This Week in SABR: August 1, 2025
Welcome to “This Week in SABR” on Friday, August 1, 2025.
Click here to view this newsletter on the web.
Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference begins next week in Louisville
SABR Digital Library: 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes
Join SABR on August 13 for Founders’ Day celebration
In Memoriam: Ryne Sandberg
Call for papers: 2026 SABR Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference
SABR MLB Team Employee Database updated through 2024
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1 week left to register for Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference
All baseball fans are welcome to attend the 2025 Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference. Full and single-day registration is available now at SABR.org/malloy.
- Register: Click here to register online for the 2025 Malloy Conference. Full registration is $195. Students: $75. Single-day registration is also available for $90 for Friday or Saturday. Extra tickets can be purchased for Thursday’s Education Forum at the Galt House, Thursday’s “meet and greet” reception at the Roots 101 African American Museum, Friday’s Louisville Bats baseball game at Slugger Field, or Saturday’s awards banquet at the Galt House. All of these sessions are included in the full registration package.
- Hotel: A special group rate at the Galt House Hotel of $159/night (plus tax) is available to registered convention attendees. To book your room, click here or call 502-589-5200. The Galt House Hotel is located at 140 N. 4th St., Louisville, KY 40202.
- Schedule: Click here to view the 2025 Malloy Conference schedule.
- Information Packet: Click here to download the Malloy Conference informational packet (PDF)
- Contact: For questions, email Leslie Heaphy at Lheaphy@kent.edu.
Visit SABR.org/malloy for more information or to register.
SABR Digital Library: From Setbacks to Success: The 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes
Add a new baseball book to your collection from the SABR Digital Library:
From Setbacks to Success: The 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes
Edited by Vince Guerrieri, Thomas Kern, and Bill Nowlin
Associate editors: Len Levin and Carl Riechers
ISBN (paperback): 978-1-960819-45-1, $24.95
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-960819-44-4, $9.99
8.5″ x 11″, 162 pages
From Setbacks to Success provides a detailed account of the 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes with biographies of the players and the team officials who led the team to its World Series triumph. Also included is a complete season timeline, articles about some standout games. the story of League Park and Cleveland Stadium (where the Buckeyes played), and an appreciation of the cultural context of the time. Until the emergence of the Buckeyes in 1942, no Negro League team formed in Cleveland survived more than a year. The high-water mark for the Buckeyes was undoubtedly 1945, when they won the Negro American League title and then, against all odds, defeated the perennial Negro National League champion Homestead Grays four games to none in the Negro League World Series. This history of the 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes is the eighth in a series of SABR books about the great Negro League teams of the first half of the twentieth century.
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
Join SABR on August 13 for inaugural Founders’ Day celebration
All baseball fans are invited to join SABR for our inaugural Founders’ Day celebration from 7:30-9:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, August 13. A panel discussion will be held on Zoom looking back at SABR history with Tom Hufford — a founding member of SABR — Mark Armour, Dick Cramer, and moderator Neal Traven. Hufford was selected as the winner of this year’s Bob Davids Award, SABR’s highest honor; Armour and Traven are also past recipients. Cramer and Armour have been honored with the Henry Chadwick Award.
A Founders’ Day Award presentation will recognize a SABR member with a record of longtime and meaningful service to a regional chapter or research committee.
SABR was founded in August 1971 at the National Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York, where 16 “statistorians” led by L. Robert Davids gathered to form a new organization dedicated to baseball research. Click here to learn more about SABR’s founding members.
In Memoriam: Ryne Sandberg
Not long after Ryne Sandberg hit his second game-tying home run for the Chicago Cubs in a nationally televised game against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 23, 1984 — a game that would forever be known as The Sandberg Game — he became a nationally recognized superstar of almost mythic proportions at the age of 24. Reflecting on the game much later, Sandberg wrote, “It was the turning point of my career … it completely changed my life.”
