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


July 2019

Editor:
Stew Thornley

  • Tink Larson to Speak at Fall Chapter Meeting November 2
  • SABR at the Saints
  • SABR Convention in San Diego
  • Upcoming Events
  • Minnesota 19th Century Base Ball Interdisciplinary Symposium November 16
  • New Members
  • Cow Pies
  • Calendar
  • Board of Directors
  • Resources

    Tink Larson to Speak at Fall Chapter Meeting November 2
    Tink Larson will be the featured speaker at the Halsey Hall Chapter fall meeting Saturday, November 2 at Faith Mennonite Church, 2720 E. 22nd Street in south Minneapolis.

    A longtime coach at many levels in Waseca, Tink is a legend in Minnesota amateur baseball. He may be joined by another Waseca native, Gene Glynn, who was a coach for several teams, including the Twins. Tink and Gene still share the record of 45 stolen bases in a season for the Waseca Braves, and Tink has the team record for a 37-game hitting streak from 1968 to 1969. Nice. Gene was also the first Mr. Basketball in the state, in 1975.

    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 featured guest and Howard Luloff’s always-a-hit trivia contest to follow.

    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.

    Members are invited to submit a proposal to make a research (oral or poster) presentation at the meeting. Proposals must be sent to Research Committee co-chairs Brenda Himrich or Sarah Johnson and include a title and brief outline of what the presentation will consist of with emphasis on the research that will be included. Standard oral presentations are 20 minutes (with an additional eight minutes for questions) although the duration may be longer or shorter depending on the needs of the presenter and of the schedule. The Research Committee (which also consists of Dan Levitt, Jim Cox, Doug Skipper, Stew Thornley, Rich Arpi, Dave Lande, Anders Koskinen, Gene Gomes, and Bob Tholkes) will finalize the schedule of research presentations by October 19, two weeks before the meeting, so proposals must be submitted by then.

    Three presentations have already been approved (so hurry):

    • Rich Arpi: 1890s Millers and Saints
    • David Karpinski: This Lineup “Owned” Nolan Ryan
    • Corky Gaskell: Making a 19th Century Base Ball

    Brenda Himrich and Kenny Jackelen were the door-prize winners among the veteran and new members at the spring chapter meeting, and the board authorized the prizes to continue in future meetings.

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    SABR at the Saints

    SABR table at Saints game

    Sarah Johnson and Jim Cox, the chapter’s new membership chair, organized an outing to promote SABR at the St. Paul Saints game July 1 (also the Medicare-eligible birthday of a prominent chapter member). The group talked to a number of fans who may be prospective members. Below, Damian Schaab was the featured artist of the game. A paper artist, Damian displayed his art work, related to baseball and other subjects, to fans.

    Damian Schaab

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    SABR Convention in San Diego

    Petco Park

    Bill Parker, Steve and Lyn Elsberry, Barry Bengtsson, Lloyd Kepple, Steve and Janet Bratkovich, Bob Komoroski, Hans Van Slooten, John Gregory, Dirk Lammers, Cary Smith, Rich Arpi, Tom Tuttle, Dan Levitt, Mike Bates, Mike Haupert, Stew Thornley, Art Mugalian, Bob Tholkes, A. J. Richard, M. Frank, Brenda Himrich, and Bryan Lake were at the SABR convention in San Diego.

    Mike Haupert, A. J. Richard, and Dan Levitt made research presentations at the convention.

    Women in Baseball panel

    One of the best panels at the convention was Women in Baseball with Perry Barber, Janet Marie Smith, Ila Borders, Justine Siegal, Kelsie Whitmore, and Jewel Greenberg. Barber said her inspiration to umpire was reading Larry Gerlach’s book, Men in Blue. “When my mom saw me reading that, she said, ‘Oh, you’re going to be an umpire,’” Barber recalled, adding, “I also read a lot of books about serial killers.”

    Gerry Davis

    Gerry Davis spoke to the group on Saturday morning, the night after he was the crew chief when first-base umpire Vic Carapazza set a new record by having four calls overturned. “If that had been me, I would have to have been talked off the ledge,” he said. Davis was on the crew with Dutch Rennert and Durwood Merrill for the first game in the Metrodome, April 3, 1982, an exhibition game between the Twins and Phillies. He said when they showed up, they found that no one had thought about a room for the umpires and that they had to change into their uniforms in a closet.

