From the Archives: 100 Years Ago Today

For your amusement: this graphic, which appeared in the March 24, 1913 edition of the Milwaukee Journal, presents the light-side of the cartoonists world when it comes to  ingenious ways of filling space and occupying time.

As for the Brewers, Lewis and Clark (Phil and Harry) lead the way as they defeat the Owensboro Grays amidst a "regular Kentucky gale," in a Sunday exhibition contest, 13-4. Pitcher Joe Hovlik carried his weight with the stick, swatting a double and home run. They outhit their Bluegrass State counterpart, 16-6, while making four errors. Ralph Cutting, Joe Hovlik and Bruce Noel all worked from the hill for Milwaukee.

100 Years Ago Today: Milwaukee Gets Going

This graphic from the Milwaukee Journal of March 16, 1913 show that the American Association's Milwaukee Brewers have a slew of lefties in their spring training camp down south. The early days of the 1913 season are especially interesting in light of the fact that Milwaukee went on to win its first American Association championship that year. Stay tuned for regular updates as we monitor the Brewers in their first championship season in the pages of this blog!

Here are the names of the players featured in this interesting graphic (from left - right; Powell and Burg are switched in the graphic's caption):

"Big Bill" Powell, pitcher (baseball-reference lists his B/T as R/R)
Joe Burg, second baseman (baseball-reference lists his B/T as R/R)
Johnson (does not appear on roster)
Ollie Reeb (does not appear on roster)
Anton "Mutz" Ens, first-baseman (listed as L/L)
Newt Randall, outfielder (listed as R/R)
Peter Clemens, outfielder (listed as batting L)
Art LaVigne, catcher (listed as R/R)

Obviously, many of the players shown in the graphic to be batting left-handed were not identified as being left-handed batters on baseball-reference. It is likely these batters were either switch-hitters or that baseball-reference is misinformed (as they have been known to be on occasion regarding the minor league statistical data they present).

The roster for the 1913 Milwaukee Brewers includes NINE players who either batted left, threw left, switch hit or threw and batted left. (source: baseball-reference.com)

100 Years Ago: August 24, 1912

The Minneapolis Millers retain their hold on first place in the American Association with wins 87 and 88 win of the season, sweeping the lowly Indianapolis Indians who suffer their 89th and 90th defeats in a Saturday twin bill at Nicollet Park in Minneapolis. Future Hall of Famer Rube Waddell goes the distance and strikes out seven in the first game, shutting down the Tribe on three hits. Second-baseman Ed Williams hitting lead-off gets two safeties off Waddell. The Millers play error-free in the field. Single tallies in the first and sixth innings give Minneapolis a 2-0 win, Fred Linke the losing pitcher.

Waddell takes the slab as the starter in the second game but lasts only three and one-third, faltering despite the advantage of an early two-run lead, Indianapolis scoring two in the second, one in the third and one in the fourth. Minneapolis comes back with a late picket fence, posting lone tallies in each of the last three frames to eke out a 5-4 win. Waddell is relieved first by Irv "Young Cy" Young and Ralph Comstock. A triple by first-baseman Jim Delahanty, his second of the day, is a highlight for the hosts; Indians' first-sacker Bill Keene homers for the visitors and speedy third-baseman Scotty Ingerton triples. Despite out-hitting the Millers, 10-7, Indianapolis takes the loss behind Otto Merz who limits the hosts to seven hits in ten innings. The Indians will win only two games out of 24 against Minneapolis all year.

Across the Big River in St. Paul, the sixth-place Saints are thrashed by the Louisville Colonels, 11-4, at Lexington Park. The Saints have a 4-0 lead through four, but the Colonels tie it in the fifth, then erupt for six runs off Louis LeRoy in the ninth. Joe Stansbury, the Colonels' center-fielder, has three hits in five at-bats; Bill McKechnie, also headed for the Hall of Fame, has a double and a triple in three times up. Doc Moskiman starts for Louisville before Jake Northrop comes on in the fifth and finishes, getting the win. It's Louisville's 50th victory of the season, but there's no way the Colonels are climbing out of their seventh-place hole.

Elsewhere in the American Association, the Milwaukee Brewers do the Millers a favor by knocking off second-place Columbus, 4-3, in Milwaukee, as slick spitballer Cy Slapnicka is the winner over Wilbur Cooper.

Third-place Toledo KO's the fourth-place Kansas City Blues in a battle of first-division clubs, 8-2, at Kansas City, as 23-year old Harry Krause defeats Bob "Dusty" Rhoades, 33.

100 Years Ago Today

COLUMBUS SWEEPS MINNEAPOLIS AT NICOLLET PARK!

Including the games played Aug. 17, 1912, the Minneapolis Millers and Columbus Senators were deadlocked at the top spot in the standings with a record of 81-46 as the pennant race continued in gripping fashion.