Sandberg blossomed into a five-tool player, a rarity for a middle infielder. Over 14 full seasons and parts of two others, the soft-spoken second baseman compiled a .285 batting average and 282 home runs, collected a Most Valuable Player trophy, seven Silver Slugger and nine Gold Glove Awards, and appeared in 10 All-Star games. In 2005, Sandberg received the ultimate honor of enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame. He is one of five Cubs players with a statue outside of Wrigley Field, beloved by generations of fans.
Sandberg died at the age of 65 on Monday, July 28 following a two-year battle with prostate cancer.
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
Call for papers: 2026 SABR Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference
All SABR members are invited and encouraged to submit a Research Presentation Proposal Abstract on any topic of 19th-century baseball for the 2026 Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The 17th annual Ivor-Campbell Conference is scheduled for April 24-25, 2026. The deadline for proposal Abstracts is October 31, 2025.
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
Join SABR on August 9 for Lefty O’Doul Monument Renovation and Celebration Event
Join us this summer for an unforgettable tribute to a San Francisco legend! SABR’s Lefty O’Doul Bay Area Chapter invites all baseball fans to a hometown hero celebration honoring Francis Joseph “Lefty” O’Doul, whose magnificent baseball grave monument has been fully restored at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in California.
- When: Saturday, August 9, 2025 at 9:30 a.m.
- Where: Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, 1370 El Camino Real, Colma, CA 94014
- Cost: Free and open to the public
Click here to watch a promo video, produced by filmmaker and SABR member Jon Leonoudakis.
The celebration will begin with the dramatic unveiling of Lefty’s newly restored monument — an impressive 6-foot, 5-inch tall tribute that truly captures the essence of this baseball icon. Afterward, the festivities move to nearby Molloy’s Tavern, where we’ll raise a glass to celebrate Lefty’s 128th birthday surrounded by fellowship, good cheer, and our shared passion for baseball—America’s beloved national pastime.
The renovation was possible thanks to funding from the SABR Local Grants Program and the San Francisco Giants.
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
SABR MLB Team Employee Database updated through 2024
SABR’s historical database of Major League Baseball team employees has been recently updated to include entries from the 2024 season and to add new information for more than 52,000 people employed by major-league teams over the past 150 years. The SABR MLB Team Employee Database, published through SABR’s Business of Baseball Committee, offers a unique lens into major-league front and back offices, from team owners to ticket sales.
The MLB Team Employee Database is available for viewing to all SABR members on the Research Resources page. Browse or search by person, team, or season to learn more about the scope of baseball and business operations.
Thanks to Bryan Walko for his efforts to update the database, which was initially launched at SABR.org in 2024. Integrating feedback from many SABR members, new information on minor league, player development, and scouting department employees has also been included in this update. Dan Levitt and Richard Cuicchi led this phase of the project, with invaluable help from Mike Bender, Ilana Blumsack, Paul Brown, Steve Ginader, Molly McClure, Chad Moody, and Joseph Wancho.
Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.
Learn more about new SABR Institutional Memberships
A SABR Institutional Membership is the perfect way to connect your group with baseball’s rich history. Whether you are supporting historical or analytical researchers or engaging with baseball fans in your community, SABR provides the network, tools, and expertise to enhance your offerings.
A SABR Institutional Membership is ideal for libraries, museums, and historical societies; high schools; and higher education departments, especially History, American Studies, and Sports Analytics programs.
Institutional Members receive unlimited access to SABR’s extensive collection of digital publications; exclusive research resources, including access to historical newspaper databases; engagement opportunities with SABR experts and a network of baseball historians and analysts.
To learn more, contact Paul J. Zwirecki for details on membership options and enrollment.
Find new updates to the SABR Research Collection below, including the Baseball Biography Project, Games Project, and Oral History Collection.
