This Week in SABR: August 16, 2013

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Welcome to “This Week in SABR!” Here’s what we’ve been up to as of August 16, 2013:

Listen to every SABR 43 featured panel from Philadelphia

Couldn’t make it to Philadelphia for SABR 43? Listen to the featured panels from our 43rd annual convention online at SABR.org/convention!

SABR 43 was held July 31-August 4 at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, just blocks from City Hall, Independence Hall, the Reading Terminal Market and many other Philadelphia landmarks.

Audio has been posted online for the SABR 43 featured panels. To listen, click on a link below:

We’ll post more stories, photos and clips online next week. For complete coverage of SABR 43, visit SABR.org/convention.

SABR Diamond Report: August 2013

Editor’s note: This is the prepared text of Vince Gennaro’s President’s Report from the SABR 43 Annual Business Meeting on August 1 in Philadelphia. The Diamond Report is a series of monthly messages, written by SABR President Vince Gennaro and Executive Director Marc Appleman, to keep SABR members better informed about the Society’s direction and progress. The Diamond Report archives are collected at SABR.org/diamondreport. 

By Vince Gennaro
August 1, 2013

Every leadership challenge begins with the question, “Who are we?”

Knowing “who we are” is a pre-requisite to leading us forward. In the simplest terms, our future course emanates from a combination of our identity — who we are — and adapts that identity to the ever-changing environment around us. The two together define “who we want to become.”

At our core, SABR’s identity can be summed up in two words: research and community.

Our research is all about uncovering, documenting, dissecting and analyzing the past, present and future of baseball.

Our interests are diverse. Our sandbox spans four centuries, the 18th to the 21st. The topics range from the eternal search for the true origins of the game, to correcting the historical record for Lou Gehrig’s RBI total in 1928, to developing predictive models of how Mike Trout’s skills will age over the next 20 years, and everything in between.

While there may appear to be little overlap in these examples, there is unmistakably a common theme — they expand our insights and contribute to the body of knowledge of the great game of baseball, for which we all share a passion.

This passion for baseball — as a game, as a sport, and as an American institution — is the foundation of our “community.” The opportunity to share our experiences, our passion and our baseball knowledge with like-minded people is what draws us together.

So with a strong sense of who we are, a lot of our work over the last couple of years — mine, Marc Appleman’s and the Board’s — has been adapting to our changing environment.

To continue reading the full August 2013 Diamond Report, click here.

Download your free copy of The National Pastime: From Swampoodle to South Philly

The National Pastime, SABR’s annual convention journal, is now larger than ever — and we’re also making it available as a free e-book for your computer or e-reading device.

The 2013 TNP, From Swampoodle to South Philly, edited by Morris Levin, tells a comprehensive story of baseball in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley — the site of SABR 43. SABR’s Connie Mack Chapter received well over 50 submissions in response to the call for papers, in addition to suggestions for reprints. The full electronic edition, which you can download here in PDF, EPUB (iPad/Nook) or Kindle formats, is over 160,000 words reflecting the strength and scope of the articles received.

You can read articles from the The National Pastime online by clicking on the link below:

http://sabr.org/research/2013-national-pastime

Starting this year, the print edition of the TNP — which does not include the extra articles in the expanded e-edition — is being offered as a souvenir to SABR members attending the annual convention as part of our expanded Publications program led by editor Cecilia Tan. By publishing larger versions of the TNP online and in e-book format, more SABR members will have a chance to have their work published and SABR members will have the opportunity to read more top-level articles every summer.

Since 2009, The National Pastime has served as SABR’s convention-focused publication. Published annually, this research journal provides in-depth articles focused on the respective geographic region where the national convention is taking place in a given year.

For more coverage of SABR 43, visit SABR.org/convention.

Join us Saturday in Pittsburgh to honor Negro Leaguer Ted Page with a new grave marker

The public is invited to a grave marker dedication that will be held on Saturday, August 17 at Allegheny Cemetery in Pittsburgh in honor of Negro Leagues baseball player Theodore Page.

