Twenty-five chapter members and friends gathered at the Society of California Pioneers to enjoy lunch and a private tour of the exhibit celebrating the 1949 San Francisco Seals’ tour of Japan. Mark Macrae explained the history of the tour and talked about how the exhibit came together. The exhibit includes rare footage compiled from old movies and memorabilia, ranging from players’ kimonos to Japanese baseball cards. A special fundraising raffle raised funds that would be donated to Conrado Marrero, the Cuban Washington Senators’ pitcher.

The San Francisco Airport Aviation Museum was the venue for this meeting that featured a guided tour of the extraordinary exhibit of old Pacific Coast League team memorabilia. After lunch, the 30-plus attendees heard commentary from each of the team specialists. Alan O’Connor talked about the Sacramento Solons; Bill Swank provided a great description of the San Diego and Hollywood franchises; Ray Saraceni narrated the Seals; and Mark Macrae covered the remaining teams. Following the presentation, a splinter group of SABR members migrated to the Society of California Pioneers Museum for a private, pre-opening sneak peek of the O'Doul/Tour of Japan exhibit.

Attendees included SABR members Max Weder and his wife, Jennifer Ettinger, who were visiting San Francisco for the weekend from their Vancouver, BC home. They host the big summer gathering for SABR members in Vancouver. Jennifer is an internationally known sports artist with many works on display in the Vancouver area. Several O'Doul and Sacramento SABR chapter members rounded out the entourage. Special thanks goes out to Tim O'Brien of the SF Airport Museum and Tim Evans from the Society of California Pioneers for their assistance, generosity and support.

Many O’Doul chapter members attended the annual Pacific Coast League player reunion at the Oakland Museum. A morning of visiting with fans, historians, family members and collectors and an opportunity to chat with former players, including Charlie Silvera, Duane Pillette, Bill Renna, Cuno Barragan, Bud Watkins, Don Ferrarese, Mel Nunes, Billy Raimondi , Don Kornahrens, Lil Arnerich, Ernie Broglio, Rugger Ardizoia, Jim Moran, Lloyd Hittle, Tom Munoz, Fred Besana, Don Trower, Pete Mesa, Mel Duezabou and Elmer Orella. After a lunch in the lovely gardens, the afternoon sessions included a presentation of the 2009 PCL Hall of Fame plaque to the family of the late Frank Demaree. A fine presentation on Demaree's life was made by SABR member Tom Crisp, who has studied Demaree's career more closely than anyone. Demaree's family attended from Santa Clara and Yolo counties and were delighted that so many people had nice things to say about Demaree, who died more than 50 years ago. Following this presentation, the floor was opened up to take questions from the audience. Several players participated in this session, sharing some very personal and interesting stories.

Our annual visit to the “Art of Baseball” exhibit at the George Krevsky Gallery in San Francisco was highlighted by art talks about the works. Seventeen members enjoyed Krevsky’s overview of this year’s exhibit. A favorite was an acrylic rendering of the familiar photo of Lefty O’Doul and four Japanese ballplayers. Lunch and a chapter meeting were held up the street at our favorite Lefty O’Doul’s Restaurant.