by John Momberg The words that struck terror into 11-year-old Joe Benson’s heart: “All right, now, Joseph… Time for you to come up to the board and recite your Latin translation.” As he moved to the front of the classroom, he felt the usual flush of redness creeping up from his collar to his cheeks….
An Intimate Baseball Conversation
By Steve Meyers Julien Henri (GM): That is about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard, Thaddeus.Thaddeus Wolcraft (Owner): Look, here, Julien you work for me. Don’t you forget it.Henri: I’m aware of that Mr. Wolcraft.Wolcraft: That’s better.Henri: But it is still the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.Wolcraft: It’s your job not to think. Your job…
1904 Philadelphia Brewers Season Preview
“You damned island monkey! I hope you catch a disease on the way back!” The door to the dining room of Sir Patrick William Downing’s mansion slammed shut. An awkward silence filled the room. The Boeselager brothers looked at each other before looking at their host. “Maybe you should have reduced this to your birthday…
Breaking the Monotony
Pittsburgh August 20th, 1903 On a warm summer morning, a broad-shouldered man bounded up the steps to the entrance of the pristinely kept house on 23 North Willow Lane. This particular man was a celebrity in the Pittsburgh region – a face known to all. His name was Randy Sliger, and he lived in the…
1903 Richmond Rifles Review
By Drew Visscher RICHMOND RIFLES: 1903 SEASON REVIEW Following a dramatic nine-game series against the Saint Louis Beavers, the Rifles of Richmond secured their first Legacy Cup at home with an excellent Game 9 performance from hometown hero Ivy “Iron Horse” Maw. A surprise contender for the 1903 title, the seasoned Richmond roster enjoyed an…
1903 Philadelphia Brewers Season Review
1903 saw three different division champions compared to the previous season. Unfortunately, the Eastern League Liberty Division crowned a king, too. The Richmond Rifles reclaimed the throne and crushed the Philadelphia Brewers’ season goals of defending the title. New players As soon as the Brewers played their final game in 1902, Kirby Hocking was on…
Whale of a Scandal: Foreward
Published in the Summer of 1960, this bestselling recounting of one of the most famous scandals in baseball history is part memoir, part collection of interviews and essays, and part attempt to exorcise the past while rewriting many of its most basic assumptions. FOREWARD It’s a peculiar feeling, although perhaps not an uncommon one, to…
Bloodletting After Baltimore
July 4, 1903 Field of the Whales The Whales’ young lefthanded hurler sat despondent in the home locker room alone on a wet morning in Brooklyn. The trip back from Baltimore was long—not so much in terms of the distance, but rather in the Sisyphus-ian mental reliving of his pitching performance that such a journey…
A Lovesong for Pappy Webb, Pt 1
June 30, 1901 Field of the Whales Brooklyn, New York 6:00 PM Blanketed by rage and whiskey on a chilly summer evening, Marques Williams, the manager of the Brooklyn Whales, tolerated his unwanted visitor with all of the practiced grace of a hippopotamus attempting to use cutlery. At 6’4” and 220 pounds, just about the…
Miss Annie’s Last Sour Balls
Germantown, Philadelphia – Christmas Eve 1902. Kirby Hocking and Martin Pitsch walked around the Christmas Market organized by the Germantown Cricket Club. It was noon, falling snow covered the streets, and the first stands closed down. After four days, most sold their goods and wanted to go home. Unlike the typical American, most German-Americans stick…