Manes: Glen Rosenbaum never got to the big leagues, but left a storied career
From Jeff Manes at the Chicago Tribune on December 18, 2015:
Glen Rosenbaum, 79, was married to his beloved Shirley for 57 years before her passing about 18 months ago. Today, he lives in Union Mills with Daisy, a miniature pinscher.
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Have you lived in Union Mills all your life?
“Yeah, I was raised right across the field over there,” he said.
You must have played baseball for Union Mills High.
“Oh, yeah. We played our baseball in the fall when school started. We had beautiful weather. We never had to play those rainy, snowy spring games in the ice cold.”
Rivals?
“LaCrosse and Hanna. We also butted heads with Westville. In my four years playing baseball at Union Mills, we only lost one game.”
Post-high school?
“I played for the LaPorte Cubs. It was a Sunday beer league. Elkhart, South Bend, Michigan City and Niles, Mich., all had teams. LaPorte had two teams. I pitched two games for the LaPorte Cubs. After the second game, the umpire called me aside and asked if I ever thought about playing pro ball. I told him I hadn’t. He asked me if I cared if he had a scout come and see me pitch.”
And?
“In our next game against Elkhart, I had a guy by the name of Johnny Mostil tap me on the shoulder in about the fourth inning. He gave me his card and said to be at Comiskey Park that Tuesday night. That was in 1954.”
I’ve read that in his day, Johnny Mostil was quite a center fielder for the Sox.
“Yes, he was. The next day, I was cultivating corn in the muck ground when I saw Dad’s pickup comin’ down the lane. Johnny Mostil and Dad got out of the pickup. Johnny was decked out in a beautiful suit and nice dress shoes. He walked up to the tractor and sunk into that muck.”
Read the full article here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/lifestyles/ct-ptb-manes-with-glen-rosenbaum-st-1220-20151218-story.html
Originally published: December 21, 2015. Last Updated: December 21, 2015.