KOM League Barbecue Special

 

KOM League

Flash Report

for

October 3, 2015

 

Well, another October has rolled around and only another month remains of an already too long of a baseball season. By this time of the year it is an endurance contest to see who can win it all rather than relying on talent. The bottom feeders of the 40-man rosters will probably determine the North American continent’s baseball championship. .

 

Now that I have that off my chest here are just a few brief notes for this time around.

 

Last week’s report was right up there in interest alongside of second division teams playing out their schedule. I was pleasantly surprised that one reader pulled up the photo of the KOM League Barbecue sauce and had a comment. By that I’m positive everything I share is looked at by at least one person. Here is the link to that bottle of good stuff. www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/21114265184/ Aletha Bartley, the widow of the long time Dodger player, manager and scout, Boyd Bartley said this about that photo. “That is the same sauce that Harold was sending Boyd. I still have some of the last that he sent to Boyd. I do not like BBQ sauce but I will never get rid of this one because of who sent it and who received it.”

 

Ed comment:

 

Aletha’s brother was Harold Goodman who moved to Ponca City, from Chicago, after Boyd started managing the Class D Brooklyn farm club there. Goodman was the legendary “Lady in the red dress.” The red clad lady was the figment of the imagination of Ponca City announcer, Bill Platt. Platt had started out after WWII at WKY radio in Oklahoma City with a guy named Curt Gowdy. Gowdy was lured to the bright lights of the east coast but Platt stayed in “the real world” and broadcast every manner of sporting event for Oklahoma A & M until the name was changed to Oklahoma State.

 

During the summer Platt broadcast Ponca City Dodger games from Conoco Stadium during home games and from the studio of WBBZ when the team was on the road. To spice up the broadcasts he would mention, each evening, the lady in the red dress who only attended the road games of the local Dodger club. During the 1952 season Ponca City embarked upon promotion to set the record for the greatest attendance ever attracted to a Class D game. To make a long story shorter, Platt promised that the lady in the red dress would be introduced during the game. He had to come up with some novel and he convinced Harold Goodman to dress in that manner. That stunt was replicated only one other time. It was during the 1998 mega KOM reunion at Carthage, MO.

 

Oh, by the way. Aletha remarked that she would never depart with that bottle of sauce. Let me share something with the readers. That bottle of ingredients will be “vintage: before long if it isn’t already. Harold Goodman passed away in 2010.

A bit of trivia:

 

Something that doesn’t occur too often in a baseball season anymore is a straight steal of home. The late Don Anderson who managed Carthage from 1949 through mid-1951 told me that was the easiest of all bases to steal. He did it many times during his tenure with Carthage. I know that one season he had 14 by the All-Star break and would have had more but many of the pitchers balked when they saw him take off and he was thus awarded the base without being given credit for stealing it.

 

In looking around at some old news files, recently, I came upon an August 24, 1948 clipping which told the story of Chanute shortstop, Kent Pflasterer’s pilferage. Chanute was playing Ponca City and hard throwing Don Hall was on the hill for the Dodger team. Pflasterer stole home on Hall during his first time on base. Before the game concluded Pflasterer got on third base again and stole home once more. I’m sure there are some instances of a player stealing home multiple times in a game but I would imagine that is one that wasn’t replicated often. I’m sure there are major league record books that would reveal such a statistic but I doubt there are few minor league documents that kept track of such a feat. (I imagine if the feat was accomplished at the major league level Shoeless Joe Jackson might have done it. He was adept at that aspect of the game.) By the way, Don Hall didn’t have his best game going the night Pflasterer stole home twice. He also walked eleven batters and hit two.

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Death of Calvin Neeman

www.legacy.com/obituaries/belleville/obituary.aspx?n=Calv...

 

Cal Neeman didn’t play in the KOM league but knew many who did and was a subscribers to the old KOM League Remembered newsletters as well as receiving the Flash Reports for a couple of decades.

 

When I was writing my book about Mickey Mantle, Neeman was one of his former teammates who made the trip to my home where he was joined by Bob Wiesler, Lilburn Smith, Al Long and Tommy Gott along with Steve Kraly, Cromer Smotherman and Al Billingsly, by telephone, to relive the memories of their 1950 season with the Joplin Miners. The conversation was professionally recorded by an engineer at KFRU radio in Columbia, MO and that conversation, verbatim, became an appendix in “Mickey Mantle Before the Glory.”

