“Hey…the new meat is here!” “Hello new meat…Does your ma know you’re at the ball park?” “New meat??? More like fresh fish…” “Or maybe not-so-fresh fish, if my nose ain’t playin’ tricks on me!” The catcalls seemed to come from every corner of the locker room as the new players entered the Moline inner sanctum…
Spotlight: Milan Featherstone
Unexpectedly, the Philadelphia Brewers have a successful season. The offense is back and among the best in the Eastern League. The team is second with just a half-game behind the Brooklyn Whales. One face of the resurgence is Leo McKenzie. The 40-year-old captain enjoys his best season since his severe injury in 1906. Philadelphia, maybe…
Same Boston, Different Tea Party
June 3rd 1911, 4PM – The city of Boston was done with the mediocrity that was their beloved Banshees. The 92 year old franchise owner Atticus Jones was under pressure to make a move. After all, these were hard times in the streets, as well as on the field. The fans needed and deserved better…
Lee, Durtnell, and Fain… Best Pray for Rain
In the early summer of 1911, at the age of 74 and with the end of his career in sight, Brooklyn Whales’ manager and GM Marques Williams did something that shook the baseball world. He made a blockbuster of a trade. In June of that year, Brooklyn (42-25 at the time of the trade) was…
Bromwich Park
In 1908, Madigan Hall had agreed to end its conservatorship of the Whales and grant control of the franchise to a local businessman named George Bromwich. Bromwich, as much a dreamer as an empire builder, saw an opportunity with the Whales. A firm believer in never paying full price, he saw an opportunity to buy…
April 1911 – The Surprise
May 1, 1911 – by Ronald Schmidt Philadelphia is worried. Things are not going according to plan. The self-declared goal at the beginning of the season was to rebuild and strengthen efforts to lower the average age of the organization. The Philadelphia Brewers are now fighting for a qualifying spot in the postseason. Just before…
The Break-Out Gang: The Story of the 1910 Pittsburgh Oilers
“We may have been meager for my first year as team Manager, but just you wait until the next, we’re gonna surprise everybody” was what New General Manager Tyler Saylor of the Pittsburgh Oilers said after the end of his first season after the Pittsburgh Oilers finished with a respectable 66-54 record last year in…
A Study in Scarlet, Part III (The Final Part)
TO: Dr. Robert J. Matthews (Robert.j.Matthews@ABS.gov) FROM: Anthony R. Perry (Perry.a@UVA.com) Bob, Thank you for the expedient reply. Nothing quite compares to sharing memories of baseball with an old friend. Researching that 1910 Legacy Cup, I can’t help but feel that those must have been some of the very best days for a Richmond Rifles…
A Study in Scarlet, Part II
A STUDY IN SCARLET: THE 1910 LEGACY CUP PART II TO: Anthony R. Perry (Perry.A@UVA.com)FROM: Dr. Robert J. Matthews (Robert.j.Matthews@ABS.gov) Tony, What a joy to hear from an old cobble-stumbler from UVA. Annie sends her best, of course, and is particularly curious about what the illustrious old professor has been up to at our beloved…
A Study in Scarlet, Part I
A STUDY IN SCARLET: THE 1910 LEGACY CUP PROLOGUE TO: Dr. Robert J. Matthews (Robert.j.Matthews@ABS.gov)FROM: Anthony R. Perry (Perry.a@UVA.com) My dear friend Robert, I hope Manhattan in the fall is keeping you well—downtown Richmond is nearly unrecognizable from our college days. I’ve thought often of the Poe Museum and our exploits in Carytown. What a…