This Week in SABR: April 14, 2023
Welcome to “This Week in SABR” on Friday, April 14, 2023.
Click here to view this newsletter on the web.
2023 Board of Directors election begins next week
SABR 51 updates: AAGPBL panel, Last Comiskey film, Nancy Faust
2023 SABR Baseball Research Award winners announced
Second course in SABR Analytics Certification program now available
Watch a replay of Ballpark Figures with Clinton Yates
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SABR 51: AAGPBL panel, Last Comiskey film screening, Nancy Faust
We’re excited to announce more featured speakers for SABR’s 51st annual convention on July 5-9, 2023, at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago:
- Longtime MLB executive and SABR Director Dan Evans and filmmaker Matt Flesch will host a Q&A and film screening of Last Comiskey, a new documentary on the Chicago White Sox’ final season at Comiskey Park in 1990.
- A panel on the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League will include former player and women’s baseball ambassador Maybelle Blair, with Dr. Kat Williams of the International Women’s Baseball Center, and Kristie Erickson of The History Museum in South Bend.
- Beloved ballpark organist Nancy Faust will provide entertainment during the SABR 51 Welcome Reception on Wednesday, July 5.
The early-bird discount ends soon on May 5, so sign up today at SABR.org/convention to take advantage of the absolute best pricing on our registration packages!
Visit SABR.org/convention to learn more.
2023 SABR Baseball Research Award winners announced
The 2023 SABR Baseball Research Awards, which honor outstanding research projects completed during the preceding calendar year that have significantly expanded our knowledge or understanding of baseball, have been awarded to:
- Robert K. Fitts, Bill Nowlin, and James Forr, Nichibei Yakyu: US Tours of Japan, 1907-1958, Volume 1 (SABR)
- Judith R. Hiltner and James R. Walker, Red Barber: The Life and Legacy of a Broadcasting Legend (University of Nebraska Press)
- Justin Mckinney, Baseball’s Union Association: The Short, Strange Life of a 19th-Century Major League (McFarland & Co.)
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
Second course in SABR Analytics Certification program now available
In 2022, we launched the SABR Analytics Certification program, an online, on-demand curriculum offering professional development and learning opportunities for those interested in elevating their skills and knowledge relating to baseball analytics.
The second course in the program, Level Two – Advanced Analytics in Baseball, is now available!
SABR members save $55 on both available courses (and future courses), so we hope you’ll check out these exciting opportunities at sabr.org/analytics/certification.
Watch a replay of Ballpark Figures with Clinton Yates
SABR’s Ballpark Figures is a monthly interview series hosted by award-winning writer Shakeia Taylor. On Thursday, April 6, our guest was SABR member Clinton Yates, a columnist, TV commentator, and host for ESPN since 2016.
To learn more, visit SABR.org/ballpark-figures.
Early registration now open for Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference in Detroit
Early registration is now open for SABR’s annual Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference, which will be held on July 20-23, 2023, at the St. Regis Hotel in Detroit, Michigan. All baseball fans are welcome to attend.
Registration and hotel information is available below.
- Registration: Click here to register online for the 2023 Malloy Conference.
- Information Packet: Click here to download a full information packet, including schedule and sponsor information, for the 2023 Malloy Conference.
- Contact: For questions, email Leslie Heaphy.
Visit SABR.org/malloy to learn more about our annual School Library Grants, High School Essay Contest, and Art Contest.
Boyd, Harris selected as winners of 2023 SABR Jefferson Burdick Award
Brendan C. Boyd and Fred C. Harris, co-authors of The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book, were selected as the winners of the 2023 Jefferson Burdick Award, which honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the baseball card hobby, by SABR’s Baseball Cards Research Committee.
Click here to read more about Boyd and Harris at the SABR Baseball Cards Blog.
Download the 2023 Board of Directors Election Guide
SABR members, please pay attention to the e-mail address that you have on file with SABR; you will receive a message from tellers@sabr.org on Wednesday, April 19 with a link to vote online in the 2023 SABR Board of Directors election. The poll will close at 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time on Tuesday, May 2. The only way to vote online is through the link you will receive by e-mail. All e-mails will come from the address tellers@sabr.org.
You will find three items on the 2023 election ballot: the election of the SABR President, Treasurer, and three (3) Directors positions. To account for the expansion of the Board from eight to ten members in 2023, and to ensure that two Directors’ terms expire each year, the Director elected with the fewest votes in 2023 shall serve a one-year term, and in 2024 that seat shall again be opened for election to a three-year term.
Last call: Apply now for SABR Convention, Negro Leagues student scholarships
With generous funding from The Anthony A. Yoseloff Foundation, Inc., SABR will award up to four scholarships to high school and college students who wish to attend the SABR 51 convention on July 5-9, 2023, in Chicago. This scholarship will pay for all registration fees and expenses associated with the conference. Deadline to apply: April 21, 2023. Click here to learn more.