 

For those of you who have a copy of that epic tome the transcription of that conversation is contained on pages 265-306 of the aforementioned book. On page 266 is a photo of Neeman, Gott, Smith, Long and Wiesler standing in my front yard. If you care to know what Neeman had to say about his time with Mantle I would say those 41 pages would be the best source you would be able to locate.

 

Over the years I’ve stayed in touch with Neeman and it was sad to learn in an e-mail from Jack Morris that yet another link to the past has been severed. Cal told me that when he learned the Yankees weren’t going to promote after a good year at Joplin in 1949 that he was quite unhappy. But, he said as things turned out it was the best thing that ever happened in his career. He thoroughly enjoyed his season with the 1950 Joplin Miners.

 

Calvin Neeman Sr.

www.legacy.com/obituaries/belleville/obituary.aspx?n=Calv...

 

Calvin Amandus Neeman Sr., 86, of Lake St. Louis, Mo., formerly of Cahokia, Ill., was called to his Lord and Savior on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2015.

 

Calvin was born in Valmeyer, Ill., and graduated from Dupo High School. He was most notably recognized as a professional baseball player with the Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates. Cal began his baseball career signing with the New York Yankee's in Joplin, Mo., as an uninvited tryout. He attended Illinois Wesleyan University where he was an acclaimed baseball and basketball player. Later he graduated from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

 

He was a Korean War veteran, active in his church and served on numerous local boards. Always the competitor Cal developed a contagious passion for golf which he shared with everyone. He was a teacher, coach, and mentor to many.

 

While in the Yankee organization he met, married and cherished his lifelong adoration, Mary Ann, nee Minchich, Neeman from Binghamton, N.Y. In their 61 years of marriage they raised five children with a reverence for God and secondary love of family.

 

He was preceded in death by his parents, Amandus Neeman and Elenore, nee Johanning, Neeman; and an older brother that passed shortly after birth.

 

Surviving siblings are a brother, Earl (Carolynn) Neeman of Macinaw, Ill., and a sister, Adeline (Al) Ferry of East Carondelet, Ill.

 

He has five surviving children, all of which cannot adequately articulate their immense love for their father: Calvin and (Carol) Neeman of Waterloo, Ill., Jim and (Sue) Neeman of Freeburg, Ill., Lori and (Louis) Wray of Lake St. Louis, Mo., Susanne (Kevin) Graham of Dardenne Prairie, Mo., and Paul Neeman of Creve Coeur, Mo.

 

Immeasurably, his positive influence encouraged his six grandchildren: Collin (Jill) Neeman, Jake Neeman, Leslie (Adam) Robertson, Louis C. Wray, Charles Wray, Kevin Graham, and Katelynn Graham.

 

Visitation: Friends may call from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4, 2015, at Pitman Funeral Home, 1545 Wentzville Parkway, Wentzville Mo.

 

Funeral: Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, Oct. 5, 2015, at Living Lord Lutheran Church, 500 Cedar Circle Dr., Lake St. Louis, Mo., with Pastor Roy Christell officiating. Interment will be at Our Lady Cemetery, Lake St. Louis, Mo.

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One more thing:

 

Last week I mentioned Bernie Gerl’s list of fellows from Joliet, IL who played baseball. I meant to say he listed everyone from Joliet who played professional baseball from 1930 to the current time. Instead I put down “who played major league baseball” which is obviously wrong. I’m still in frequent contact with Gerl and he has shared some additional items which are outstanding mementos of the past. I even convinced him into accepting one of my Mantle books in an attempt to compensate him.

 

I’ve had an order or two for the Mantle book from as far away as Oklahoma City. Of course, I still get requests from people wanting them for free but the time for welfare has come to an end.

 

It seems as though that Mantle is always brought to my consciousness. I was working outside last week and a fellow working on a roof across the street yelled at me. He told me to tell his partner who his cousin was. Of course, it was a Mantle from the part of the clan who stayed in Missouri when Mickey’s grandparents went to Oklahoma in their covered wagons. I took a photo of Mick’s distant cousin and started to put it on the Flickr site for readers to attempt to guess who the mystery person was kin. But, something arose and I didn’t get around to it.

