Header - Baseball by the Letters

Month: August 2011

‘Feel The History’ — Pitcher Dooley Womack Relives His Arrival In Yankee Stadium

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His “D” still breaks
like a sharp curveball!

Pitcher Dooley Womack is like a superhero. Different name, different person.

For elementary-schooler me, I thought the name sounded like a movie star cowboy. When I found out he pitched for a team in Texas, it made even more sense.

I asked the hurler how he went from his birth name to DOOLEY. He replied:

“Horace Guy Womack is my given name. ‘Dooley’ is a nickname. When I reported to spring training in 1966, the reporters wanted to know which name I wanted to be called. I told them, ‘Dooley.’ I told them that Horace was a guy in a three-piece suite, dark horn-rimmed glasses, briefcase and umbrella. I’ve articles written about my name. In school I was Horace. In sports, I was Dooley.”

How did that spring training turn out, by the way? Womack added:

“When we left spring training, headed to New York, I was happy to have made the team after eight years in the minors. When we arrived at Yankee Stadium, instead of going in the clubhouse, I turned right, down the long tunnel to the dugout. I stood on the top stair and said, ‘I finally made it to the House That Ruth Built,’ whether it be for 30 days or longer.


The stadium was old, but you could feel the History.


Mantle’s 500th homer won the game for me. I pitched 3-1/3 innings in relief. Back then, we went as far as we could. I started the last triple play in the old stadium — Womack to Cox to Mantle. It lasted for 42 years, until last year in Oakland.”

Our friends at Baseball Almanac.com share this box score!

Coming Thursday: The record Womack helped set in Houston, along with the prize he did NOT receive.

Kansas City Royals Collector Dave O’Brien Knows Personal Letters Make A Difference

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A classy card and autograph
from Topps in 1999.

One of the many benefits of membership to http://www.sportscollectors.net/ isn’t just in the abundance of information of hobby information. One of the perks of SCN for me is getting to find like-minded collectors.

The past week, I discovered Dave O’Brien posting a question on the SCN member forum. “Letter Ever Make A Difference to An Athlete?” was his question. A dozen responses and more than 600 readers later, his question still rings true for me.

A personalized signature is one clue. The signer had to check your name on the envelope or letter. However, a note that refers to your comments, even thanks for you sending them? A sign that a current or former player cares what a fan thinks? Amazing! That’s the priceless value of baseball correspondence.

I wanted to know more about Dave, his hobby background and collecting philosophy. I’m grateful for his fast, thoughtful response. His all-star attitude is worth checking out:

Q: Tell us about your start collecting autographs? What’s your current specialties?

A: I have been collecting autographed baseball cards since the age of 14. I started in person going to Omaha Royals games at Rosenblatt Stadium around 1994, and would wait for an hour after the game where the players walked out to get cards signed. Around this same time, I heard of this address book from R.J. “Jack” Smalling that would allow me to write to players at home, and boy oh boy, was I hooked! I’d also drive down to Kansas City and stay after for Royals games 2-3 times a year waiting for autographs. I would say back then, it was 80% mail, 20% in person, just because I lived in neither Omaha or Kansas City, and the Royals were pretty much (and still are) my only interest.

I definitely specialize in Royals, especially minor leaguers, which we will talk about later.

Nowadays, I’d say I’m still at about 80% versus 20%, mail to in person. I’m 30 years old and feel a bit odd waiting for autographs very often. I will do it 2-3 times a year here in KC and 2-3 times in Omaha and Northwest Arkansas, and Spring Training. Since I only collect Royals, I can get AA, AAA and MLB covered IP simply from those amounts of visits. I like to have 3-5 autographs of each player, but don’t need more than that. I also don’t sell them, outside of the time I purchased my first house and needed a little extra for a down payment.

Q: Some collectors might ask, “Why do minor leaguers matter?” I think they have even greater tales, such as Cliff Pastornicky, the fine 3rd baseman trapped in AAA behind George Brett. Your thoughts?

A: I’m proud of you for mentioning Cliff Pastornicky. His son, Tyler, is in the 2011 Topps Pro Debut set. Cliff was a scout for the Royals and did you know, he was responsible for finding and signing Billy Butler and Zack Greinke? He was also a VERY difficult autograph for me to get for awhile, then all of a sudden he became easy. Nice guy.

