Baseball News

The following was lifted from the Clinton County Historical Association's monthly newsletter: North Country Notes, September 1965 edition.

    In an old notebook, probably of 1890 vintage, was found the score-sheet of a game between two Champlain teams. The "Shop" team included George Lambert, Fred Harmon, Amos Lambert, Eddie Roberts and Israel Monnette; among the "School" players were Ralph Douglass, Chalres Doolittle, Walter and Moss Graves. There were only two strike outs by the Schoolers, to six by the Shoppers. Although there were but but nineteen hits in the game, the final score was: Shop 22; School 29. The 58 errors in the game might account for many of the runs.
    In sharp contrast, the Champlain-Rouses Point game of Aug. 20, 1913, was very much of a pitchers' battle. On the Point team were Mero, Landry, Strong, Seguin, Tyndall, Brothers, Lattourelle, Hoag and Ryan. The Champlainers were Spelman, Dunn, Miller, Barber, Garand, Lafountain, Mellen, Coonan and Malcolm. Only four hits were allowed by each side. Ryan and Malcolm, the pitchers, went all the way; Ryan struck out 17 men and Malcolm fanned 23! The final score was 3 to 2 in favor of Rouses Point.

Base Ball Phrases - 1875

This item came from an August, 1875 edition of the Ticonderoga Sentinel published in Ticonderoga, NY. Some of them are still relevant some 131 years later.

Base Ball Phrases

People who are puzzled at the technical phrases used in base ball reports are commended to the perusal of the following definitions.

Field - The cow pasture where the leather-hunting is performed.

Base - Salt bags scattered around in the grass for the players to jump on.

Nine - A number of roosters in knee breeches that constitute a base ball deck.

Umpire - The chief baller--he bawls out "strikes." His other duty is to sit on the top of the bat and smell the ball as it goes by.

Judgment - The umpire's opinion after taking a smell.

One ball - What the umpire says when the smell proves unsatisfactory.

Strike - A miscue by the batter.

Put out - The fellow who tries to get it without pay five cents.

Dead ball - One which comes to life again after being buried--in the hands of the pitcher.

Foul - A ball which bounds just the way one is positive it will not.

Fair foul - A little one for a cent.

Balk - "A breach of promise" indulged in by the pitcher.

Stealing a base - Stuffing a bag in the car and walking off to the next, when the catcher isn't looking.

Beauty - A ball so hot that the second baseman lies on his stomach to avoid it.

Hot balls - One that singes the short stop's head as it goes by.

Fly - A ball which scorns the earth, and, like the gentle horse fly buzzes around in the elevated atmosphere.

Wild throw - Slingin at the third baseman, and killing a small boy in right field.

Beware The Robot Brains

I had to go out and get the oil changed in the Dodge van. The local Dodge dealer had a great deal for the change. $17.95. Can't beat that. On the way to the dealer, I passed a new (to me) thrift store. I hit it up on the way back. They had lots of interesting stuff at very reasonable prices. And it was clean. It looked clean and smelled clean. I picked up a few books, a magazine and CD. All for 2 dollars and some change. Two of the books are Lord Peter Wimsey novels. Dorothy L. Sayers' wonderful British crime solver and man about town. Strong Poison and Have His Carcasse are the books. I've read quite a few of the other books (and turned my mom on to them) but haven't read these. The last one I read was Busman's Honeymoon. It took me a long time to get through that one. I was reading it while Caroline had her heart surgery at Vanderbilt. I don't know if when I tried to continue on reading, I was associating memories of the surgery and stay with it or what, but it took me over a year to finish it. I'd recommend Lord Peter (a collection of short stories) if you want to start reading DLS's wonderful series.

I also picked up a copy of The Robot Brains by Sydney J. Bounds. The upper left cover is very similar to the one that I picked up. I found this image on ebay.com. The cover to the right is one from the independent bookseller's network. I don't think that I'll actually read it. Probably pass it on to my brother, who introduced me to the joys of reading Science Fiction. I'm interested into the evolution of covers for different printings of books. What first caught my eye was the different covers for Louis L'Amour's The Tall Stranger. I had four different covers, from the late '50's/early '60's through the early '80's. They went from a Clint Eastwood look, to a bare chested hunk firing a rifle from a wagon that is speeding out of control. I guess twenty five years later they were trying to market to a different audience. I made a color photocopy of the four different covers. It hangs in my office. I should scan them in and post them. A little look at the way booksellers perceive their market.

