Emil Rothe Chapter meeting recap – 12/1/2012
23 members and friends of the Emil Rothe (Chicago) Chapter attended the fall meeting on December 1, 2012, at the Eisenhower Library in Harwood Heights, Illinois.
Steve Steinberg, co-author of the Seymour Medal-winning book 1921, led off with a fine presentation on a unique moment in late 1916 when Giants manager John McGraw walked out on his team.
Harry Pavlidis, founder of Pitch Info LLC, discussed in depth how Pitch F/X data is created, the difficulties in calibrating it and the uses for it.
After a short break, the meeting stepped back in time as Halsey Hall (Minneapolis) Chapter member Bob Tholkes introduced the audience to the Sunday Mercury and its letters section. Just as the game of base ball was exploding in popularity, letters were being sent in to the newspaper which sought clarification about the interpretation of rules.
Bruce Allardice wrapped up the meeting with a look at how and where baseball was being played during the Civil War and took a special look at what was taking place in the Chicago area.
The chapter’s next meeting will be held jointly with the Ken Keltner (Milwaukee) Chapter on Saturday January 26, 2013 (SABR Day) at the Brat Stop in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Visit SABR.org/SABRday for more information.
— Richard Smiley