But anyway, why do minor leaguers matter? They don’t, outside of the Royals. But I follow the entire Royals organization, and the way its built, is we have to grow our own players. So the hope is, approximately 15-20% of these guys might make the Big Leagues someday, and I like to have ALL of their minor league team set cards signed. I really don’t collect sets like Pro Debut or Just or such – rather, I like the team set cards. They don’t have gloss, don’t require prep, are all the same (the whole teams cards), and look AWESOME together in an album. Most of these guys will never make it and will disappear out of memory 2-4 years after they’re gone, but I imagine myself someday sitting in my sports room when I’m 75 and looking at all of these old minor leaguers and just being in awe. “Yes, I remember him, wow.” And maybe even googling them and seeing whatever happened to them.

For an organization to be a winner, it requires EVERY player and affiliate in the organization to work hard, play together and “buy in.” I believe every minor leaguer should be treated equally and are all important. I enjoy getting those cards signed WAY MORE than the Big League cards.

Q: Here’s another skeptical question. Someone might ask, “Won’t form letters work?”

A: Form letters are tacky and the players can see right through them, especially the guys I’m writing to, who mainly get 1-100 letters a year, tops. I’d say 90% of players I send to in the minor leagues – I’m the only guy who writes to them all year. They get asked plenty of times IP, but not through the mail. I can’t tell you how many letters I’ve gotten in return from minor leaguers who appreciate my time and attention. I try to mention stats, where they went to college, grew up, welcome them, etc. I want them to know they are a huge part of the organization I love so much.

Q: Can you recall Royals who’ve shown they appreciated your personalized letter?

A: Man, I can’t even begin to name all the guys I’ve gotten great letters from. A TON. All Royals, pretty much. As I mentioned above, writing a passionate, detailed and “true” letter stands out, and they appreciate it.

Here are some guys who have written back extremely kind letters and some of which I’ve heard from multiple times. All are former Big League or Minor League Royals:

Chris George, Kris Wilson, Brad Voyles, Gary Martz, Mike Loggins, Danny Garcia, Crawford Simmons, Ed Lucas, Brian Johnson, etc, etc. I could go on for 20 minutes.

Thanks for having me and I hope all collectors will start trying a bit harder to write passionate and detailed letters. It is healthy not only for our hobby, but will make checking the mailbox everyday WAY more fun.

Coming Wednesday: Pitcher Dooley Womack describes his alter ego.

Enjoying A Letter From Grateful Johnny Grubb

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Expect the same tight,
neat handwriting today!

Outfielder and designated hitter Johnny Grubb enjoyed a 16-year career in the majors.

Was it his hitting or fielding that gave him enduring value to teams?

Or, was it his humility and gratitude?

His letter proves that he appreciated every opportunity. Likewise, I think that attitude guaranteed that he made the most of every opportunity. Grubb began:

“Tom,

Thanks for your nice letter and love for the great game of baseball.

It was a wonderful experience to be part of the 1974 National League All-Star team…what a great group of people and players.”

Grubb flirted with history in 1979, posting a 21-game hitting streak. I asked for the most joyful, or dramatic, moments of the streak. He replied:

“I was aware of my batting streak, but winning games was top priority. My teammate, Jim Sundberg, had a 22-game streak that at one time was the Rangers record.”

Lastly, I had to ask about being part of the 1984 Detroit Tigers World Championship. What did Grubb learn from leader Sparky Anderson?

“Sparky Anderson was a very special person. he was a great motivator and knew the game as well as anyone. He was a great person to learn from, whether it was baseball or life in general. I was fortunate to have Sparky as a manager.”

I loved this Grubb profile. I hope you do, too. Another hit feature from Todd Newville of http://www.baseballtoddsdugout.com/.

Coming Tuesday: Kansas City Royals collector Dave O’Brien tells why personal letters matter.

Juan Rosales Knows ‘Baseball Interactions’

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Meet Juan Rosales, the
spirit behind
Baseball Interactions!

Finding someone else who cheers for your favorite team is a good feeling. Finding someone who shares your perspective on a hobby is simply amazing.

The first time I spotted the blog Baseball Interactions, I had to know more. This wasn’t someone else saying they wanted to get every autograph in existence, any way possible. Someone else valued quality over quantity.

This someone is Juan Rosales. His story is as intriguing as the tales he’s uncovered from former players each day. Juan was kind enough to answer tons of questions for Baseball By The Letters readers.

Q: Juan, when and what was the first baseball note, the hand-written memory in addition to an autograph, that you received? Was it asked for, or was it an extra surprise?

A: I began collecting autographs through the mail in late 1989. At the time, I was 11 years old and had just really started getting into baseball several months before. I had accumulated a lot of baseball cards by that point, and, living in the Dallas area at the time, I had met a few Rangers in person and got them to sign some of the cards for me. I thought it would be fun to add to my collection by writing to players in addition to getting in-person signatures.