“Terrible Ted” played on 12 teams in the Negro Leagues during his 14-season career. A solid hitter and tough competitor, it has been said that Page “could beat you at the plate, on the bases or in the field.” As one of the fastest, most feared and intense base runners in the Negro Leagues, he played for two of the greatest teams of all time: the 1931 Homestead Grays and the 1932-34 Pittsburgh Crawfords.

After an injury forced his retirement in 1935, he eventually became an owner of Hillview Lanes and later a partner in Meadow Lanes in Pittsburgh. For years, he wrote a bowling column for the Pittsburgh Courier. He later worked as a public relations consultant for the Gulf Oil Corporation. Page was inducted to the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 1977. Retired, he was brutally beaten to death by a handyman in his home, at age 81, in 1984. He was interred at Allegheny Cemetery in an unmarked location — not far from Hall of Famer Josh Gibson’s final resting place in the same cemetery. In 1975, Page and Pedrin “Pete” Zorrilla located Gibson’s unmarked burial plot at Allegheny Cemetery and, with help from Pirates star Willie Stargell and baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, purchased a red granite headstone that reads “Josh Gibson, 1911-1947, Legendary Baseball Player.” 

Since 2004, the Negro Leagues Grave Marker Project has worked to identify the graves of Negro Leagues Baseball players, and raise funds to place markers on those discovered unmarked. As a section of the Negro Leagues Committee of the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR), this marker is the fourth placed in the Pittsburgh area.

Attendees should gather at 10:30 a.m. on August 17 at the Allegheny Cemetery office, 4734 Butler Street in Pittsburgh, and will be directed to Page’s grave by cemetery staff.

Any questions can be directed to project leader Jeremy L. Krock. For more information on the Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marker Project, visit LarryLester42.com.

To make a tax-deductible donation to help the Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marker Project, click here.

Negro Leagues players, historians meet with President Obama at White House

SABR members Larry Lester and Larry Hogan were among a group of Negro Leagues historians and players who attended a meet-and-greet with President Barack Obama on Monday, August 5 at the White House in Washington, D.C.

The event was led by organizer Andrea McCoy-Carty of the Judy Johnson Memorial Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Wilmington, Delaware.

Lester is the co-chair of SABR’s Negro Leagues Committee and the author or editor of many articles and books about the Negro Leagues, including: SABR’s The Negro Leagues Book; Black Baseball’s National Showcase: The East-West All-Star Game, 1933-1953; the Black Baseball series for Arcadia Publishing (Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Chicago and Detroit); Baseball’s First Colored World Series; and Rube Foster In His Time.    

The players invited include: Mrs. Leon Day, Minnie Forbes (owner), Mamie Johnson, Cliff Layton, Larry LeGrande, Carl Long, Minnie Minoso, James “Red” Moore, Jim Robinson, Bob Scott, Pedro Sierra, Mrs. Bert Simmons and Ron Teasley.

To learn more about the SABR Negro Leagues Research Committee, click here.

7 new biographies published by the SABR BioProject

Seven new biographies were posted as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project, which brings us to a total of 2,532 published biographies. Here are the new bios:

All new biographies can be found here: http://sabr.org/bioproj/recent

You can find the SABR BioProject at SABR.org/BioProject.

Bios on more than just ballplayers: The ambitious goal of the SABR Baseball Biography Project is to publish a full-life biography of every major league player in history. But SABR members write about a lot more than just ballplayers. In addition, we have pages for Ballparks, Broadcasters, Executives, Managers, Scouts, Spouses, Umpires and a lot more on the BioProject website. You can browse all of these categories at http://sabr.org/bioproj/browse. So if you’ve ever thought, “Hey, that person (or ballpark) should get the full BioProject treatment” — write the story and we’ll publish it!

Check out the Baseball Ballparks Project: The SABR Baseball Biography Project has been accepting/publishing “biographies” of Ballparks for a few years, and we have 39 of them on our website at http://sabr.org/bioproj/parks. However, this thing just got real. Ballparks are now its very own PROJECT — the Baseball Ballparks Project, our first official spin-off. The project leader is Scott Ferkovich, who is now in charge of recruiting ballparks articles and publicizing them. Learn more by clicking here.