SABR’s Negro Leagues Committee awards $1,000 scholarships to high school seniors in its annual Thomas R. Garrett Scholarship essay contest. Students must write a 1,200-word essay answering a question related to one of the Negro League figures who are the namesakes of the scholarships. Deadline to apply: April 15, 2023. Click here to learn more.
Visit SABR.org/scholarships to learn more about student scholarship opportunities.
Get involved: BioProject, Games Project seeking editors, fact-checkers
The BioProject and Games Project committees are seeking more SABR members to help as volunteer editors, fact-checkers, vetters, and peer reviewers. If you are interested in helping out in an editing role, please contact BioProject lead editor Rory Costello or Games Project director John Fredland.
Helping out behind the scenes is an important way to improve our stories and get them ready for publication online and in SABR’s upcoming books and website series. We have a talented and experienced team of editors already in place, and new faces are always welcome. Looking at other authors’ stories from an editing perspective can also help make your own writing better.
Visit SABR.org/writing-opportunities to learn more about ongoing projects and ways to get involved.
Baseball fans, tune in this season to SABRcast with Rob Neyer, a weekly podcast hosted by award-winning author and longtime SABR member Rob Neyer. Episode #209 on Monday, April 10 featured Ben Jedlovec, Senior Director, Baseball Data Platform Product at Major League Baseball; he also developed the new Level Two course in SABR’s Analytics Certification program and serves on the SABR Defensive Index committee. Visit SABR.org/sabrcast to listen to the full episode or subscribe to SABRcast on your favorite podcast networks.
Find new updates to the SABR Research Collection below, including the Baseball Biography Project, Games Project, and Oral History Collection.
3 new stories published at the SABR BioProject
- Eddie Boyle, by David E. Boyle
- Dan Ford, by Malcolm Allen
- Sam Horn, by Luis A. Blandón Jr.
Visit SABR.org/bioproject to learn more about the SABR BioProject or to get involved.
17 new stories published at the SABR Games Project
- July 19, 1909: Neal Ball’s unassisted triple play and homer propel Cy Young to win over former team, by Bill Marston
- September 24, 1920: Duster Mails outduels Red Faber as Cleveland increases lead amid fix rumors, by Joseph Wancho
- September 14, 1958: Mazeroski breaks team home run mark; Friend wins 21st as Pirates double their pleasure over Cubs, by Larry DeFillipo
- July 16, 1969: Willie Stargell’s 495-foot blast triggers Pirates’ comeback, christens ‘La Piscine de Willie’, by Gary Belleville
- April 5, 1974: Yaz, Yount, sloppiness, and streaker make Opening Day memorable in Milwaukee, by Kurt Blumenau
- September 28, 1984: Cardinals’ Joaquín Andújar wins 20th game and Bruce Sutter ties single-season saves record, by Tom Schott
- April 6, 1992: Blue Jays newcomers deliver on Opening Day, by Brian Frank
- August 13, 1992: Doug Linton provides timely lift in first major-league start, by Joel Rippel
- September 6, 1992: An insignificant game of significance: Blue Jays pull ahead in AL East race, by F. Timothy Deeth (first-time author)
- October 3, 1992: Blue Jays claim second consecutive AL East title, by Frederick C. Bush
- October 14, 1992: Blue Jays advance to Canada’s first World Series, by Brian Frank
- October 18, 1992: Ed Sprague’s blow squares World Series after Canadian flag snafu, by Mark S. Sternman
- October 20, 1992: Blue Jays win first World Series game played in Canada, by Tim Hannan (first-time author)
- October 21, 1992: Key locks the door, Blue Jays one win away from championship, by David Matchett
- June 5, 1997: Alex Rodriguez hits for million-dollar cycle, by Mike Huber
- June 20, 2003: Miguel Cabrera hits walk-off home run for Marlins in his major-league debut, by Tim Odzer
- April 7, 2013: Will Middlebrooks hits 3 home runs as Red Sox blank Blue Jays, by Bill Nowlin
Visit SABR.org/gamesproject to learn more about the SABR Games Project or to get involved.
Read all biographies from 1992 Toronto Blue Jays book
In 2022, the SABR Digital Library published We Are, We Can, We Will: The 1992 World Champion Toronto Blue Jays, edited by Adrian Fung and Bill Nowlin, the first World Series-winning club based outside the United States and the first from Canada. The team included future Hall of Famers Dave Winfield, Jack Morris, and Roberto Alomar, along with manager Cito Gaston, Hall of Fame general manager Pat Gillick, and legendary radio broadcaster Tom Cheek.