___________________________________________________________________________

 

 

KOM League

Flash Report

for

September 28, 2015

 

Right off the bat:

 

Probably the best opening sentence found in a Flash Report, in a long while, is that this one is

going to be brief.

 

For a couple of issue I’ve mentioned Bernie Gerl who got in touch in his attempt to locate a former KOM leaguer who was a teammate of his with Duluth. That person was Dick Getter and the exchange of contact information between the pair has transpired.

 

In our first conversation Gerl said that he had researched the name of every player to make it to the big leagues from his hometown of Joliet, Ill. from 1930 to the present. He sent me the list and the total was about 90. I looked for some very obscure names and even found Bob Kapinus who pitched for two teams in 1946 before winding up with the Iola Indians. I never found any pitching records for Kapinus but Gerl shows he posted a 4-2 record in his short career. So, if a guy could find that type of information, I’m impressed.

 

One feature of the packet Gerl sent were some great pictures of him in spring training with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1948, a photo of him and nine of his teammates with the 1950 Montgomery, Ala. Rebels, numerous snapshots of the 1948 bus crash and of him in the hospital, a photo of a very young George Mikan getting Babe Ruth’s autograph at Comiskey Park and a photo taken at Stan Musial’s restaurant when Stan the Man paid tribute to the survivors of the Duluth Dukes at one of their reunions. The only other guy in the photo, other than Gerl and Musia,l was Red Schoendienst’s look-alike brother, Elmer.

 

If anyone wants to see any of what I’ve briefly described, come by the house for a visit or wait until my wife has my “baseball estate give-away” and you can probably pick up anything for the price of a hard luck story.

 

In order to have any content for a report this week I’m including a list of former KOM leaguer who played with and against Bernie Gerl in his baseball career. I’m listing the fellows who were his teammates and then those who played against him. If you care to know where the guys played in the KOM you can look up their names at this site. I’ve spent 20 plus years working on it and it might as well be used for something. komleaguebaseball.blogspot.com/2008/01/names.html

 

Former KOM leaguers on same rosters with Gerl:

Harley Beavers

Richard Loeser

James Neufeldt

Ross Grimsley Sr.

Dick Getter

John Gierek

Edwin Staab

Duane Zimmer

Bob Curley

Bob Kehoe (joined Duluth from Carthage after bus crash)

Bernie Gottsch (joined Duluth following bus crash—had left Carthage team earlier over a feud with Al Kluttz)

 

Former KOM leaguers who opposed Gerl:

Walter Babcock

George Beck

Don Biebel

Len Bourdet

Johnny Mudd

Danny Priest

Leonard Vande Hey

Gerald Boldt

Charles Alsop

Hugh B. Lott

James Snyders

Roy Leafgren

Louis Novak

Nicholas Samela

Thomas Wozniak

Nick Alivojvodic

Dean Manns

Robert McEvilly

Al Pilarcik

Jim Upchurch

Oscar Engel

Tony Smeraglia

Howie Fisher

Jimmie Crandall

Donald Harris

Steve Kovach

Danny Longaker

James Carlton Post

William Chandler

Forrest Briggs

Donald Groves

Calvin Frazer

Bill McFarland

Bill Herring

R. T. Dixie Upright

Raymond Peterson

Bobby Gene Newbill

Wally Reed

Bill Schumm

Bill Hornsby

Jeff Peckham

George Seeley

George Hosp

 

A surprise I received in looking at one Duluth roster was to see the name of Lowell Lay. I never knew the former Joplin High School athlete made it to the Northern league. However, he was with Duluth for a while in 1952. For those of you with an Ancestry.com subscription you can click on the following URL and see the Joplin High School yearbook that featured a copy of the Robert S. Thurman American Legion team which featured a number of future professional players. search.ancestry.com//cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&db=Yearb...

