The Squibber

THE DAVIDS CHAPTER E-NEWSLETTER

Winter 2008-09

This newsletter is produced by the Bob Davids Chapter of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR), which serves SABR members in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia and parts of Pennsylvania and Delaware. Visit the chapter’s website at www.sabrdc.org.

This quarterly newsletter is distributed electronically to members. The deadline for material for the next newsletter is March 1, 2009. Submissions can be sent to Squibber editor Walt Cherniak at wcherniakjr@aol.com. Keep sending us those squibs, and those ideas for squibs!

CONTENTS – Winter 2008-09

1. Fertile Breeding Ground: Atlantic League Sends 33 to Big-League Teams, by Barry Sparks

1. Talkin’ Baseball: Baseball Authors Scheduled to Speak, by David

Paulson

1. Bob Davids Chapter 36^th Annual Meeting: Program Shaping up for Jan. 24 Event, by D. Bruce Brown

5. SABR 39: What to Do in and around Washington, D.C., by William “Jay” Roberts

6. Delaware Sportswriters Banquet: Kalas Headlines Event

7. Senior Pitching Clinic: Special Instruction for Senior League Hurlers

8. A Gamble That Paid Off: Roy Sievers Delivered for Washington, by Jeff Stuart

9. SABR 39 in Washington, DC : Early Registration Savings!, by Peter Garver

1. FERTILE BREEDING GROUND: Atlantic League Sends 33 to Big-League Teams – By Barry Sparks

By the end of August, the independent Atlantic League had sold the contracts of 33 players to major league organizations during the 2008 season. That’s a record number, eclipsing the previous mark of 27 for the 2007 season.

The Atlantic League only receives payment if a player’s contract is purchased during the league’s regular season.

Every team in the eight-team circuit has had player contracts purchased by major league teams. The breakdown is as follows: Camden (7), Lancaster (5), Somerset (5), York (4), Bridgeport (4), Long Island (3), Newark (3) and Southern Maryland (2).

Eighteen major league teams have purchased players. The Angels, Astros, Marlins, Phillies and White Sox have purchased three each. Of the 33 players to move to affiliated teams, 16 were pitchers and 10 were outfielders.

Some of the Atlantic League players whose contracts were purchased in 2008 are familiar to Orioles fans. They include:

Pitcher Eric DuBose of the Bridgeport Bluefish (9-15 for the Orioles from 2002-2006). The Dodgers purchased his contract and he pitched with the Triple A Jacksonville Suns.

Pitcher John Halama of the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (3-1 with the Orioles in 2006). The Indians purchased his contract and he pitched for Triple A Buffalo.

Outfielder Val Majewski of the Newark Bears (he played nine games for the O’s in 2004, batting .154). The Astros purchased his contract and he played for the Triple A Round Rock Express.

Outfielder Jay Gibbons of the Long Island Ducks (779 games, 121 home runs for O’s from 2001-2007). The Milwaukee Brewers purchased his contract and he played for the Triple A Nashville Sounds.

2. TALKIN’ BASEBALL: Baseball Authors Scheduled to Speak – By David Paulson

Here is the schedule for “Talkin’ Baseball” presentations by baseball authors over the next several months.

Jan. 10: Dave Raglin and Mark Pattison: Sock it to 'Em, Tigers

Feb. 14: Fred Gleuckstine: Mickey Mantle: Rookie in Pinstripes

March 14: Bob Bloss: Baseball Managers: Stats, Stories & Strategies

April 11: Dick Heller: Discussion of the 2009 baseball season

May 9: Fred Stein: History of the Baseball Fan

June 13: Robert Goodman: One Man Out: Curt Flood vs. Baseball

The "Talkin' Baseball" group meets at 9:00 A.M., usually on the second Saturday of each month, at Brighton Gardens Assisted Living, 7110 Minstrel Way, Columbia, MD: http://www.sunriseseniorliving.com/community/MapDirections.do;jsessionid=35D98CE1F01ACCAA67B20A227C134C69?commid=701.

Admission is free, so come and bring a friend!

3. BOB DAVIDS CHAPTER 36^th ANNUAL MEETING: Program Shaping up for Jan. 24 Event – By D. Bruce Brown

How about a healthy dose of mid-winter baseball? It’s as good for you as

sunshine, possibly better. We’ve got it for you at the annual meeting of the

Bob Davids Chapter (SABR’s first). It is the 36th such event.

The meeting is open to members, non-members and guests.

The meeting will be held Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, from 9:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. at the Sheraton Columbia Hotel, 10207 Wincopin Circle, Columbia, MD 21044.

