Larry Dierker Chapter meeting recap – 2/16/2026
Thirty-three chapter members and guests of the Larry Dierker Chapter in Houston gathered on February 16, 2026, at the Spaghetti Western Italian Restaurant and on Zoom for the monthly chapter meeting. For those who were not able to attend the meeting, the video can be found on the chapter’s YouTube page here: https://youtu.be/-
Meeting Recap
Thanks to chapter secretary Gloria Rubac for the meeting notes below.
Chapter president Joe Thompson opened the meeting with announcements:
• Three new members this month for our chapter.
• The January meeting’s guest speaker was Kevin Hurd, who spoke about no-hitters. Hurd wrote a two-volume book called From Randy Johnson to Dallas Braden: No-hitters Beyond The Box Score.
• Both Cavan Biggio and Joey Loperfido were just signed by the Astros. Our group seemed to welcome them both and was hopeful that Biggio, who signed a minor league contract but was invited to spring training, would do well.
• We tabled at Fan Fest and sold books and gave away baseball cards. And, folks got to meet Jose Cruz!
• SABR Day was held at Jax restaurant on Jan. 24. Bailey and Cy presented via Zoom – AI vs Cy. Bailey, whose family is from Texas, is now a college student at the University of Wisconsin – Madison and she came to our meeting a couple of years ago and made a presentation. Also, several people brought things from their baseball life. Bob brought his first glove!
• On Feb. 15, Joe and Mike tabled at Bayou Bend Family Day. Around 500 people attended. April 19 is the next Family Day and they may go again.
• Our Vice President, Herb Whalley, explained our annual Astros Win Contest. The deadline is 3 pm on Astros Opening Day, March 26. Those interested in entering the contest need to send their prediction of how many wins the Astros will have this year, plus how many wins pitchers Hunter Brown, Tatsuya Imai, and new Detroit Tigers pitcher Framber Valdez will have this season.
• Joe reminded everyone to register for the next SABR conference. SABR 54 will be in Cleveland at the Downtown Hilton from July 29—Aug. 2.
• Patrick Petty, the Chapter Communications Director, spoke about our annual Fantasy Baseball League.
• Joe mentioned the upcoming World Baseball Classic and asked everyone who they thought would win.
• Joe spoke about an article that talked about how the Astros are rebuilding—finally! (https://www.patreon.com/
GUEST SPEAKER: Louis Schiff
Schiff is a retired Florida judge and has edited a book, along with Robert M. Jarvis, called Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Both editors are law professors. Schiff is on X @baseballandlawand on Bluesky: baseballandlaw.bluesky. The book has a chapter on all 11 lawyers, beginning in the order of their induction. It focuses on their law careers more than their roles in baseball.
There are 11 attorneys in the HOF: three players (Hughie Jennings, Jim O’Rourke, Monte Ward), two managers (Miller Huggins, Tony La Russa), three executives (Larry MacPhail, Walter O’Malley, Branch Rickey), and three commissioners (Happy Chandler, Bowie Kuhn, Kenesaw Mountain Landis). Each one has a chapter in the book. This book is thoroughly researched and has many footnotes!
Chapter Trivia Contest
Mark Wernick was the trivia winner for February.