I also picked up the CD, Such A Pleasure, by Myron Cohen, comedian. The audio is a bit scratchy. My guess is that the producer just transferred the LP to digital format. I'd never heard of Myron Cohen. On first listen there are some very funny bits. I need to listen to it again. He slips into a New York Jewish accent and I haven't read any Leo Rosten in many a year, so I've lost my ear for it.

The magazine is the May/June 2005 issue of The History Channel Magazine. Civil War Snipers, 5 Motorcycle Marvels, Khrushchev Comes to Iowa and other gripping articles.

Adding to My Good Life, a bit a time.

Less TV equals More TV

We gave up watching some TV shows because they were lousy. Bad writing, bad acting, bad language. Didn't need them. Still don't. Don't miss them, either.

So, we went out and upgraded our cable from Basic to Expanded, with a Digital Package. What?

Angie noticed that from early June until sometime in the fall or so, NASCAR would not be on regular broadcast TV. Those moneygrubbing NASCAR guys.

Our local cable system had a deal where you could upgrade to the next tier for a very small monthly fee. Looking at our budget, we decided to 'treat' ourselves to the wonders of Expanded Cable.

We've already locked out a few channels. MTV, Bravo, SoapNetwork. Stuff like that. Also some of the uncensored digital music channels. I'm not crazy about having to listen to garbage rap, even when I'm just surfing by it.

So now we have over a hundred channels. We can still only watch one at a time. I've taken a liking to the SPEED channel (PINKS, FORZA Motorsport Showdown) and the Food channel. I thought that I'd be glued to the History channel and Discovery, but I'm still balancing out time. I don't really need to watch a documentary on the Medici brothers, do I? (I did, though. Fell asleep. Bill Curtis has such a soothing voice.)

I've been getting to bed at a decent hour (I can always use more sleep) and I turned off the TV at about 10:20 last night (mostly because Edison was complaining that it was too loud and he couldn't sleep. I used the same technique when I was his age.)

Maybe More TV equals Less TV. I seem to be reading more (that's another blog entry).

Maybe the real reason we got the Expanded Cable was to watch Mike & Mike in the Mornings on ESPN2.

I really do have a good life.

Dr. Frank H. O'Connor's baseball statistics

I guess he wasn't a doctor then. Surfing over to baseball-reference.com I find that Frank O'Connor was a good batter and a lousy pitcher. He had a very short career. He debuted on August 3, 1893 and left the league on August 7. Thursday to Monday. He played 3 games for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Picked up a Save. That Save allowed him to be a Team Leader (with John "Brewery Jack" Taylor) in that category. Saves apparently didn't count for much when you had an ERA of 11.25 with just 4 innings of pitching. The team's ERA for the whole year was 4.68. The league's ERA was 4.57. He wasn't very good. The one game that he did start was against the Washington Senators. The Phillies won, 22-7.

But, he could hit. He had 2 At Bats. He got 2 hits. That gives him a perfect 1.000 Batting Average. One of the hits was a Home Run. That gives him a Slugging Percentage of 2.500. Impressive for someone, who I assume, didn't use steroids.

He was a bit of an anomaly. But aren't we all?

Dr. Frank H. O'Connor obituary

From the Plattsburgh Sentinel, December 30, 1913 ....

Dr. O'Connor Dies Suddenly
---
Well Known Brattleboro Surgeon, a
Native of Keeseville Succumbs to
Heart Failure
---