The Sheraton Columbia Hotel is easy to find and is located 20 miles from downtown Baltimore and 25 miles from downtown Washington, DC. It’s across from the Mall in Columbia, and there is plenty of free parking: http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&q=7110%20Minstrel%20Way.

You can contact the hotel directly by phone at (410) 730-3900 or on-line at http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1130.

As is the chapter’s long-standing custom, we will have quality baseball presentations. This year’s headliners are:

• Dan Connolly – national baseball writer for the Baltimore Sun;

• Chuck Hilty and Richie Goldstein – Baseball in Cuba; A Firsthand Account

• Dave Smith – Entertaining research questions asked in 2008

• Additional research presentations by members.

Interested potential presenters should contact program chair David Vincent at GrandSlams@aol.com.

Other popular parts of the program include:

• Baseball trivia – With a calculated range of difficulty

• Regional baseball authors – With their works available

• Camaraderie – Mingle with old friends. Make new ones.

• Vendors of baseball books, most of them chapter members

• Raffle, where you could go home with some outstanding treasures of

considerable value and simultaneously help raise funds for the chapter

Tickets are $28 for SABR members and visitors. The price includes an Italian lunch buffet featuring chicken parmesan, penne pasta primavera, Caesar salad,

vegetables and desserts.

Registration forms are available from Dave Paulson, d2244@yahoo.com. Please send completed forms, along with cheques or money orders to:

Dave Paulson, Bob Davids Chapter Treasurer

6285 Cardinal Lane

Columbia, MD 21044-3801

For receipt of application confirmation, please either include a SASE, or e-mail

Dave at d2244p@yahoo.com.

Ticket requests should be postmarked before midnight Jan. 20, 2009.

Admittance thereafter, including at the door, is $33. We cannot guarantee seating, meals, or name tags for those registering after Jan. 17.

If you register after Jan. 20, please do not mail registration forms and cheques. Instead, please bring the registration form and a $33 check per person to the

meeting and send an e-mail message to Dave confirming your intent to attend.

If you have questions, please contact Barry Sparks, meeting chair, at bsparks243@aol.com or 717-848-8925.

5. SABR 39: What to Do in and around Washington, D.C. – By William “Jay” Roberts

If you’re planning to attend SABR 39 in Washington, D.C., you might want to check out “Jaybird’s Jottings,” a website that includes regular updates on things to do before, after or even during this year’s convention, which will be held July 30 to Aug. 2.

You can access the site at www.jay.typepad.com

6. DELAWARE SPORTSWRITERS BANQUET: Kalas Headlines Event

Harry Kalas, the Phillies’ Hall of Fame broadcaster, will serve as toastmaster of the 60th annual banquet of the Delaware Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association (DSBA), at Cavaliers Country Club, Churchman’s Road, Christiana, on Sunday, Jan. 25.

In addition to other sports celebrities, all past winners of the John J. Brady Award as Delaware’s Outstanding Athlete of the Year will be invited to join the head table.

There will be a silent auction to benefit Special Olympics Delaware.

The banquet will also honor the winner of the John J. Brady Award as Delaware’s Outstanding Athlete of 2008, Delaware's Coach of the Year, the state’s team of the year, and the winner of the Herm Reitzes Award for public service.

The DSBA will also honor the first-team high school all-state athletes in the six fall sports: football, volleyball, field hockey, soccer and boys and girls cross country.

Tickets are available for $50 at B&B Tickettown, 302-656-9797 or bbtix@aol.com and may also be ordered on-line at http://delsports.org/ 

7. SENIOR PITCHING CLINIC: Special Instruction for Senior League Hurlers

Pinkman Baseball Academy, located near Dulles International Airport, is holding a 10-week pitching clinic and winter workout session for senior league players, running from Jan. 15 to March 19.

Weekly sessions will be held each Thursday at 1:30 p.m., and will run for either 90 minutes or two hours, depending on the number of people who sign up. The cost also will be based on the number of people who sign up.

Instructor John Pinkman has a particular understanding of the needs and challenges of senior pitcher.

For more information, and to preview his approach to teaching, check out his website at www.PinkmanBaseball.com

If you are interested in participating in these winter sessions, contact Jeff Pinkman at:

Pinkman Baseball Academy

www.PinkmanBaseball.com

703-661-8586 (Dulles)

703-440-8824 (Springfield)

8. A GAMBLE THAT PAID OFF: Roy Sievers Delivered for Washington, By Jeff Stuart

In the summer of 1957, my mother—who did not like baseball—came home from a Senators’ promotional event one day with a baseball autographed by Roy Sievers.

