Header - Baseball by the Letters

Year: 2011

Saul Rogovin: A Baseball-made Teaching Hero

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Collect your teacher’s autograph!

Saul Rogovin became a star after his playing career.

He became a teacher. Forget his stats. Read Ralph Berger’s stirring profile (linked above) from the SABR Bio Project. Rogovin started his education career at age 51, serving students for 12 years. The feature says that Rogovin had to produce his baseball card to convince classes of his earlier career!

One of the most eloquent replies I’ve received came from former Cub Ed Mayer. Mayer taught for 25 years after his pitching days ended.

That’s what led me to seek out more players-turned-teachers to contact.

Here’s my magnificent seven from the past week:

Dave Fleming
Rich Beck
Don Wengert
Ford “Moon” Mullen
Bob Lacey
Jeff Keener
Jim Morris

Who would you add to this list? Yes, I’ll write them, too. Teachers are my heroes. If you serve a classroom (or more), you have my thanks and admiration. In my eyes, you’ll always be an all-star.

CSI: Baseball By The Letters?

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These caps are sold
everywhere online!
Imagine this: CSI…
Collector Scene Investigation!

I could imagine CBS creating a CSI show based on baseball autographs.

I read so much hobby intrigue online. Who’s not signing, who’s rude or greedy…

I’ve wanted to avoid submitting evidence each day to further any of these conspiracy theories.

I’ve chosen not to put up scans of letters. “Baseball By The Letters” is about the story, not the signature.

I’m getting replies from elderly retirees. I sense that some of these letters have been dictated to wives or grandchildren. The handwriting seems feminine (translated: QUITE ORNATE) or adolescent. Such as, circles drawn to dot each letter I.

Other times, there’s no signature on the letter. The ex-player is willing to answer questions, but may want to keep the resale value of the correspondence low, withholding an autograph. In fact, I’ve had a few replies that are printed in all-cap block letters, as if a kidnapper is creating a ransom note that can’t be submitted as evidence.

Two bottom-line reasons for not sharing the stories, without scans of the replies? I don’t want to feel like my sophomore composition teacher, who lived for a misspelled word. I get other letters that sound like stream-of-conscious hypnosis. Random words like puzzle pieces that need to be reassembled. My reply from Merv Rettenmund was an example. Several of you weighed in on what he meant, and I translated from that consensus. My favorite explanation from one BBTL reader: “Maybe the phone rang and he stopped in mid-sentence, then lost his train of thought when he came back?”

Don’t forget mystical handwriting. A couple have sent microscopic lettering, due to eyesight issues. Others display the skill of a doctor writing a prescription, almost offering a baseball shorthand.

I write this blog on faith. People who don’t want to share baseball memories won’t reply. I’ll keep sharing the stories I discover, from baseball names who want to be remembered. Let others focus on autograph authentication. My hobby is collecting baseball history.

Tomorrow: From baseball to teaching — who are your education all-stars?

Eric Soderholm Honors Three Twins Legends

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No signature change
in 35 years!

Eric Soderholm lived two lives. He’s known to many as a gritty Minnesota Twins third baseman. Others remember the reborn slugger who found his career comeback as one of the Chicago White Sox “South Side Hit Men” in 1977.

I saw him play in Minnesota, providing the foundation for two questions.
First, I asked what it was like to play in the company of three stars — Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva and Rod Carew. Soderholm replied:

“Killebrew, Carew and Oliva were world class, on and off field. Learned from their determination.”

I shivered when I thought about seeing Soderholm play at Metropolitan Stadium. In fact, every Twins game there left me with a BRRR! My folks loved the easy access to the ballpark from Iowa. Other teams played in CITIES. The Twins played…nearby.

“The Met was a nice park for right-handed hitters — but COLD!”

A knee injury shelved Soderholm for all of 1976. When The Sporting News named him American League Comeback Player of the Year, I wondered how he felt about the title.

“Comeback Player of Year was a great honor — and appreciated after I worked so hard on my knee.

Best wishes,
Eric Soderholm”

A well-done profile of Soderholm, written by Mark Liptak, can be found at one of my favorite websites, Baseball Almanac.