Get involved! If you’d like to help contribute to the SABR BioProject, visit our BioProject Resources page or read the FAQs section to get started. We’re also looking to expand the BioProject to include all “encyclopedic” articles on baseball-related subjects from past SABR publications or committee newsletters. If you come across an article you think should be included in the SABR “baseball repository” at the BioProject, send a copy or link to markarmour04@gmail.com or jpomrenke@sabr.org.

In Memoriam: Hugh E. Humphreys

We are sad to report the passing of Hugh E. Humphreys, 69, of Aurora, Colorado. He was a SABR member since 1997 with interests in historical box scores, baseball simulation games, and the Negro Leagues.

He was the beloved husband of Diane Rich, and is also survived by sisters Marianne Cherry (George) and Dorothy Nobis; brother Wayne Humphreys; and his Great Dane, Lola.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, August 12, 2013, at Ft. Logan, North Gate Staging Area A.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Aurora Animal Shelter or a charity of your choice.

ICYMI: Highlights from last week’s This Week in SABR

We’ve heard your feedback: Some of you have said you look forward to “This Week in SABR” every Friday, but sometimes there are just too many compelling articles and announcements to read every week. We’re not complaining — hey, keep up the great work! — but we know the feeling. So in an effort to make the length of this newsletter more manageable to read, we’ll summarize some of the repeating/recurring announcements in a special “In Case You Missed It (ICYMI)” section of “This Week in SABR”.

Here are some major headlines from recent weeks that we don’t want you to miss:

All previous editions of This Week in SABR can be found here: http://sabr.org/content/this-week-in-sabr-archives.

Welcome, new members!

We’d like to welcome all of our new SABR members who have joined this week. You can find all Members-Only resources at members.sabr.org and the New Member Handbook can be downloaded here. 

Please give these new members a warm welcome and help them make the most of their membership by giving them the opportunity to get involved in their local chapter or a research committee.

Name Hometown     Name Hometown
Dave Bissnette Pittsford, NY     Jeremy Hodges Alexandria, VA
Mark Camps Albany, CA     Eric Honsey Centennial, CO
Margaret Clark Travelers Rest, SC     Jordan Makarius Hudson, OH
Matthew Garrett Dubuque, IA     Mark Manuel Kenai, AK
Matthew Gazda Ewing, NJ     Johnny Palmer Los Angeles, CA
Kay Gillis Kentfield, CA     Michele Pepe Naples, ITA
Tom Hildebrandt Chagrin Falls, OH     Roger Slack Puyallup, WA
Jeffrey Hodge Columbus, OH     Tracy Williams Lancaster, PA

 

Research committee newsletters

There were no new SABR research committee newsletters published this week.

Find all SABR research committee newsletters at SABR.org/research.

Chapter meeting news

Here are the new chapter meeting recaps published this week:

Visit SABR.org/chapters for more information on SABR regional chapters.

SABR Events Calendar

Here is a list of upcoming SABR events:

All SABR meetings and events are open to the public. Feel free to bring a baseball-loving friend … and make many new ones! Check out the SABR Events Calendar at SABR.org/events.

Around the Web

Here are some recent articles published by and about SABR members:

Read these articles and more at SABR.org/latest.

This Week in SABR is compiled by Jacob Pomrenke, and sent out to all SABR members on Fridays. All previous editions of This Week in SABR can be found here: http://sabr.org/content/this-week-in-sabr-archives. If you would like us to include an upcoming event, article or any other information in “This Week in SABR”, e-mail jpomrenke@sabr.org.

Find exclusive Members’ Only resources and information here: http://members.sabr.org

Did you know you can renew your membership at any time? 1- and 3-year SABR memberships are available by clicking “Renew” at http://members.sabr.org. Please also consider a donation to SABR to support baseball research at SABR.org/donate.

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Replying to this e-mail goes to an undeliverable address. If you would like to contact the SABR office, please visit: http://sabr.org/about/contact-sabr


Originally published: August 16, 2013. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.

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