and one veteran member (more than a year). Members will note their status (new or veteran) on the attendance list when checking in. The drawing will be held during the lunch break. You must be present to win.

    As a prelude to the meeting, there will be a reception for Alan Holst on Friday, May 17, starting at 6:30 p.m., at the Himrich-Thornley house, 1082 Lovell Avenue, Roseville. Directions: Brenda Himrich and Stew Thornley

    Hamm’s Beer and some other beverages will be available, but bring your own if you want along with chips and other snacks to share.

    The fall chapter meeting will be Saturday, November 2.

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    Other Events
    Research Committee Meetings April 22 and May 20
    The Halsey Hall Chapter Research Committee will meet Monday, April 22 and Monday, May 20 at 7:00 p.m. at the Brookdale Library, 6125 Shingle Creek Parkway, Brooklyn Center 55430. All members are welcome to attend.

    Fred Souba Hot Stove Saturday Morning
    The next Fred Souba Hot Stove Saturday Morning, an informal breakfast gathering for the purpose of talking baseball, will be at 9:00 on Saturday, May 4 at Bunny’s Northeast, 34 13th Avenue NE, Minneapolis 55413, 612-545-5659 (in what was the keg warehouse of the Grain Belt Brewery).

    Book Club
    The Halsey Hall Chapter Book Club will meet Saturday, June 1 at 9:30 a.m. at the usual spot, Barnes & Noble in Har Mar Mall in Roseville. The book selection is Winning Baseball: A Simple Game of 10 by Les Gerdin, who will be present to talk about the book and answer questions. Winning Baseball is available through amazon.com.

    Brent Heutmaker has organized a list of all the book selections since the book club started in August 2002: Halsey Hall Book Club Selections

    Emma Charlesworth-Seiler Umpiring in Cedar Rapids July 27
    The chapter is organizing a trip to see the Clinton LumberKings play the Cedar Rapids Kernels at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 27, and Emma Charlesworth-Seiler will be umpiring. Members may make their own carpool and rooming arrangements with one another. A suggested hotel for Saturday night is the Super 8, off Interstate 80 and 33rd Avenue, 400 33rd Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids 52404. The hotel is about three miles from the ballpark, and rooms are $55 to $60 plus tax. Call the Super 8 at 319-432-7282 to reserve a room.

    We will meet Emma for lunch around noon. Howard Luloff is contacting the Kernels to see if some of their staff can meet with us at the ballpark, and he may also have a trivia quiz. Howard will look into buying tickets in advance (a good idea since it’s fireworks night and may have a big crowd). Let Howard know if you will want tickets at hfan77@centurylink.net, 952-922-5036.

    Other Possibilities
    When you’re the the oldest and one of the most active chapters in SABR, the pressure is always on for more activities. Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities, to wit:

    The weekend of June 7-9 brings a trip to Milwaukee to see a Brewers-Pirates game on Friday night and then the Saturday afternoon unveiling of a statue for The Crusher in south Milwaukee, preceded by a quaffing of beverages at Sam’s Tap. Contact Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791, if you are interested in going or would like more information.

    This year’s featured townball game will be the Waseca Braves at the Austin Greyhounds at Marcusen Park in Austin at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, May 31 with a pre-game gathering at Piggy Blue’s Bar-B-Que (motto: Where you can eat pig or eat like a pig!) at 6 p.m. Contact Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791, if you are interested in going and letting him know if you can drive and take others or if you need a ride. Note: If the weather forecast looks bad, the outing may be canceled. If that becomes an issue, contact Stew the morning of May 31 to see what the decision is.

    In addition, some members are planning to go to a game in Waseca at 7:30 on Wednesday, June 5.

    Even More Baseball
    Tom Flynn and Bob Komoroski are going to the Gophers game versus Oklahoma at Target Field at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 20 and are looking to meet up with other chapter members there. Gophers Baseball vs. Oklahoma @ Target Field

    Several members are already planning to attend the 2019 Black Sox Scandal Symposium at the Chicago History Museum to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the scandal September 27-29. The weekend will include a trip to a White Sox game, and several chapter members are now working on an article on the predecessor to the White Sox, Charles Comiskey’s St. Paul Saints, which played in the Western League from 1895 to 1899.

    Keep up to date with chapter activities on social media:

    SABR Halsey Hall Chapter Facebook page

    Halsey Hall Chapter Twitter page

    Regular Events

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    Minnesota 19th Century Base Ball Interdisciplinary Symposium November 16
    Details are set for the Minnesota 19th Century Base Ball Interdisciplinary Symposium, which our chapter will host in Minneapolis on Saturday, November 16. Bob Tholkes is the primary organizer and is working with the chapter Research Committee on the program. The symposium is a joint project of the SABR 19th Century Committee, the Halsey Hall Chapter of SABR, and Hennepin County Library.