All of the biographies from the 1992 Blue Jays book can now be read online at the SABR BioProject. Game stories from the book are also available online at the SABR Games Project.
Click here to download the e-book or purchase the paperback edition at SABR.org.
Yankee Stadium 1923-2008: America’s First Modern Ballpark
Edited by Tara Krieger and Bill Nowlin
Visit SABR.org to download any SABR Digital Library e-book for free or save 50% off the paperback edition.
Here are some SABR headlines from recent weeks that we don’t want you to miss:
- 10,000 images from SABR-Rucker Archive added to Research Collection
- SABR members approve By-Laws changes in special election
- The SABR Bookshelf: Spring 2023
- Andy Andres honored with 2023 SABR Analytics Conference Lifetime Achievement Award
- Baumann, Clemens, Petriello, Carleton win 2023 SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards
- Steve Gietschier, Mark Rucker, Robert Whiting selected as 2023 Henry Chadwick Award recipients
- Submissions open for fourth edition of Turnstyle: The SABR Journal of Baseball Arts
- Learn more about the recipients of 2023 SABR Local Grants
- Check out SABR Day highlights, photos, and videos
- SABR donates archives of founder Bob Davids to Library of Congress
- New Spanish-language edition of Roberto Clemente book available
- Watch a preview of the Landmarks Committee’s new SABR Baseball Map
- Get a gift for baseball fan in your life with the SABR Store @ CafePress
- All e-books in SABR Digital Library available for free to members
Please give a warm welcome to all new SABR members who joined this week! View more Members-Only resources at members.sabr.org or click here to download the Membership Handbook. Find contact information for any SABR member in the online Membership Directory.
| Name | Hometown | Name | Hometown | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gene Bowker | Greer, SC | Thomas Mazza | Greensboro, NC | ||
| Logan Brown | Tempe, AZ | Brian McNeil | Glendale, AZ | ||
| Aaron Brush | Excelsior, MN | Jeffrey Nolin | Charlotte, NC | ||
| Joey Elledge | Lexington, SC | Robert Northcutt | Long Beach, CA | ||
| David Everman | Greenville, SC | Richard Panther | Naples, FL | ||
| Kevin Flynn | Myrtle Beach, SC | Billy Quinlan | Knoxville, TN | ||
| Joshua Goldberg | Hoboken, NJ | John Rahne | Herminie, PA | ||
| Steven Gonyea | Rome, GA | Thomas Schalata | Stevens, PA | ||
| Richard Guajardo | Duarte, CA | Dan Strasheim | Sidney, MT | ||
| Mike Haim | Buffalo, NY | Carl Thoresen | Pittsburgh, PA | ||
| Fred Harris | Arlington, MA | Frankie Warren | Orinda, CA | ||
| Robert Jones | Sewell, NJ | Gordon Warren | Alpharetta, GA | ||
| Matt Judd | Siren, WI | John Winkler | Mason, OH | ||
| Colin Lacy | Statesboro, GA |
- Events Calendar: Find complete details of all SABR events
- Video Replays: This week, we heard from former MLB umpire Ted Barrett; professor Mary Hums (“Management of Professional Baseball”); and Bob Bailey (“A Tale of Two Seasons: 1889-1890 Louisville Baseball”). Click here to view more video replays of virtual SABR events.
Upcoming Virtual Meetings
- April 15: Hanlan’s Point (ON) Chapter meeting with Allan Simpson (11:00 a.m. EDT)
- April 15: Josh Gibson Foundation: Lisa Alexander (12:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 15: Sweet Lou Johnson Lexington (KY) Chapter meeting with Dan Schlossberg (1:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 17: Northern New England Chapter meeting with Alan Nathan (7:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 17: Larry Dierker (TX) Chapter meeting with Justin Mckinney (7:00 p.m. CDT)
- April 18: Games and Simulations Committee meeting (8:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 20: Boston Chapter meeting with Lee Lowenfish (8:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 22: Hank Gowdy Columbus (OH) Chapter book club meeting (9:30 a.m. EDT)
- April 22: Schott-Pelican (LA) Chapter meeting with Dan Schlossberg (10:00 a.m. CDT)
- April 22: Smoky Joe Wood (CT) Chapter meeting (12:00 p.m. EDT)
- April 22: South Florida Chapter meeting with Tim Hagerty (6:30 p.m. EDT)
Upcoming In-Person Meetings
- April 15: Babe ‘n’ Bob Chapter Breakfast (Edgewater, MD)
- April 15: Halsey Hall Chapter spring meeting (Minneapolis, MN)
- April 15: Central Florida Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Daytona Beach, FL)
- April 15-16: SABR Board of Directors meeting (Chicago, IL)
- April 16: Rogers Hornsby Chapter meeting (Austin, TX)
- April 18: Bob Davids Chapter Maryland Hot Stove Dinner (Silver Spring, MD)
- April 19: Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter meeting (Baltimore, MD)
- April 20: Magnolia Chapter “Third Thursday” meeting (Sandy Springs, GA)
- April 20: Selig Sports Law and Business Speaker Series (Phoenix, AZ)
- April 22: Williamsport Sebring-Stovey Chapter meeting (Williamsport, PA)
- April 22: Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Baltimore, MD)
To add your SABR event to our calendar listings, please contact Jacob Pomrenke.