    Steve Garvey and John McMurray

    Steve Garvey was interviewed by John McMurray during the Oral History Committee meeting. Garvey talked about his final college game, for Michigan State, at Minnesota in 1968 with the Big Ten title on the line. He recalled the Spartans being down by two in the final inning with the bases loaded when he hit a long fly that was caught in front of the fence. “If I had known about launch angle then,” he lamented. As is often the case with stories a half-century old, not all the details were correct: May 25, 1968: Minnesota Gophers Sweep Spartans for Big Ten title.

    The 2020 SABR convention will be in Baltimore July 15-19.

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    Upcoming Events

    Baseball in Belle Plaine

    All-Star Game Viewing Party
    Join your fellow members and baseball enthusiasts at Bunny’s Northeast, 34 13th Avenue NE, Minneapolis 55413, 612-545-5659 (in what was the keg warehouse of the Grain Belt Brewery), at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 9 to watch the All-Star Game.

    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, July 13 at Bunny’s Northeast.

    The Spy Behind Home Plate
    Jim Cox is organizing a group outing to see The Spy Behind Home Plate, a documentary about Moe Berg, at the Edina Theater, 3911 W. 50th Street, Edina 55424, 952-920-8796, on Saturday, July 13. Guests are welcome. The movie is at 4:45 p.m. (tickets are $10.50 for adults, $7.00 for kids, and $7.50 for seniors), and the group will go to nearby Cocina Del Barrio after the movie. Please let Jim know, jcox321@hotmail.com, if you plan to go to the show and/or the food/drink establishment, and he will make any arrangements that are needed.

    The Spy Behind Home Plate Trailer

    American Association All-Star Game
    The St. Paul Saints are hosting the American Association All-Star Game Tuesday, July 23 at CHS Field (with gynecologist/Twins official scorer Kyle Traynor as the official scorer). The Saints are trying to gauge interest among Halsey Hall SABR members in a package that would include a game ticket and either an invitation to an All-Star banquet (a lunch with a panel of players) or a meet-and-greet with past Saints players and St. Paul greats. If you might be interested in such a package, let Sarah Johnson know (miss_sarah_johnson@yahoo.com). If there is enough interest, the Saints will put together a package, and Sarah will get back to you with more details.

    Emma Charlesworth-Seiler Umpiring in Cedar Rapids July 27
    The chapter will 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 at 1:00 p.m. at the Village Meat Market and Cafe (motto: “If It’s Legal . . . We Smoke It!”), 92 16th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids 52404, 319-265-MEAT. Contact me (Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791) if you plan to come to lunch.

    Howard Luloff has lined up a meeting with Kernels Hall of Fame/History Coordinator Marcia Moran at the ballpark at 2:30, and Howard will present a trivia quiz.

    In the second game of a doubleheader in Eastlake, Ohio, on Friday, June 21, Emma worked the plate in a seven-inning no-hitter hurled by three Lake County Captains pitchers. Eli Lingos, Luis Araujo, and Kellen Rholl held the West Michigan Whitecaps hitless and came within one out of a perfect game before Rholl walked Nick Quintana. “It was 3-2, of course,” said Emma, who called a ball on the next pitch. “It was down.” Rholl hit the next batter, Ulrich Bojarski, and then got Hector Martinez to fly out to end the game.

    “I’m just glad the game was quick because it was game two of a doubleheader,” said Emma.

    Box Score: Lake County Captains 4, West Michigan Whitecaps 0

    Book Club
    The Halsey Hall Chapter Book Club will meet Saturday, August 10 at 9:30 a.m. at the usual spot, Barnes & Noble in Har Mar Mall in Roseville. The book selection is Ten Innings at Wrigley: The Wildest Ballgame Ever, with Baseball on the Brink by Kevin Cook.

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

    Research Committee Meetings August 12 and September 9
    The Halsey Hall Chapter Research Committee will meet Monday, August 12 and Monday, September 9 at 7:00 p.m. at the Brookdale Library, 6125 Shingle Creek Parkway, Brooklyn Center 55430. All members are welcome to attend.

    A number of members have been researching the first games played in each of the Minnesota counties, and the committee would like to have information for each of the counties (about 23 are still unaccounted for). Two webpages have information on the spread of baseball, Pre-pro Baseball and Pre-pro Clubs and Games in Minnesota. In addition, a Google Docs spreadsheet is online, Minnesota Spread of Baseball Project, 1857-1923.