My brother Chris and I almost immediately took the ball outside and played with it. I have no idea how many hours of entertainment we got from using that ball, but the autograph was soon obliterated. Both my brother and I can now honestly say we regret not putting the ball in a safe place, because it was an autograph worth keeping.

When Sievers joined the Senators in 1954, he quickly became a favorite of then Vice President Richard Nixon. “Roy Sievers is a boy who symbolizes great character, sportsmanship and guts,” said Nixon, who would meet with Roy on occasion to discuss baseball.

Casey Stengel once said that Sievers was “the sweetest right-handed swinger in the league.” But a serious arm injury almost prevented baseball fans from ever noticing that swing. And only a gamble by Browns owner Bill Veeck and another chance taken by Washington’s Clark Griffith kept his career from being cut off almost before it began.

Sievers was a St. Louis native who grew up only a few blocks from Sportsman’s Park. That was where he acquired the nickname “Squirrel”. “When you’re in high school at that age, you’re a little goofy anyway,” Sievers laughed. “I played basketball, baseball, and ran a little track. In basketball one day, a kid said, ‘You know what? You’re really squirrelly, you know that?!’ From that day on, that was my nickname. It just stuck to me.” Surprisingly, despite a good deal of teasing, he liked the nickname, and even had it engraved on his signature Louisville Slugger bats.

The Cardinals were interested in him, but Roy was signed by the Browns on Oct. 14, 1944. His signing bonus was a new pair of baseball spikes. Because he was still in high school, his Dad signed for him. Jack Fournier of the Browns waited until that date so that Sievers could play out his American Legion eligibility, which had ended in September.

The start of his professional career would have to wait, however. After graduating from High School he was drafted into the Army, serving at Camp Fannin, TX. and also Ft. Knox, KY. He played service baseball until February 1947.

Later that year, Roy enjoyed his best season in the minors. He had 159 hits, 121 runs, 21 doubles, 5 triples, 34 home runs, 141 RBI and 8 stolen bases in 125 games with Hannibal of the Central Association. He played with Springfield in the Three-I League and Elmira in the Eastern League in 1948. He led Three-I League outfielders in assists (22) in 1948 and showed great promise defensively as an outfielder.

Sievers was 22 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 21, 1949, with the St. Louis Browns. On May 14, Sievers gave an early hint of things to come. He had a double and home run to drive in four runs in the Browns’ 8–3 win over the Detroit Tigers. He became the first American League Rookie of the Year that year, batting .306, hitting 16 home runs, and driving in 75 runs.

However, he hit a serious rough patch, batting just .238 the following season. He was farmed out to San Antonio in the Texas League. Browns coaches tried to get him to hit more to right field and the result was a terrible sophomore season. “I said I was going back to my own way of hitting and I never let anyone change me again,” said Sievers.

But the slump was the least of his problems. In San Antonio, he dislocated his shoulder trying to make a diving catch. Limited to 31 games in 1951, he hurt himself again the following spring, dislocating his right arm during infield practice. He played in only 11 games. Though his future looked bleak, Veeck gambled that Sievers could come back.

Veeck, who had a wooden leg, hit grounders to him so that Sievers could work on his throwing. Finally, Veeck sent him to Dr. George Bennett of Johns Hopkins Hospital for surgery. The result was a minor medical miracle. Sievers was able to play 92 games in 1953.

On Feb. 18, 1954, the Washington Senators also gambled, acquiring Sievers from the Orioles for outfielder Gil Coan. Sievers was the third choice in the Senators’ plans. They first offered Coan to the Orioles for Johnny Groth, but the Orioles had already traded Groth to the White Sox for Sam Mele. Griffith next offered the Orioles Coan for Mele before he ultimately settled on Sievers. The White Sox passed on Sievers at the time, because his doctor said the first long throw he had to make might be his last.

“Well, knock on wood, it turned out to be the best deal of my career,” said Sievers. “…because I went to Washington and ended up breaking their home run record four years straight. I was very happy about that. It was a blessing in disguise.”

When he came to Washington, Sievers informed Manager Bucky Harris, "The doctors told me I can’t play the outfield. That’s why the Browns had me playing first base. I can’t throw anybody out from the outfield.” The injury reduced him to throwing with a side-armed delivery. Nevertheless, Harris told reporters, “We’ll keep him. The way he hits he’ll be a valuable man to have around.”

Sievers performed for Washington for six productive seasons from 1954 to 1959. In 1954, he set a franchise record with 24 homers. He drove in 100 or more runs and played in at least 144 games each year from 1954 through 1958.