    Dr. Frank H. O'Connor, 43 years old, one of the prominent surgeons of southern Vermont, president of the Valley Fair association, member of the Congress of Clinical Surgeons of America and one of the leading citizens of the town, died at his desk in Brattleboro at about 3 o'clock last Friday afternoon.
    Dr. O'Connor sang Thursday evening at St. Michael's Catholic church Christmas exercises where he was choir director and made his morning calls Friday, seeming cheerful to all who met him, although he had complained of slight pain near his heart for several days.
    He was born in Keeseville, and was the son of David and Katherine (Taylor) O'Connor. He graduated from St. Joseph's college, Burlington, and spent some time in the School of Philosophy at Montreal before entering the medical department of the University of Vermont, where he became one of the leading baseball pitchers in the college world. He was persuaded to go to Dartmouth for the last two years of his college course. During his college baseball career he played summer ball in the Northern league and was well known in this city.
    He joined the Philadelphia National league team but his arm failed him and he gave up professional baseball. He graduated from Long Island college hospital in Brooklyn, in 1898, and did hospital work at St. Mary's hospital in New York before going to Bellows Falls where he practiced until 1904, when he moved to Brattleboro.
    He had always taken active interest in the welfare of this town and in January, 1910, was elected president of the Valley Fair association.
    He was resident surgeon for the Boston and Maine railroad, surgeon at the Memorial hospital, medical examiner for several life insurance companies and Leo council, Knights of Columbus. He was a member of the Windham County, Connecticut Valley, and Vermont State Medical associations. Dr. O'Connor was a past grand knight of the Leo council and was state deputy in 1908.
    He married, December 26, 1899, Miss Bridget Kelly of Burlington who survives him. He also leaves one sister, Mr. R.H. Nichols of Saratoga Springs, and one brother, David O'Connor of this city.

Global Warming must be true

I grew up in Clinton County, New York. Plattsburgh, Beekmantown, Peru. Winters were cold and snowy, summers were warm and close.

Then I moved to Cochise County, Arizona. Sierra Vista. Winters were warm and sunny, summers were hot and sunny.

Then I attended two years of schooling at Northern Arizona University in Coconino County, Arizona. Flagstaff. Winters were cold and snowy. I spent summers back in Sierra Vista. See above.

The last few weeks it has been snowing wildly in Oswego County, New York. Over 100". That's snow.

But, back to my topic. Talking about global warming is all the rage these days. So I'll hop into the discussion. It must be true. I figured that there has to be evidence to to back the fact of global warming.

So, I looked at some records for Flagstaff. In one month, they had considerable warming. I wasn't there, so I can't comment on what it was like, but an 88 degree swing is huge.

Low
-22.0°F
(01/04/1971)

High
66.0°F
(01/30/1971)

Back to the present, in Knoxvegas. We had snow/ice storms over the weekend. And now, on Wednesday, it is approaching 65°F. Again, more proof that global warming must be true.

So, what have I been doing to combat the evils of the current political administration's efforts to turn us all into Miami Beach? Hmm. Well, the first thing that I can do is realize that the current political administration didn't bring warming to the globe. I figure that it is all cyclical. Actually, I'm glad for global warming. If it didn't happen, we'd all still be in the Ice Age. I haven't taken any jet flights to Europe or Asia. That has to cut down on some pollution. I recycle aluminum cans. And I started to use Compact Fluorescent Lights. I went to Wal-Mart and bought a six pack of GE energy smart CFLs. They say that a 13 watt CFL equals a 60 watt incandescent bulb. My initial thought is, "No, not quite." I put two bulbs in the kitchen, over the sink area. Everything looks grayish. But they also say that each bulb will save $38 in energy. That is based on a lot of different criteria. Each bulb cost me about $1.75. So, if I can save energy and money, great.

I'm not a tree hugger, but I try to do my part. And phffft to Global Warming.

A letter to ESPN radio

This is an email that I just sent to ESPN Radio about one of their on air personalities...

I'm a casual listener of sports radio. I enjoy the personalities on ESPN Radio, but today Doug Gottleib said something that was offensive to me.

He was a guest on The Herd (at about 12:30pm EST) and they were discussing that the public was stupid if they thought that Steve Nash was over-rated. A very entertaining bit with circus music underneath the callers.

Then Doug said that people with that opinion were "stupid. Short bus stupid."

My daughter has Down syndrome and in a few months will begin riding a special needs vehicle to take her to public school.

I find Doug's remarks, although not directed at me or my daughter, to be lacking respect and compassion and totally void of any level of professionalism.

I found it very ironic that in less than an hour, Doug (discussing the Amaechi self-outing book) said, "Is it so hard to say the right thing?"

Apparently for Doug Gottlieb it is.