8 new stories published at SABR Biography Project
- Kurt Bevacqua, by Max Effgen
- Bud Clancy, by Bill Pearch
- Bob Freels, by Kurt Blumenau
- Ken Harvey, by Len Pasculli
- Fergy Malone, by John Medkeff Jr. (first-time author)
- Carlos May, by Joseph Wancho
- Tom O’Rourke, by Bill Lamb
- David Wright, by Ralph Caola
Visit SABR.org/bioproject to learn more about the SABR BioProject or to get involved.
6 new stories published at SABR Games Project
- September 11, 1931: Babe Ruth hits into triple play as late-season struggles deny him AL batting title, by Mike Huber
- August 13, 1950: Tom Poholsky, Andy Tomasic pitch complete games in 22-inning showdown in Rochester, by Kurt Blumenau
- August 9, 1953: Back from flying fighter planes in Korea, Ted Williams hits his first home run in return to Red Sox, by Bill Nowlin
- July 25, 1959: Celebratory gunfire brings a frightful end to Sugar Kings game in Havana, by Larry DeFillipo
- August 10, 1995: ‘The Night It Rained Baseballs’ fuels a Dodgers forfeit to Cardinals, by Harrison Golden
- August 25, 2018: Matt Crownover throws Potomac Nationals’ first no-hitter, by Adam Korengold
Visit SABR.org/gamesproject to learn more about the SABR Games Project or to get involved.
Stan Musial
Edited by Bill Nowlin and Glen Sparks
Visit SABR.org to download the free e-book edition or save 50% off the paperback edition of all Digital Library books.
Here are some SABR headlines from recent weeks that we don’t want you to miss:
- Check out highlights, stories, and photos from SABR 53 in Texas
- SABR Defensive Index rankings released through July 13
- Tom Hufford selected as 2025 Bob Davids Award winner
- Bruce Bochy honored with 2025 Roland Hemond Award
- Read articles from The National Pastime: Baseball in Texas and Beyond
- SABR chapters honored for exceptional performance in 2024-25
- Lahman Database files now available for download
- Download the 2025 SABR Annual Report
- Save the date: Join us for SABR Analytics Conference on Feb. 27-March 1, 2026
- View a collection of nearly 100,000 player surveys in the new Weiss Baseball Questionnaires collection
- Read articles from Spring 2025 Baseball Research Journal
- SABR Digital Library: Here Comes the Pizzer: The Found Poetry of Baseball Broadcasts
- Learn more about recipients of SABR Local Grants in 2025
- Hundreds of ProQuest US newspapers added to SABR Research Resources
- Browse the new, searchable SABR MLB Team Employee Database
- Find complete collection of SABR-Rucker Archive baseball images online
- Historical Black Newspapers Collection added to SABR Research Resources
- Get a gift for baseball fan in your life with the SABR Store @ CafePress
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 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Bowmaster | Mansfield, MA | Kieran McHale | Boulder, CO | ||
| John Bremer | Nashville, TN | Robert Murray | Smyrna, GA | ||
| Alan Carmack | Conway, AR | Alfonso Reyna | Houston, TX | ||
| Dave Gordon | Rocky Hill, CT | Chris Shively | Orchard Park, NY | ||
| Brice Henderson | Beachwood, OH | William Swanner | Somerville, TN | ||
| Brian Hoffman | Vacaville, CA | Will Viederman | Brooklyn, NY | ||
| Han Jiang | Yangpu, CHN | Jenna Walrath | North Plains, OR |
Here is a list of SABR supporters for the month of July 2025:
| NAME | NAME | |
|---|---|---|
| Jake Bell | Henry Levy | |
| David Boyle | William Maloney | |
| D. Bruce Brown | Peter Mancuso | |
| Bruce Bumbalough | Peter Marcus | |
| Ralph Caola | Justus Martin | |