    Anyone wanting to get involved may contact committee co-chairs Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791, and Sarah Johnson.

    Research page updated:
    The Research Committee page has been updated and includes a list of research projects by members. If you would like research added, contact me (Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791).

    As always, check out the chapter’s Baseball Research Primer as a source for any research you are doing.

    Even More Baseball
    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
    • Frank White, historian and author on black baseball
    • 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

    The committee is tentatively planning a pre-symposium reception the evening of Friday November 15 at Stub & Herb’s. A separate room is reserved for the group from 5 to 9 p.m. There is no charge for the room, and attendees will purchase their own food and drinks. However, Stub & Herb’s will expect a certain number of people (40 or so) to be there to make it worth their while. Whether you are planning to go to the symposium on Saturday or not, you and guests are welcome at the Friday night event. If you think you might be going, please notify Stew Thornley and let him know of your plans (definite, maybe, depends on what’s on television that night or you end up with a hot date, etc.). Your response is not binding, but we need to get some idea if enough people—including out-of-towners—plan to go to this. If enough don’t respond, we will cancel the space we have reserved with Stub & Herb’s.

    It’s possible that the reception will be at a different place if not at Stub & Herb’s, so keep watching for more information. If the event is held, there will be a special Alan Holst Memorial Dead or Alive quiz.

    To get on a list to receive updates about the symposium, write to sabrMN19c@gmail.com.

    Minneapolis Central Library Parking Information

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    New Members
    Stan Britton was born in 1953 in Detroit, five years after his parents moved from St. Louis where his dad had rooted for the Browns and Cardinals. No wonder, then, why Stan was named as he was.

    “My dad called me Stan the Man. Many others have done so throughout my life. In January 2013 Musial passed away...at that time as a way to honor the memory of Stan Musial I asked NOT to be called ‘Stan the Man.’ There is only one ‘Stan the Man.’ At the time my father was in latter stages of Alzheimer’s; he passed away a year later. After my father died I became curious as to why he would want to name his first-born son after Stan Musial. What made me proud to be named Stan was learning about Musial’s personal life. As great of player that Musial was, he was an even greater human being!!“

    Stan’s dad took him to his first game May 20, 1960 to see the Baltimore Orioles (a team his dad liked because it used to be the St. Louis Browns) play Detroit at Tiger Stadium. The Tigers scored three in the last of the ninth to beat the Orioles 4-3.

    “About that same time I remember going up to the local high school about a block away and watching the older kids play pick-up baseball games. They would get pop/soda at a small neighborhood corner store named Taw Rocks and they would let me have the bottles worth 2 cents each. I would walk a wagon full of bottles down to the store and earn some $$$. “I played baseball in Little League and all the leagues following it up to and including high school in Plymouth, Michigan. A lot of life lessons were learned from the opportunity to play on baseball teams. “The latter part of my childhood and early teens my friend, who had a Strat-O-Matic baseball game, and I ended up playing hundreds/thousands of these games for a few years and we kept all the stats of all the players and teams. What a fun way to pass the time and learn about the players of the time such as Cepeda, McCovey, and Killebrew to name a few.”

    Stan graduated from Western Michigan in 1975 with a degree in accounting (“I have to believe keeping the Strat-O-Matic stats had something to do with my career choice.”) My accounting niche was working for manufacturing firms in the field of cost accounting. “Most accountants shy away from this. For some reason, I was drawn to it. Throughout my career I affectionately referred to it as the bowels of accounting.”

    Stan, his wife, and their two infant children moved from Plymouth, Michigan, to the Minneapolis area in 1995. In 2018, after 43 years of work, Stan decided not to retire but to move on to his next chapter.

    “Professional baseball has provided an opportunity for me to be able to bond throughout my life with my father, son, brothers and friends. I remember my dad and I seeing Earl Wilson (a pitcher) hitting a walk-off pinch hit home run in 1966.

