Practice In Paradise: The 1946 San Francisco Seals in Hawaii

Most Mainlanders may not realize that the Hawaiian Islands are home or haven to large numbers of seals, especially those from the Monk family, often seen resting on secluded beaches. In the spring of 1946, this population was increased by the arrival of over 40 quite different Seals—the San Francisco, ball-playing variety.

Club owners Charles Graham and Paul Fagan, known for first-class management, including major league-level salaries, air travel, and other amenities, had made the intriguing decision to hold spring training in Honolulu. Fagan was almost certainly the driving force behind the adventure; he had a home and various business interests in the Islands, which at the time were a United States Territory.

Following the arrival of the owners just after the middle of February, the players began to appear. individually and in small groups, and by March 1, Manager Lefty O’Doul had set up shop in the old Honolulu Stadium. After several days of fundamentals and loosening up, O’Doul split the team into two groups, the Whites and the Maroons, and a series of intrasquad games began.

The accessible and affable O’Doul was immediately popular with the fans and sports reporters who attended the games and workouts. He wore flower leis on the field, chatted with anyone, umpired the bases, encouraged autograph sessions, and occasionally even set aside his beloved green outfits in favor of florid “aloha shirts.” During one batting practice session, he wandered about, cradling a large, ripe pineapple.

Lefty endeared himself even further to the local folks when he told a reporter, “I’ve never seen a club round into shape so fast in a week.” He probably caused a stir among Chambers of Commerce back home when he went on to say, “This place has it all over California for training.”

Several players jumped off to quick starts at the plate. Future two-time American League batting champion Ferris Fain and slugger Sal Taormina rattled the fences and seats for the Maroons. Third baseman-outfielder Don White socked homers for the Whites, aided by slap-hitting infielder Del Young. Shortstop Roy Nicely of the Maroons was also admired. The hitting was potent enough to cause O’Doul to wonder out loud if the supply of balls, some of which came from nearby downsizing military bases, was a bit too lively.

The pitchers were behind at the beginning, but there were some very good arms to see. Al Lien was a workhorse, young southpaw Bill Werle showed his big league potential, old Cliff Melton was solid. and 25-year-old righthander Larry Jansen was on the threshold of a 30-win season.

The Seals took their show to other fields as well; 3,500 assembled at Navy-Marine Furlong Field, near Pearl Harbor, for a double-header. Other games were played on high school and community park diamonds. The competition was almost always followed by fanfare, food and fun. The Seals were a big deal in a smaller city on an island without significant professional baseball. Little kids wanted to touch them, adults wanted to talk and to entertain them, but those players certainly gave as much as they got. There were some interesting injuries. Young hurler Frank Cvitanich came up with a sore arm from too much canoeing in off hours, and righthander Bob Chesnes was plopped into a hospital with a bad back. One day, San Francisco News beat writer Bucky Walter was hit in the face with a foul ball, which shattered his glasses and left a prominent bruise.

But those little setbacks were shrugged off; everyone was having a wonderful time, highlighted by celebration of O’Doul’s 49th birthday at a huge party at Trader Vic’s restaurant. Visiting writers enjoyed that bash, but were already far ahead of the field on the party circuit, hosting and being hosted at various watering holes and ethnic eateries.

For the rest of their stay, the Seals’ main tasks were to hone their skills for the season opener against the Seattle Rainiers on the 29th and to decide which players would be kept. “We have 40 fine Triple-A caliber people here,” Graham told the newspapers, “but only 25 can make the club.” If it were up to the fans in Honolulu, all 40, somehow, would be on the team.

Opposition was provided, over a set of 17 games, by an all-star squad of local amateurs and semipros, augmented by major leaguers who were still in the process of mustering out of World War II service. Among them were New York Giants power hitter Willard Marshall, Yankee pitcher Mel Queen, late-’30s spot starter “Boots” Poffenberger, and Cardinal first base prospect Vernal “Nippy” Jones. All except Poffenberger played in the big leagues in the season ahead, and Jones ended up in the World Series.

Although Marshall lit up the Seals’ staff (around .400 and 4 homers) and Queen and Poffenberger pitched well, the Bay Area visitors dominated, 11 games to six. As the series dwindled down to the last game or two, the Seals began to leave for the West Coast in small packs; post-war travel was still quite limited in scope and numbers.

And so Practice in Paradise ended, but it was a blessing, as O’Doul had suggested, because the Seals won the 1946 PCL pennant handily and drew over 670,000 at the gate—a minor league record at the time. The club took home a check for $15,000, surely much less than it spent, and hardly the kind of money which would tempt most owners to return. But Paul Fagan was not a conventional owner. He was wealthy, of course, yet also endowed with both vision and boldness.

All of this led him into another engagement, in the spring of 1947, at the tiny and picturesque town of Hana, on the east coast of the island of Maui. That remarkable island is now a primary international tourist destination, but 50 years ago it was a quiet plantation community. Fagan was developing a very upscale, hideaway hotel in little Hana, and he knew Seals spring training would maximize promotion and publicity. Business aside, however, an important influence was the fact that he simply loved the place.

In both years, but especially in 1946, the San Francisco Seals left a legacy of very good baseball and even better feelings. Their visits, coupled with the birth and growth of the football 49ers, created legions of Hawaiian fans very much devoted to the fortunes of teams from the City by the Bay.