- Baseball Cards: Brendan C. Boyd, Fred C. Harris selected as winners of 2023 SABR Jefferson Burdick Award
Sign up for SABR research committee announcements at SABR.org/research/committees.
- Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter: Spring 2023 newsletter (Baltimore, MD)
- Buck O’Neil/North Florida Chapter: April 5 meeting recap (Tallahassee, FL)
- Emil Rothe Chicago Chapter: April 2023 newsletter (Chicago, IL)
Sign up for SABR chapter announcements at SABR.org/chapters.
Click here to learn more about SABR chartered communities.
Here are some recent articles published by and about SABR members:
- Marella Porter: Researchers find lost grave of Negro Leagues baseball great Newt Allen (WKRC-TV)
- Brian Murphy: Retrosheet’s mission to unearth baseball history (MLB.com)
- David Waldstein: Jackie Robinson’s Legacy Stretches Beyond the Baseball Field (New York Times)
- Matt Monagan: Rays now chasing a guy named Buttercup and 139 years of history (MLB.com)
- Emma Baccellieri: Five Numbers That Explain the Rays’ Record-Tying 13–0 Start (Sports Illustrated)
- Lindsey Adler/Andrew Beaton: The New Baseball Rule That Has Turned Pickoff Moves Into Game Theory (Wall Street Journal)
- Tyler Kepner: A New(ish) Pitch on the Block (New York Times)
- Hannah Keyser: How Nelson Cruz is making the Padres better (Yahoo! Sports)
- Eno Sarris: Seven pitchers with new, improved fastballs that stand out from the pack (The Athletic)
- Robert Arthur: MLB’s Crackdown Might Be Working: Spin Is Down (Baseball Prospectus)
- Derrick Goold: Inside the batting cage with Jordan Walker as he prepares to make history (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
- Jayson Stark: Marveling at the Trash Pandas’ no-hitter loss and the Rays’ winning streak (The Athletic)
- Michael Baumann: We’ve Inspected Rocket City Inside and Outside. No Gods or Angels Were Found. (FanGraphs)
- Evan Drellich: The future of MLB TV blackouts: Is an all-30 team streaming service possible? (The Athletic)
- Russell A. Carleton: Putting Things In Context (Baseball Prospectus)
- Gordon Edes: Daniel Bard has a story of ‘hope’ to tell you (Bally Sports)
- Rob Mains: The Bunting Renaissance That Wasn’t (Baseball Prospectus)
- Jay Jaffe: Ronald Acuña Jr.’s Bat Is Nearly All the Way Back, but the Rest of His Game Lags (FanGraphs)
- Mark Simon: Hit a Home Run, Rob a Home Run (ACTA Sports)
- David Laurila: Carlos Santana and Andrew McCutchen Have Played a Lot of Games (FanGraphs)
- Zach Clark: How did the ‘Old English D’ go beyond a baseball cap to become the symbol of Detroit Pride? (WWJ Radio)
- Sal Maiorana: Remembered for a World Series moment at 3 years old, Darren Baker now trying to star as a Red Wing (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)
- Tom Dart: Climate crisis causing more home runs in baseball, study suggests (The Guardian)
- Benjamin Hochman: The best batting year in STL history wasn’t by a Cardinal. Meet Oscar Charleston. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
- John Thorn: Pioneers: William Edward White (Our Game)
- Jack Ahern: Lifelong Love of Baseball Yields New Book on the Art of Scouting (Our Town)
- Charlie Bevis: 100th anniversary of modern night baseball in 2023 (Bevis Baseball Research)
- Geoff Giordano: Tabletop Baseball Takes Over the Hall of Fame with APBA Tournament in Cooperstown (SABR Baseball Gaming)
- Michael Willency: Matsui Home Run Cards- A Japanese Tribute to a baseball Hero (SABR Baseball Cards Committee)
Please note: Some articles may require a separate subscription to view online. SABR does not endorse, and is not responsible or liable for, any content that appears on a third-party website.
This Week in SABR is compiled by Jacob Pomrenke. 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. To find past editions of TWIS, click here.
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Originally published: April 14, 2023. Last Updated: April 14, 2023.