Tomorrow: An inside peek at the “Baseball By The Letters” mailbox.

Detroit Tigers Manager Billy Martin DID Order Spitballs, Confirms Pitcher Fred Scherman

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“Throw a spitball? Me?”

Pitcher Fred Scherman was a true team player.

He listened to his manager and did his best. No matter how bizarre the game turned.

Let’s flash back to Aug. 30, 1973 in Detroit. Cleveland’s Gaylord Perry is working on a six-hit shutout.

After the loss, Martin complains to the media that umpires refused to listen to complaints about Perry throwing illegal greaseballs. In retaliation, the fiery skipper claims that he ordered both starter Joe Coleman and reliever Scherman to throw spitters, too.

Really?!?

“Yes it was true and yes I did. I didn’t know how to throw a spitball so I just spit on it and threw it.”

A certain manager was dismissed by team officials three days after flashing such brazen honesty.

Scherman racked up a career-high 20 saves for the 1971 Tigers. As opposed to a win, how much did a save mean 30 years ago? How much did it bring in next season’s contract?

“The ‘save’ got less respect. Our GM did not reward me well for my efforts.”

Scherman rewarded me with his reflections on Sept. 17, 1971. He registered a six-hit win against the mighty Orioles. Did he want to be a starter after such success?

“That was a great day. Starting or relieving didn’t matter, as long as I got to pitch.”

Tomorrow: Eric Soderholm, in the shadow of Minnesota superstars.

Pitcher John D’Acquisto Topped 100 MPH in 1974

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Love the pic:
“Spell my name? Here –
it’s on the back!”

Pitcher John D’Acquisto did more than win a dozen games and a couple of awards in 1974. He achieved his own share of history while having a good bit of baseball fun.

Start with June 7, 1974. Whenever a pitcher blasts a homer, bet that there’s a good story behind the four-bagger. With thanks to http://www.retrosheet.org/, heeeeeere’s Johnny’s!

“The game was tied in the 8th inning against the Pirates and bing crosby was in the stands because he owned a percentage of the Pirates.

Bruce Miller walked and Larry Demery had gone 0-2 on me in the count. I was looking for a fastball away and he threw me a fastball right down the middle.

I took a swing and my eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. I hit right on the sweet spot and ripped it into right center field, a line shot.

In fact I was running so hard because I thought it was a double. When I hit second base (coach) Joe Amalfitano had his hands up like to stop me. I stopped between second and third and he yelled at me to'”keep running. You hit a dinger! Enjoy it, son, enjoy it!’

I will never forget that, because it was the game-winning home run and boy, did I get the silent treatment from my teammates. It was hilarious…”

No less than historian Bill James salutes D’Acquisto’s firepower. The pitcher quoted James, when asked how hard he threw:

“In any five-year period, there are 40 guys who are claimed by someone to be as fast as Walter Johnson, or as fast as Bob Feller, or as fast as Nolan Ryan, as fast as whomever the standard is at the moment. People made the same exact sort of comments about Pete Broberg that they did about David Clyde. We have the same kind of quotes about Gary Gentry, claiming he was faster than Seaver.

The fastest known [D’Acquisto bolded the words himself] radar reading from that era, other than Nolan Ryan, was for John D’Acquisto.’ — The Mighty Fastball, by Bill James

I was clocked at 102.4 against the LA Dodgers, 5-28-74″

How would you look back on nearly a decade in the majors? This is how the veteran sees it:

“My career was a good career based that I was on teams that never really did well, yet I was able to put together some great years and made those teams competitive in their own right. It was an honor to be able to play Major League Baseball for as long as I did.

I have no regrets on my life after baseball. Things happen to good people and they change your perspective of life and trust of others. I learned from my mistakes, that is the key.

John D’Acquisto 1974
NL Rookie Pitcher of the Year TSN
NL Rookie of the Year TSN”


More great “Johnny D” memories were shared in this 2005 profile from J.D. Hawk.

Tomorrow: what would you do if manager Billy Martin ordered you to throw a spitball?