In 1957, despite playing for a last-place club, Sievers led the A.L. with 42 home runs. He was the first Senator to win a home run title and the first to win the RBI crown (114) since Goose Goslin in 1924. Sievers placed third in the MVP voting with 205 points, trailing only winner Mickey Mantle, who had 233, and Ted Williams, who had 209.

Sievers belted home runs in six straight games that year, tying an American League record held by Ken Williams and Lou Gehrig. That streak ended Aug. 4.

Sievers appeared as the “swinging double” for actor Tab Hunter, as Joe Hardy, in distance shots in the 1958 movie Damn Yankees. Hardy was left-handed, so the right-handed SIevers was outfitted with a mirror-image Nats uniform, and the film was reversed in production.

A “murderer's row” of sorts, Sievers, Bob Allison, Jim Lemon and Harmon Killebrew captivated Washington fans during the 1959 season. The media adopted the acronym “SALK” to refer to the sluggers, a play on the polio vaccine developed by Dr, Jonas Salk. The quartet did not disappoint. Washington was second in the league in home runs, as Killebrew hit 42, Lemon 33, Allison 30 and Sievers 21.

On April 4, 1960 Sievers was traded to the White Sox, the team that had passed on him in 1954. Chicago was coming off a World Series appearance in 1959, and badly needed offense. The White Sox sent Earl Battey, Don Mincher and $150,000 to Washington.

For Chicago, acquiring Sievers was no gamble. Sievers performed well in two seasons in Chicago, batting .295 each year. He hit 28 homers and drove in 93 runs his first year, and added 27 homers and 92 RBI homers in 1961. His 21 game hitting streak in 1960 was the American League’s longest.

On Nov. 28, 1961 he was traded by the White Sox to the Phillies for Charley Smith and John Buzhardt. He played for the Phillies from 1962 to 1964 and remained productive. In 1963, he joined Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx as the only players to pinch-hit grand slams in both the A.L. and N.L. That mark was later tied by Kurt Bevacqua and Glenallen Hill.

And in the ninth inning on July 19, 1963, Sievers hit his 300th career home run with a man aboard off Roger Craig to give the Phils a 2–1 win over the New York Mets.

The Phillies were in a pennant race in 1964, but in July they sold Sievers to the expansion Senators. He hit just .180 for the year. Sievers played his final major league game on May 9, 1965, at RFK Stadium (then D.C. Stadium) ending his playing career at age 38.

Sievers coached for the Cincinnati Reds in 1966, then managed in the Mets’ system for two years with Williamsport of the Eastern League and Memphis in the Texas League. He later piloted the Oakland Athletics’ Burlington team of the Midwest League, ending his professional career at age 43.

After leaving baseball, Sievers worked for the Yellow Freight Company in St. Louis until his retirement in 1986. Later, he played in several old-timers games, clad in a replica St. Louis Browns uniform. He refused many offers to buy that uniform, which was a gift from St. Louis General Manager Bing Devine.

In 1996, Sievers was enshrined in the “Circle of Fame” honoring Washington sports heroes at RFK Stadium.

Sievers was a four-time All-Star, and hit 10 walk-off home runs during his career. Only Babe Ruth (12); Jimmie Foxx (12); Stan Musial (12; Mickey Mantle (12); Frank Robinson (12); and Tony Perez (11) had more.

His lifetime total of 318 home runs, while impressive, would undoubtedly have been higher had he not played six years during the prime of his career in cavernous Griffith Stadium.

Sievers celebrated his 79th birthday in 2005. Forty years after his last game in the majors, Sievers returned to the place where he had played his final game for the opening of a new era in D.C. baseball.

On April 14, 2005, Opening Night for the Washington Nationals, Sievers took part in the pre-game festivities where former players handed off the ball to a new generation of Washington players. He thinks baseball will work this time around in the nation’s capital. “I’m glad Washington got it back, because they deserve it,” said Sievers.

9. SABR 39 in Washington, DC: Early Registration Savings! by Peter Garver

If you join the 200 of your fellow SABR members who have already registered for SABR’s annual conference in Washington, DC July 30-Aug 02, 2009 at the J. W. Marriott Hotel, you can save $30 on your registration. For convention information, go to: http://convention.sabr.org/. To register, simply go to the SABR web site at http://store.sabr.org/sabrstore.cfm?a=prd&scid=22. Hotel registration is separate and can be done at http://convention.sabr.org/index.php/plan-your-trip/hotel. We will see you there!