| Ken Carrano | Bruce McClure | |
| Karl Cicitto | Marilyn Miller | |
| Phil Coffin | Geoff Mills | |
| Vincent Comparato | Mark Morowczynski | |
| Carter Cromwell | Linda Nichols | |
| Chris Dial | Andrew North | |
| Mark Drucker | Bill Nowlin | |
| Mark Dugo | John Rall | |
| Helen Edwards | Ned Ribback | |
| Ron Elliott | Michael Rosenwasser | |
| Daniel Evans | Charles Roussel | |
| David Firstman | Bob Russon | |
| Adam Foldes | Ruth Sadler | |
| Timothy Garahan | Jason Scheller | |
| Stephen Greyser | Douglas Schoppert | |
| Steven Hannigan | Mary Shea | |
| Leslie Heaphy | Rob Sheinkopf | |
| Timothy Herlich | Thomas Stone | |
| Lon Hildreth | Wesley Story | |
| Rockwell Hoffman | Joseph Thompson | |
| David Hughes | Neal Traven | |
| Rob Janes | Steve West | |
| Donald Jensen | Bill Whitcher | |
| Tara Krieger | Beach Wires | |
| Carmen Lampe Zeitler | Jeffrey Wood | |
| Dave Lande | Don Zminda |
Want to become a Friend of SABR? Click here to make a recurring monthly contribution or click here to learn more about our Giving Circles to make a one-time contribution.
- Events Calendar: Find details of all upcoming SABR events.
- Video Replays: This week, we heard from the Southern Michigan Chapter’s Turkey Stearnes Hall of Fame Celebration; Jason Schwartz (“Dave Hoskins and the Integration of the Texas League”); Gary Mintz (New York Giants Preservation Society); Carlis Robinson (daughter of baseball pioneer Johnny Wright); and the Mathewson-Plank Chapter hot stove meeting. Click here to view video replays of virtual SABR events.
Upcoming Virtual Meetings
- August 2: Mathewson-Plank (PA) Chapter book club meeting with Dennis Snelling (10:00 a.m. EDT)
- August 2: Women in Baseball Diamond Stories: Gabrielle Augustine (10:00 a.m. EDT)
- August 4: Clyde Sukeforth (NH/ME) Chapter meeting with Larry DeFillipo (7:00 p.m. EDT)
- August 5: Elysian Fields (NJ) Chapter meeting with Vanessa Ivy Rose (7:00 p.m. EDT)
- August 6: Baltimore Babe Ruth (MD) Chapter meeting with Dan Schlossberg (7:00 p.m. EDT)
- August 9: Talkin’ Baseball: Paul Semendinger (9:00 a.m. EDT)
Upcoming In-Person Meetings
- August 2: John J. McGraw Field historical marker ceremony (Truxton, NY)
- August 2: Allan Roth Chapter meeting (Calabasas, CA)
- August 2: Bob Davids Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Waldorf, MD)
- August 3: Boston Chapter: Baseball Sunday (Natick, MA)
- August 3: Central Florida Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Lakeland, FL)
- August 3: Connecticut Smoky Joe Wood Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Hartford, CT)
- August 5: Bob Davids Chapter Virginia Hot Stove Dinner (Arlington, VA)
- August 6: League Park: 1940s Negro Leagues Panel (Cleveland, OH)
- August 6: Bob Broeg St. Louis Chapter fellowship meeting (St. Louis, MO)
- August 7-9: 2025 SABR Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference (Louisville, KY)
- August 9: Halsey Hall Chapter book club meeting (Roseville, MN)
- August 9: Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter meeting (Baltimore, MD)
- August 9: Lefty O’Doul Monument Restoration and Celebration Event (Colma, CA)
- August 10: Jack Graney Cleveland Chapter ballgame/meet-up (Avon, OH)
To add your SABR event to our calendar listings, please contact Jacob Pomrenke.
- Asian Baseball: Check out the new committee website at sabrasianbaseball.com.
- Official Scoring: All SABR members are invited to fill out a committee survey on keeping score at baseball games.