Whee! H.R. 390 Passed

Like I get all excited by House Resolutions getting passed.

Last week, Congressman Tom Lantos (D-San Mateo, San Francisco), had the Preservation of Servitude, Emancipation, and Post-Civil War Reconstruction Act passed in the House.

His press release can be found here.

I agree with Rep. Lantos in what he shared with the Speaker of the House when he said,

The federal and local records covered by this legislation are not only of personal importance to the families involved, Mr. Speaker: They are also historically significant to us all. They document the reuniting of our nation and the historic moment of transition for slaves from the status of property to citizens, a time when our country finally began to right a horrible moral wrong. We need to take the process another step now, by ensuring that those records and the lessons they hold are preserved for all eternity.

Thank you, Rep. Lantos.

Mark

Genealogy Bill Introduced (but not for me)

In the January 29, 2007 issue of the Knoxville News Sentinel, there was a column in the Perspective section by Lisa Hoffman of the Scripps Howard News Service. I quote it below...

Black historians and families researching their forbears could have a new national database to plumb if a Senate measure wins favor on Capitol Hill. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., is proposing the creation of the database at the National Archives to offer a central registry of emancipation records, land deeds, wills, voter-registration and other far-flung documents from the slavery, Reconstruction and pre-civil-rights eras. In the House, Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., is sponsoring a similar bill, which would also help states, colleges and genealogical organizations to establish digitized databases of similar records.

Here is a link to Sen. Landrieu's recent press release. The text of the SEARCH Act can be found here as a pdf file.

After reading the text of the proposed act, and pulling my cynical cap a wee bit tighter, I would prefer the language to read...

The Archivist of the United States shall establish, as a part of the National Archives, a national database consisting of historic records of servitude and emanicaption in the Unites States to assist all African Americans in researching their genealogy.

As I understand it, my 4th greatgrandfather, Stephen Fluharty, was an indentured servant. He later fought in the Revolutionary War. I am not African American (that I know of), but I do have someone in my line that should have a record of servitude. I have traced my family as coming from: Canada, France, Scotland, England, Germany and elsewhere. My wife's mother's family comes mostly from Germany. Her father's side from Europe. Yet, according to the proposed bill, the new database is not designed for me, but only for African Americans.

If the bill is accepted into law (and I hope that it is), I'll search the new database. I don't expect to find my people in there, but I truly am glad that Sen. Landrieu is pushing to get this in place. It will be a good thing for the whole of the genealogical community.

Thank you, Sen. Landrieu.

Mark

Supporting Details

I found some box scores for some of the games that I mentioned a few posts ago. Baseball Almanac is a very nice site. I'm glad I found them.

The box score for the first game of the Pirates / Expos doubleheader in July of 1974 can be found here. The box score for the second game can be found here.

The box score for the Cubs / Reds game in June of 2001 can be found here.

A description of the new ice cream flavor that Edison found at Krogers can be found here. Yes, we bought it.

Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony. - Dennis

Mark

Things that go fast and in circles

In a follow up to a recent post about sporting events that I've attended, I thought that I'd share some of the motor sport race tracks that I've been to.

The first race track that I remember is Plattsburgh International Raceway (now know as Airborne Speedway). At that track in the North Country (far northeastern part of New York state) I remember seeing the legendary Jack Kochman's Hell Drivers. Getting a car up on two wheels and around the track was rather awe inspiring to a young boy.

After I moved to the Chicago area, some coworkers took me to Wisconsin's Lake Geneva Raceway. Lake Geneva, more than just home to TSR.

Later, after getting married and getting a different job, a different coworker took Angie and I to the Sycamore Speedway in Sycamore, IL.

Then we moved to Tennessee. And up the food chain in the racing world. And slightly east to Bristol Motor Speedway. Angie and I were fortunate to be able to attend the running of the 2003 Sharpie 500. It looks quite a bit different in person than it does on television. The colors jump out at you. And the 160,000 people that you can't see at the same time on TV. If you haven't seen a NASCAR race live, go do it.

411 Motor Speedway is about 5 miles from the house. I've lived here 11 years and haven't made it there for a race, yet. I need to take my son this year.

Yeah, that's the ticket.