    Confirmed presenters:

    • John Thorn, Historian for Major League Baseball
    • Larry Millett, popular Twin Cities author and local historian
    • Stew Thornley, SABR award-winning author and leading Minnesota baseball historian
    • Dan Levitt, SABR award-winning author
    • Mike Haupert, SABR Doug Pappas Award winner in 2014 for best convention presentation
    • Kristin Anderson, award-winning teacher at Augsburg College, Minneapolis, and expert on Twin Cities sports architecture

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    Membership
    Know a potential member? Here are resources for getting that person happily involved in SABR:

    Membership application

    Have you attended a Minnesota college, and would you be willing to contact it about the possibility of integrating SABR into some departments? If so, please contact Membership Committee Chair Hans Van Slooten.

    Hans has written an article on SABR and our chapter for Twins Daily: Interested in Baseball Research? Join SABR!

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    Cow Pies
    Tom Breen has a blank scorecard from the September 28, 1944 Service World Series game, part of a series of games held at Furlong Field and Hickam Field in Hawaii from September 22 to October 15. Anyone interested in seeing the scorecard may contact Tom, tbreen24@gmail.com. Johnny Vander Meer, Johnny Mize, Phil Rizzuto, Dom DiMaggio, Ferris Fain, and Joe Gordon were among the players in the game.

    Matt Johnson came across this 1926 photo of Babe Ruth lining up at center (and/or blowing a fart) during a Minnesota Gophers practice, flanked by George Gibson, Harold Hanson, Neil Hyde, and Ken Haycraft.

    Babe Ruth practicing with the Minnesota Gophers

    Wesley Ellingwood is producing a documentary about the rivalry between the Minneapolis Millers and St. Paul Saints.

    Enjoy these bat flips from Korea, where the pitchers are not as thin-skinned as they are in the United States: Best Bat Flips in KBO

    Oops!
    On March 31, the official scorer announced the pitching line for Cleveland’s Shane Bieber but gave the wrong first name for him. Guess what it was.

    Articles by chapter members:

    Jim Cox pointed out writing opportunities for the SABR BioProject, based on a March 9 article by Patrick Reusse in the Star Tribune about Twins folk heroes. Jim noted that many of them do not have bios on the SABR site. Members looking for a writing topic may contact a member of the BioProject staff.

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    Words to Live By
    “Every researcher knows that the thing you’re looking for leads you to the thing you weren’t looking for and is much better than the thing you were looking for.”

    —Williams Grimes, New York Times obituary writer, in Obit

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    Calendar
        April 22—Research Committee meeting, 7:00 p.m., Brookdale Library. For more information, contact Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791, or Sarah Johnson.

        May 4—Fred Souba Hot Stove League Saturday Morning, Bunny’s, Minneapolis, 9:00 a.m.

        May 17—Reception for Alan Holst, 6:00 p.m. For more information, contact Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791.

        May 18—Spring Chapter Meeting, 9:00 a.m, Faith Mennonite Church, Minneapolis. For more information, contact Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036.

        May 20—Research Committee meeting, 7:00 p.m., Brookdale Library. For more information, contact Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791, or Sarah Johnson.

        May 31—Townball, Waseca at Austin. For more information, contact Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791.

       June 1Book Club, Barnes & Noble, Har Mar Mall, Roseville, 9:30 a.m., Winning Baseball: A Simple Game of 10 by Les Gerdin.

       July 27—Clinton LumberKings at Cedar Rapids Kernels.

    For more information, contact Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036.

        November 2—Spring Chapter Meeting, 9:00 a.m, Faith Mennonite Church, Minneapolis. For more information, contact Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036.

        November 16, 2019—Minnesota 19th Century Base Ball Interdisciplinary Symposium, Minneapolis Central Library. For more information, contact Bob Tholkes., 952-922-5036.

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    Board of Directors 2018-2019
    President—Tom Flynn
    Vice President—Frank Kadwell
    Secretary—Dave Lande
    Treasurer—Jerry Janzen
    Jim Cox
    Bob Komoroski
    Hans Van Slooten

    Membership Committee Chair—Hans Van Slooten
    Events Committee Chair—Howard Luloff
    Research Committee Chairs—Brenda Himrich and Sarah Johnson

    The Holy Cow! Editor—Stew Thornley
    Webmaster—John Gregory 
    Ass. Webmasters—Frank Kadwell and Stew Thornley
    Social Media Directors—Tom Flynn, Twitter; Bob Komoroski, Facebook

    Halsey Hall Chapter Web Page

    Past issues of The Holy Cow! are available on-line.

    Chapter History

    Chapter Procedures and By-Laws

    Society for American Baseball Research

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    Resources

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