Most of them wound up in the KOM league with the exception of David Johnson

and J. L. ”Duffy” Harbaugh. Those who did were Ed Craig, George Garrison, Eddie Deatherage and Ernie Chastain. So, for you in faraway places who only knew of one guy who played in the KOM league—Mickey Mantle—yes, Lowell Lay played a lot of games against him and some with him in those post-season pick-p games around the area. At last check Lay was living in Wewoka, OK and for those keeping track of old ballplayers he was born in Booneville, Arkansas on December 8, 1931.

 

Well, that is enough trivia for now.

Some people checked in this week who have been “missing.”

 

Joe Stanka wrote to let me know that his computer is finally fixed and he is busy reading past Flash Reports. I imagine he’s skimming them but he did note that he read the story carried early this summer on the death of a former Ponca City teammate, Conrad Swensson.

 

Don Ervin who hold the record for the most home runs in a KOM season wrote that he was “checking in” but didn’t have much to share except that he had seen Bill Virdon around Springfield, MO in recent days/

 

Sam Dixon reported on his recent bout with dialysis failure. They are giving a biopsy this week to determine the cause of the problem but after a week loss of seven pounds he thinks he has regained it. He says he’s feeling pretty good and the pain he has experienced wouldn’t compare to the many wild pitches he attempted to corral from KOM pitchers over parts or all of five seasons in the league.

 

If it weren’t for the photos I share of “things” on my Flickr site I wouldn’t hear from many people. I did hear from the Gale Wade and Dick Getter families that they liked the most recent ones posted at this site. www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/

Fran Wagener sent this note from Miami, OK. “I always enjoy your photos, but I especially like the ones of your flowers & great grandchildren. Also thank you for the photos of the Miami Eagles. My father was the business manager. Unfortunately he is no longer with us, but I'm sure he would have enjoyed seeing those pictures.”

 

Ed note:

 

Fran’s father was the late Ray Vanderberg. If you ever see my book “The KOM League Remembered” he is on the last page of that yet to be best-seller. If you click on this URL it will take you to the book and you can read a number of pages and if your eyesight is gone, mostly, you can look at some very high quality photos. Please don’t order one of those books for I wouldn’t know what to do with the potential eight-cent royalty I once received as the result of 50 or more sales. Come to think of it I have received a royalty in many years. books.google.com/books?id=2Z1mf1SuUnAC&pg=PA2&lpg...

________________________________________________

A reason to keep going

 

There are a number of former baseball players who stay in touch who never played in the KOM league but their experiences and memories are still the same only about different places and faces.

 

One of the readers of the Flash Report got in touch last week wondering if I could locate anything on one of his former teammates from the 1952-1954 era with the New York Giants and Cincinnati Reds organizations. Here was his request: “HI JOHN: TRYING TO LOCATE THE STATS OF AN OLD TEAMMATE FROM 1952 AND LATER--BOBBY RICCIANI. HOPE THAT IS RIGHT SPELLING. WE ALSO WERE IN THE CINCY REDS MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM. YOU ARE AN EXPERT IN THESE MATTERS.

To gain some pity from you I am still battling stage 4 prostate cancer...

THANK YOU SO MUCH OLD EMAIL FRIEND.”

 

It was pretty easy to “Name That Tune” in two notes. So, I located the fellow’s records and his whereabouts and sent the material to the North Carolina home of the person making the request. This was his response. “Hi John: Thinking of you as I look at all the work you did on Ricciani project! Thanks again! To share with you I am getting quite depressed over my cancer status. It seems hopeless except for God. I waver between hope and no hope . Thoughts of baseball still cheer me a bit. I appreciate all our contacts over the years! God Bless ! Bill

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A promise kept:

 

At the outset I promised a brief report and unlike most politicians, I kept my word.

 

If you care to have a reference to this report for future use it is posted at: www.flickr.com/photos/60428361@N07/21114265184/in/datepos...

 

 

That photo was some of the best barbecue sauce I ever ate. Bob Dellinger, the former sports editor of the Ponca City News and Daily Oklahoman gave that to me when he was editing my first book. He brought the first bottle to the 1996 KOM league reunion at Pittsburg, Kansas. I offered to share it at a large banquet and when it was returned to my spot at the table, it was empty. He kept me supplied in that good stuff until his death in 1999. I kept those contains and used them as piggy banks. This past week I opened them up and released all those pennies so that I could use them for practical purposes.

 

 

Done