Sign up for SABR research committee announcements at SABR.org/research/committees.
- Buck O’Neil/North Florida Chapter: July 2 meeting recap (Tallahassee, FL)
- Ken Keltner Chapter: Summer 2025 newsletter (Milwaukee, WI)
- Schott-Pelican Chapter: Summer 2025 newsletter (New Orleans, LA)
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:
- Jay Jaffe: Ichiro, Boz, and a Whirlwind Hall of Fame Induction Weekend (FanGraphs)
- Tyler Kepner: In the vintage village of Cooperstown, it’s still how you play the game that counts (The Athletic)
- Lochlahn March: Playing in Arkansas scarred Dick Allen. Decades later, his son returned to honor his long journey to the Hall of Fame. (Philadelphia Inquirer)
- Sidney Snider: How a high school in Milwaukee advocated for Dick Allen’s Hall of Fame election (Philadelphia Inquirer)
- Jayson Stark: Dick Allen’s Hall of Fame Induction Day, a powerful — and ‘personal’ — closing chapter (The Athletic)
- Dan Cichalski: Dave Parker’s spirit shines through in poetic HOF induction speech read by son (MLB.com)
- John Trupin: Ichiro gives Seattle one last gift from Cooperstown: himself (Lookout Landing)
- Meghan Montemurro: ‘A generation connector’: Ryne Sandberg’s statue brings Chicago Cubs fans together following Hall of Famer’s death (Chicago Tribune)
- Al Yellon: In remembrance of Ryne Sandberg, a great baseball player and better human being (Bleed Cubbie Blue)
- Sam Gazdziak: To Ryne Sandberg, with Love (RIP Baseball)
- Sarah Langs: 105.7 mph throw? 122.9 mph HR? This is the Statcast speed Hall of Fame (MLB.com)
- Davy Andrews: Acuña, Soto, Buxton: A Star Outfielder Injury Roundup (FanGraphs)
- Russell A. Carleton: So You’ve Decided To Change Some Rules (Baseball Prospectus)
- Kalen Lumpkins/Adriana Pérez: Extreme heat can pose a danger to baseball players and fans; it’s also changing the physics of the game (Chicago Tribune)
- Kyle J. Andrews/Sanya Kamidi: lack baseball is part of a rich and ongoing tradition in Baltimore. Here are the faces of its birth, life, and revival. (Baltimore Beat)
- Patrick Dubuque: Ryan McMahon and the Coors Hangover, Quantified (Baseball Prospectus)
- Michael Baumann: Gambling Investigation Sidelines Emmanuel Clase (FanGraphs)
- Hannah Keyser/Zach Crizer: ‘Pitch fixing’ is going to be a paranoid fixation (The Bandwagon)
- Marc Normandin: Does the Japanese Hall of Fame Model Make More Sense? (Baseball Prospectus)
- Joseph Palmer: ‘There is history here’: For Laredo’s baseball team, the US/Mexico border is their true hometown (The Guardians)
- Dave Nichols: ‘Double penalty’: One man’s crusade to shine spotlight on forgotten segregation-era Black baseball players (Spokane Spokesman-Review)
- Mario Delgado Genzor: The Worst Possible Outcome (Baseball Prospectus)
- Jim Margalus: ‘They’re all unique. And they’re all awesome’: Sergio Santos on giving White Sox prospects big news (Sox Machine)
- Roy Carlson: Hands, Hats & Heads Hijinks: Topps Vintage Box Zaniness (Sports Collectors Daily)
- Jeff Cohen/Len Aberman: Baseball and BBQ interview with Donna Muscarella (Baseball and BBQ)
- Rob Fitts: Stars Visit Yakyu Baseball Exhibit at Cooperstown (SABR Asian Baseball)
- Brian Kopycinski: My Favorite Rookie Cards of Current Managers (SABR Baseball Cards)
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: August 1, 2025. Last Updated: August 1, 2025.