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Showing posts from June, 2008

Hank Gehring, Savvy St. Paul Spitball Artist

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I'm currently working on a short biography of Henry "Hank" Gehring, a pitcher during the early years who pitched in various leagues, including the American Association. I wanted to write about him after being invited to write a different bio for a book the local SABR chapter is preparing on Minnesota-born ballplayers. It took some doing, but I convinced the group that Gehring was someone who should not be left out of this compendium, despite his limited experience in the major leagues. His story is both relevant and poignant. Gehring became a major leaguer in 1907 when he was called up to the American League's Washington Senators. He'd been with Des Moines of the Western League where the manager, Mike Kelley, had a connection with Joe Cantillon, the manager of the Senators. Born in the heart of St. Paul to a family of Swiss immigrants in 1881, Gehring was the sixth born of nine children, the first U.S.-born son of John and Annie Gehring. He was married to Bertha H

Red Bird Stadium Issue

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It's been a few weeks since I was finally able to get Volume 7, Number 1 of the American Association Almanac out the door. The big surprise was that I just happened to hit the exact first date of the new postal rate hike increase. So instead of it costing me 80 cents to send each issue to my roughly 100 subscribers, it cost me $1.38. Not sure how long I can sustain this business with costs like those. Needless to say there will be a rate increase starting with the summer issue which will be announced in a future blog here. This is a very dense issue. Basic Facts for Vol. 7, No. 1, Spring 2008 The title is "Red Bird Stadium in Columbus, Ohio: A Comprehensive Early History." 63 pages; 34,000+ words Set in Garamond 10 pt. One-column format; a departure from the two-column format I've been using the last few years. 35 separate references listed. Cost: $8.00 (you're getting your money's worth) Table of Contents includes: Player Introductions Attendance Trends Backg