The two clubs played a doubleheader at Nicollet Park in Minneapolis that day.

In the first game, Wilbur Cooper received early support as the Senators jumped on Minneapolis spit-baller Roy Patterson as the visitors scored three in the first, one in the second and three in the third. The Millers finally got on the board in the fifth with a trio of tallies. George McQuillan relieved him in the sixth.

The Senators held on for a 7-5 victory, out-hitting the hosts, 15-12. Both teams had two errors. Bob Unglaub, the Millers' first-baseman, had a three-hit day, while the Senators' third-sacker, George Perring, had two hits in four at-bats, one of which was a home run.

Columbus bats were evident again in the second game. With John Kimball on the mound, the Millers did not score until the sixth, but that did little to narrow the scoring margin as the Senators were up 7-1, ruining the outing by Glenn Liebhardt, their former teammate that year. The final in game two: 9-2, Senators.

Columbus first-baseman Ray Miller, enjoying a splendid year at the plate in his first season in the high minors, had two home runs off Liebhardt as the Senators out-slugged Minneapolis, 14-8.

In other action, third-place Toledo handed the St. Paul their 71st loss of the year with a 10-2 thrashing in the first game of a pair at Lexington Park in St. Paul in which the hosts were out-hit, 18-4. Saints' starting pitcher lasted only three innings, but the trio of St. Paul pitchers held rookie shortstop Ray Chapman hitless in four at-bats. The Saints took revenge in the second game, eking out a 5-4 win in 12 innings in a contest which featured two stolen bases by Chapman, Toledo's rising star, who had two hits in the game. The Mud Hens are in contention with a record of 76-49.

Elsewhere around the league, fourth-place Kansas City handed Louisville their 80th loss of the season, 6-1, at Kansas City's Association Park, securing their 62nd win.

Finally, the fifth-place Milwaukee Brewers won their 59th game against 65 losses by defeating last-place Indianapolis, 4-2, at Milwaukee's Athletic Park as the Suds Meisters played error-free ball.

Rabbit Nill

Rabbit Nill, who played 73 games for the Toledo Mud Hens in 1909, died on this date 50 years ago. 

Nill was in the starting Toledo lineup on July 3, 1909 when the Hens opened their brand new ball park, Swayne Field, against the Columbus Senators. The contest turned into a classic, lasting longer than any previous American Association game. After Toledo tied the game at 11 apiece in the ninth, the game would not be decided until the after 18 innings were completed, as the Senators posted one run in their half of the frame. The Hens could not mount a comeback, and the final, after 18 innings and 3 hours, 35 minutes, was Columbus 12, Toledo 11.

For Nill's part, he occupied the shortstop position, wearing the collar in six at-bats (not one hit that day). On the fielding side, he was out front on a 6-4-3 double play that day.

Rest in Peace, Rabbit.

For more on Mr. Nill, go to  http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=nill--001geo

Lefty Willis died 50 years ago Today

Lefty Willis

Charles William Willis

Bats: Left, Throws: Left
Height: 6' 1", Weight: 175 lb.
Born: November 4, 1905 in Leetown, West Virginia, US
Died: May 10, 1962 in Bethesda, Maryland, US (Aged 56)

Willis played for the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association during the late 1920s, compiling an overall record of 6-9 during three different seasons. 

Russ Miller died 50 years ago today

Russell Lewis Miller, born at Etna, Ohio on March 25, 1900, became a pitcher with the Columbus Senators of the American Association in 1930, the last year the club was known as the Senators; they were renamed the Columbus Red Birds in 1931. Miller was one of a handful of players who appeared on the very last Senators' team.

He died at Bucyrus, Ohio at the age of 62, the result of a heart attack.

As a member of the Columbus club in 1930, Miller played under Harry Leibold, a feisty and colorful manager who was a long-time veteran of the game. Miller had a respectable season that year, winning nine of 20 decisions with 147 inning of work in 43 games. The Senators landed in sixth place under Leibold that year with a record of 67-86. Miller was teammates with Emmett McCann whose suicide was reported a few weeks ago in this blog.

Miller's statistics indicate he had control problems that year, walking 59 while striking out only 23 with a 5.81 ERA. With numbers like those it's a wonder his won-loss record wasn't worse.

In 1931, Miller split the season between the Indianapolis Indians and Columbus Senators, compiling a 4-2 record while appearing in 29 games combined.

His combined minor league career consisted of seven seasons with a record of 53-45 in 191 games. He appeared in the major leagues as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1927-28 where his record was a dubious 1-13 in 35 appearances.

After baseball, Miller spent 28 years as an agricultural county agent for Crawford County, Ohio. He is buried at Glen Rest Memorial Estates in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, a cemetery I have visited with my wife some years back.