At the time, though, I was more interested in the QUANTITY of autographs over anything else. I didn’t think about asking questions in my letters; I just wanted to fill my binders with autographed cards. By that point, I was already way more knowledgeable about baseball than my friends were, and I wanted to have a great quantity of autographs as a sort of ‘bragging right’ thing. I loved it, but all I cared about were the autographs and not necessarily the interactions.

By virtue of my collecting goals, I received many signed cards but little else. One day in 1991, however, I received a response from former pitcher Jim “Mudcat” Grant. Not only did he sign the cards I sent him, but he also enclosed a nice note as well, basically wishing me luck with my collection and advising me to stay away from drugs. This was the first real hand-written memory I received from a player and it was completely unexpected. It was a great surprise. I still have the note somewhere; I need to look for it so I can post it on my blog.

Q: What were your original goals as a by-mail autograph collector? Did you start with current players?

A: Like I said, I wanted to get as many of my cards signed as possible. I began by sending to some of the players who were active at the time, and within several months I found myself writing to Hall of Famers and many other retired players. By the time I was 13, I had acquired around 30 Hall of Fame autographs via mail and maybe an additional 150-200 signatures from retired players who had played between 1930 and 1960. I found it a lot more fun to write to the old timers.

Q: What are the best sources for addresses of retired players for you?

A: When I first started, I used Jack Smalling’s address list. The last edition I bought was the 1992 edition. I kept that book for several more years, and I found that most of the addresses hadn’t changed. Sometimes I would get my mail returned (RTS) but for the most part, it was reliable. Once I relocated for college (1996), I was introduced to the internet, and I found many current and updated addresses online. Since then, I’ve been using the internet as my primary source. I’m aware of Harvey Meiselman’s address lists, but I haven’t purchased his product, simply because I’m able to find valid addresses online with a little research.

Q: Can you share a story of researching an address on your own, finding a “lost” retired player?


A: I guess the closest I can think of is whenever I’ve received an RTS response with the player’s new address printed on the yellow label. I’ve never really been one to conduct in-depth research to find a specific player’s address. If I’m unable to find a mailing address for a player, I’ll move on to another player and hope that a valid address will pop up soon.

Q: What kind of research do you do on a person before writing?

A: For the more well-known players, I’m usually already somewhat familiar with their careers, so I won’t have to research them very much. Sometimes I’ll come across a through-the-mail experience that someone had with a player that was positive, and it’ll prompt me to write to that player. If I’m not already familiar with him, I’ll look up the basic stuff- lifetime stats, teams he played on, career accomplishments, etc. I always customize my letters specifically to the player I’m writing to and I always include items about his career that have stood out to me.

Q: What kinds of questions have brought the best responses? Are you only asking questions, or do you ask for an autograph, too?

A: I’ll ask for an autograph as well. I’ll include a custom-made index card – something simple that shows them that I’m interested in their autograph but don’t plan on selling it. As for the questions, I don’t like to ask the same generic types of questions that many other people ask- questions like, “Who was your favorite pitcher to hit off of?” or “What did you like most about playing in the Major Leagues?” I’ll go more in-depth than that. When I first started asking questions back in ’96 or ’97, I used the technique of asking generic questions but, looking back, I really wish I had taken more time to ask something more creative.

As for the questions that have brought the best responses: it’s typically the questions that show that I’ve done some research on the player’s career or post-career life. Probably the best response I’ve received was when I wrote to former pitcher Bob Meyer around 10 years ago. I put this interaction up on my blog. Mr. Meyer wasn’t a household name in MLB but he went on to become a successful businessman after his playing days were over. I asked 3 questions- including one regarding his business career- and he sent back a long and in-depth response. He seemed appreciative that I did my research on his career and that I was genuinely interested in interacting with him. To summarize, I try to ask specific questions related to a certain aspect of a player’s career or life that show that I’m an actual fan and not just another autograph collector. The players seem more appreciative of this.

Q:  How would you answer a collector who says, “What if your question is hard? That might make someone who’d sign an autograph not answer at all!”

A: I would tell the collector that I’ll always use my best judgment. If I find out that a player enjoys interacting with fans and talking about his career, then basically anything goes regarding my willingness to ask a certain question regarding his career. I might ask him to recount a certain event, or to give his opinions on playing for a certain coach, or to talk about a specific home run he hit. When I wrote to former Red Lonny Frey, for instance, I asked for his thoughts on his manager Bill McKechnie, and I also asked him to compare the pitching staff of the 1930s-1940s Reds to that of the 1990s Braves. I got back a great response. I asked these questions because I knew he enjoyed interacting with fans and was very insightful and generous with his time.