Pro Sporting Events that I've attended

I've often wondered which sporting events I've attended and why. I guess the why is easier to answer than the which and when. Family or friends say, "Hey, let's go watch the (insert team nickname here) play." "Okay, I'm up for that." That's the why.

The which and when, hmm. I'll try to focus on pro or semi-pro events. I remember going to Fenway Park to see the Boston Red Sox play in the late 1960's or early 1970's. My dad took my brother and I. Who they played and who won is lost to the record books. I do remember sitting in the outfield seats and witnessing a fight or two break out around us. And the restrooms at Fenway. I won't describe them here, but I do remember them.

Then, in the mid-1970's I went to Parc Jarry in Montreal to see a double header with the Pirates. Again, don't know who won, but I do remember that my brother ordered a pizza to be delivered to the ball park. Yes, they did actually deliver. I don't think that he shared any with me.

Again, in the late 1970's I remember going to the Field House at SUNY Plattsburgh to see the Cardinals play a hockey game against the USSR team.

In 1978 my family moved from Clinton Co., NY to Cochise Co., AZ. Goodbye hockey, hello sun. I attended some Tucson Toros (minor league baseball) in the early 1980's.

Then in the mid 1980's I moved to the greater Chicago area. What a sports town. Do you think that I took advantage of it? No. Here's where I get in trouble. I did not:

• attend a game at Wrigley Field
• attend a game at the old Comiskey Park
• attend a Bears' game
• attend a Bulls' game
• attend a Blackhawks' game

I did attend a few Kane County Cougar (minor league baseball) games. Much fun.

I got to go to a White Sox game at U.S. Cellular Field in the early 1990's. They played the Seattle Mariners. Saw Ken Griffey, Jr. play.

Then I moved my family to Sevier Co., TN. Not many professional sports teams in the Land of Orange. I have been to a few games of the Tennessee Smokies, both in the old Bill Myer Stadium and the much newer Smokies Park. Saw the Toronto BlueJays play the Smokies in an exhibition game. Got to see Dan Uggla play a few games. The Smokies are now a farm team of the Chicago Cubs, so there is a chance to see Jeff Samardzija get some playing time as he comes up through the ranks.

While visiting my brother in Cincinnati, we were able to see a Reds / Cubs game at Riverfront Stadium. This was just before the Great American Ball Park opened. Saw Sammy Sosa play. My son was quite enamored of him, then. I don't think so much enamoration is going on right now.

While in Las Vegas for a trade show, went with John and Mike (two friends / co-workers) to see the 51's play the Sidewinders (the Diamondback's AAA team) at Cashman Field. Saw Adrian Beltre pop a homer while he was recovering from injury.

So that's about it for pro sports. Another day, I'll list the motor racetracks that I've been to, both small and Bristol.

Mark

2007 awakens

Well, it seems that I've cut my time to post a blog in half. I've looked around at many blogs and then try to figure out where I fit in in the world of blogs. I've seen good blogs that cover a variety of topics. I've seen good blogs that are published (seemingly) hourly. I've seen very good, very specialized blogs that I return to. And then I've seen a lot of blogs that are like the above, but just horrid. I figure that I'd try to fit somewhere in the middle. A bit of musing on music, TV and DVDs, books, genealogy and life in general. Okay, how pathetic does that sound? "I guess I'll just do whatever I want to and hope against all hope that it will come off as not being egotistical and perhaps somewhat decent."

This year, Angie decided that it would be good to simplify life. So, we turned off the TV most nights. Sure, we still watch the Wiggles and Praise Baby DVDs, but as far as having the TV on all the time, not so much.

With the bland offerings that the networks serve up, can you blame us? Two and a Half Men was very smartly written. I particularly enjoyed the one where Jake (the kid) is always forgotten and ends up in the rain as Ben Franklin. But now, innuendo has fallen by the wayside and the writers are being too blatant about the lives that Charlie and Alan lead. Enough. Don't watch it anymore. The New Adventures of Old Christine? Similar. I don't really care for Mrs. Brad Hall's acting. Her ex on the show? Same. The brother's character is quirky enough, and I adore the actress that plays New Christine, Emily Rutherfurd. She was on the sharp, but short lived Married to the Kellys. We gravitate to a few reliable standbys. Law & Order. "Did you fire me because I'm a ...?" Law & Order: Criminal Intent. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. We tried Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Angie likes it. I enjoy it. I could do with or without it. I've tried The Unit this year. I've only seen a few episodes. You knew that the kid that got recruited to BlackThorn wasn't going to be coming home soon. Formula and predictable. But it sort of fills in the gap that The Agency left. Sure, one has to suspend belief of reality, but isn't that one thing that TV programming is supposed to do?