    “Road trips have provided some great experiences. My son, 12 at the time, and I traveled to Kansas City for a three-game series to see our Tigers (my son roots for the Tigers; people ask why and he says because he was born in Michigan) play KC July 21-23, 2008. In the second game the Tigers were up by quite a few runs when in the seventh inning we experienced a 2 hour or so rain delay. After the delay there were about 500 fans that remained. My son and I moved down behind the Tigers’ dugout. My son was wearing a Detroit Tiger hat with the English D. After the Royals were retired on a strikeout in the seventh inning Ivan (Pudge) Rodriguez, the Tiger catcher, flipped the ball up to my son (the hat had to help). In the bottom of the ninth the last out was a ground out. Miguel Cabrera the first baseman flipped the ball up to my son. What a great memory, two balls flipped by players that will surely both be in the HOF. The next day was an afternoon ball game. My son and I arrived extra early in hopes of hanging out by the Tiger dugout and getting an autograph. Miguel Cabrera was kind enough to autograph the ball that he flipped to my son about 12 hours earlier. The bonding experience with my son was PRICELESS.

    “In 2015 my two brothers from Michigan, my son, and I met in Chicago to see the Tigers play the Cubs at Wrigley Field on August 18 and 19th. The Tigers ended up winning both games, 10-8 and 15-8, so we were treated to a ton of hitting with our favorite team winning both games. In the game on the 19th we saw Daniel Norris (traded from Toronto to Detroit as a prospect about three weeks earlier) pitched and in his first MLB at bat in the second inning hit a two-run homer . . . so at the time Norris was a pitcher with a slugging percentage of 4.000!!

    “Currently my two brothers, son, as well as two nephews are involved in on-going group texting game-type activity over the past year or so that is unique, fun, and competitive and provides an avenue to learn and appreciate the players that make up the history of baesball via the many stories that have been preserved by those willing to do the exhaustive research such as the members of SABR. This activity has indirectly led me to the SABR website.”

    Stan says he would like to share and show this activity to other SABR members.

    Stan shares his February 3 birthday with fellow chapter member Tom Froemming as well as Larry MacPhail, Lou Criger, Bake McBride, Harry Byrd, Fred Lynn, Joe Coleman, Live Oak Taylor, Slim Sallee, Dick Tracewski, Live Oak Taylor, Celerino Sanchez, Rougned Odor, Lucas Duda, Joe Klink, Gale Gillingham, Joey Bishop, Fran Tarkenton, Norman Rockwell, Shelley Berman, James Michener, Kerry Von Erich, Victor Buono, Elijah Pitts, Gertrude Stein, Emile Griffith, Don Ohlmeyer, Les Kouba, Horace Greeley, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Arne Sucksdorff.

    Also new to the Halsey Hall Chapter: Roger Burg and Peter Knapp

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

    Membership application

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    Cow Pies
    Tom Froemming has a tutorial on using Baseball Savant: How to Use Baseball Savant’s Gamefeed

    Articles by chapter members:
    August 16, 1977: Phillies’ Win Streak Reaches 13 by Steve Ginader

    New Museum at CHS Field Highlights St. Paul Baseball History by Sarah Johnson

    Swede Risberg’s Journey to Jamestown, North Dakota by Thomas E. Merrick (on page 15 of the June 2019 SABR Black Sox Scandal Research Committee Newsletter)

    Charlie Whitehouse by Terry Bohn

    Also of interest:
    Nine Questions We Desperately Want to Ask the Man Who Ate a Tub of Mayo at a Minor League Game

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    Calendar
        July 9—All-Star Game Viewing Party, Bunny’s, Minneapolis, 7:00 p.m.

        July 13—Fred Souba Hot Stove League Saturday Morning, Bunny’s, Minneapolis, 9:00 a.m.

       July 13The Spy Behind Home Plate, Edina Theater, afternoon. For more information, contact Jim Cox.

        July 14—Townball, Rochester at Austin, 1:00 p.m. For more information, contact Stew Thornley, 651-415-0791.

       July 27—Clinton LumberKings at Cedar Rapids Kernels. For more information, contact Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036.

       August 10Book Club, Barnes & Noble, Har Mar Mall, Roseville, 9:30 a.m., Ten Innings at Wrigley: The Wildest Ballgame Ever, with Baseball on the Brink by Kevin Cook.

        August 12—Research Committee meeting, 7:00 p.m., Brookdale Library. For more information, contact Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791, or Sarah Johnson.

        September 9—Research Committee meeting, 7:00 p.m., Brookdale Library. For more information, contact Brenda Himrich, 651-415-0791, or Sarah Johnson.

        November 2—Fall 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 2019-2020
    President—Dave Lande
    Vice President—Hans Van Slooten
    Secretary—Anders Koskinen
    Treasurer—Jerry Janzen
    Jim Cox
    Gene Gomes
    Frank Kadwell

    Membership Committee Chair—Jim Cox
    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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