Sometimes, though…and as much as I like to stay away from these kinds of questions…the more simple, more generic ones work best if I know that a player won’t be as likely to respond based on habits of theirs that I’ve read about.

Q: What’s been the best part of sharing your responses in a blog?

A: Much like you, I like writing out of personal enjoyment. I had been interacting with players for so long and receiving written responses, and for the longest time, my responses were just sitting in a box. I wanted to come up with a way to display them. The idea of writing a blog never interested me, but in early 2011 I started looking around on the internet at all the other people who had blogs and the different things they would write about. It finally occurred to me that having a blog would be a good (and easy) way to share my interactions with fellow collectors.

Q: Asking questions is a quality-versus-quantity question for me. I’d rather have one insightful comment from a retired player, than five cards he autographed in seconds. How would you answer someone who says you’re getting only one letter, when they’re filling binders with several cards per reply?

A: Basically the same way you would. Whereas I might have been interested in getting 20 cards of a certain player autographed when I first started writing to players, I’m now much more interested in the interactions themselves. It’s interesting to see how much you can get a player to open up if given the chance.

Q: I feel that a former player needs to know a bit of who I am in the letter. This tells why I want, or deserve, a response. How much of yourself do you add in a letter, such as telling about how long you’ve been a fan, attending a game or watching a certain play on TV?

A: I’ll let them know my age, and how long I’ve been a fan of MLB. Also, I’m honest with them up front regarding their career. If it’s a player I followed when I was younger, I’ll let him know that I’ve been a fan since (insert year). If it’s an older player whose career I’m familiar with, I”ll tell him HOW I became familiar with his career and include tidbits of interest that have jumped out at me. If it’s a player I previously had no knowledge of, I’ll tell him something along the lines of, “…upon researching your career, I find it interesting that (insert career fact)…” I always want to make sure he knows that I’m familiar with him at least to some degree. I can’t tell you how many times I”ve seen someone send the same form letter (sometimes photocopied) to a group of players that comes off insincere and generic. I mean…it does no good for a 15-year-old collector to tell a player from the 1950s, “…you’re one of my favorite baseball players…you’ve contributed so much to the game…can I have your autograph?” if they can’t specify something specific about his career. People should put at least some thought into their letters and mention specific things.

Q: Goals for your blog?

A: I just want to keep writing to more players, keep having fun writing my entries, and try to get more people to follow me and read my entries. I’m having a lot of fun doing it and I’ve learned a lot about maintaining a blog.

Q: Advice to collectors or fans wanting to send letters for baseball research?

A: Don’t write to players just because other people have done it and it looks like it would be something cool to do. Write to players because it’s something that you genuinely enjoy doing. I’m a huge baseball fan and I love getting feedback from players because, more than anything, I’m a fan of the HISTORY of the game. I like to keep up with current MLB players, but I get a huge thrill out of writing to players from the past and hearing them talk about how certain aspects of their careers. Don’t get me wrong- I love to communicate with current players too- but I think the point I”m trying to get across is that if you have an actual interest in communicating with players, regardless of the era in which they played, this will be a much more rewarding hobby, as opposed to  writing to them for the sake of writing to them.

Thank you, Juan, for a great hobby “interaction.” This is a blog worth following!

Coming Monday: Grateful outfielder Johnny Grubb

Pitcher Bud Byerly Teaches Me A Lesson!

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Topps can thank Bill Rigney for the smile
on Bud’s face!

I first wrote about Bud Byerly July 13. I don’t know if the former pitcher ever coached. However, he re-taught me an important lesson with his response.

I included a blank page for Byerly’s response to my questions. The page was folded into thirds.

The top third was filled with writing. However, there was no signature. That’s nothing new. I’ve suspected that a few former players feel that I’d be hawking their responses for top dollar if an autograph was included. Somehow, I stopped reading at the fold.

At any rate, I prepared to put the unfolded full page flat into a file folder. There, Byerly included one extra answer.

“Bill Rigney helped me get a second chance.”

Rigney managed the Giants in 1959-60. I asked Byerly how he extended his career, battling back from repeated minor league stints.

Be prepared for surprises. In my envelope from Bob Sykes, I thought I had just his autograph on my returned letter.

Nope. On a piece of card stock 1 inch tall by 5-3/4 wide, he had typed out the words to the Bible verse Philippians 4:13 — “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” This mini-bonus seemed wedged in the bottom crease of the envelope.

Byerly sent me more than one sentence, in a sense. Pages front to back, top to bottom. Envelopes shaken. Thanks to “Coach” Byerly, I’m double- and triple-checking everything. I don’t want to miss a word from baseball’s past.

Coming Friday: Meet Juan Rosales, the creator of the blog Baseball Interactions.