For comedy, we've been leaning towards My Name is Earl, The Office and Scrubs. "Wait." you say. "Those shows are almost as blatant as Two and A Half Men." Possibly. I'm just telling it like it is. Run away from 30 Rock. We almost never watch shows live anymore. Tape it while the kids are getting ready for bed. Then we can save about 8-1/2 minutes per half hour of TV. And the kids don't need to be subjected to some of the situations being portrayed. Then again, I don't either.

Last night, with nothing on, Edison working on completing his Science Fair report, Angie working on DSAG and church stuff, I figured that I'd catch up on a few episodes of Buffalo Bill on DVD. Not a great show, but a very good one. I like Dabney Coleman. His fellow cast members are worth watching, too. Geena Davis, John Feidler (voice of Piglet, Mr. Peterson on The Bob Newhart Show) , Meshach Taylor (Anthony Bouvier on Designing Women), Joanna Cassidy (Margaret Chenowith on Six Feet Under), Charles Robinson (Mac Robinson on Night Court), and Max Wright. All solid actors.

The other night, while giving Caroline her night bottle, I put on Phil Keaggy's Philly Live DVD. She really like it, although I tried to go for the softer songs. Last night, before dinner, she pulled out the DVD case and said, "Fhilll?" I popped it in and was very pleased, both with her remembering who it was and with her choice in music.

There's more, I'm sure, that I could talk about, but this should do it for today. Tonight is a DSAG dinner and speaker. Angie's worked hard on pulling it together. I'm excited for Buddy's Bar-B-Q and a chance to hear Monica Franklin. Should be a good time. And then we can watch My Name is Earl, The Office, and CSI. Woohoo!

Mark

Another four months, another post

And yet another place holder.

My wonderful wife has been very busy with her blog. That should inspire me to write volumes, but I've come to realize that I'm not very artistic. I have good ideas, but when I write them down, they sound flat.

So, here's what's been happening in the last four months...

• Edison's middleschool football team won a game
• Caroline's started to each 'big people' food
• Attended Angie's 20 year reunion at Milligan College
• Restored the home computer after it died a horrid death while installing Kodak's EasyShare software
• Continued my project of transcribing North Country NY newspapers for baseball articles pre 1900
• Watched the leaves change to wonderful colors
• Became more in awe of Angie's ability to digiscrap
• Picked up a couple of $1 Christmas DVDs from Target

Other than that, it is the usual. I'm sure that I've forgotten things like, enjoying McIntosh apples from Rulfs Orchard, get a charlie horse in my left calf while trying to get out of my easy chair at 4 in the morning without waking Caroline (blinding white lights), watching my son grow into a young man, participate in DSAG's Buddy Walk, participate in the election, become part of BookMooch, talk with friends, that sort of stuff.

Yes, I've got a good life.

Mark

Exile part 2

So, it has been too many months since I blogged. Life has been busy. My wife's doing digital scrapbooking. My son's been to NY on vacation, to church camp and is getting ready to go to Six Flags over Georgia for a few days. My daughter has been released from Speech Therapy and is walking. These are all good thing.

I'm doing some beta testing for a new version of the genealogy program that I use. It is very sweet.

Watched My Man Godfrey last night. Snappy writing.

This is mostly filler so I don't feel that I've totally ignored the blog.

More stuff later.

Back from the exile

Not exile like Napoleon on Elba or John on Patmos.

I just forgot what my user name, password, or email address was that I signed up with a year ago. So I ditched that experiment and will start fresh. Serves me right.

If you're interested, it was Not Ano Gen
This is just a quick place holder until I find some time to do something worthwhile.

I'll probably be cataloging the things that I'd like to do, rather than just do them. I've always thought of myself as an idea guy. Someone else can do the actual work.

And maybe some updates on the fam.