This Week in SABR: March 26, 2021

March 26, 2021/in This Week in SABR /by Jacob Pomrenke

Welcome to “This Week in SABR!” Click here to view this week’s newsletter on the web. Here’s what we’ve been up to as of March 26, 2021:

Eric Nusbaum honored with 2021 SABR Seymour Medal at NINE Conference

2021 Seymour Medal winner Eric Nusbaum, author of Stealing Home: Los Angeles, the Dodgers, and the Lives Caught in Between, accepted his award at the banquet of the 28th annual NINE Spring Training Conference on Saturday, March 13.

The Seymour Medal honors the best book of baseball history or biography published during the preceding calendar year. Nusbaum’s book was published by PublicAffairs. The Seymour Medal, named in honor of Dr. Harold Seymour and Mrs. Dorothy (Seymour) Mills, was first awarded by SABR in 1996. Nusbaum was presented with his medal by SABR Board President Mark Armour during a virtual ceremony on Saturday evening.

“This is a real honor,” Nusbaum said. “SABR members have been such a huge part in making this book a reality … and making my work possible.”

Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.

SABR Digital Library: The Miracle Has Landed: The Amazin’ Story of How the 1969 Mets Shocked the World

Add a new baseball book to your collection from the SABR Digital Library:

The Miracle Has Landed: The Amazin’ Story of How the 1969 Mets Shocked the World
Updated and Expanded Edition
Edited by Matthew Silverman and Ken Samelson
Foreword by Jerry Koosman
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-9701-5908-0, $9.99
ISBN (paperback): 978-1-9701-5909-7, $29.95
8.5″ x 11″, 421 pages

Celebrate the 1969 Miracle Mets in this new, updated SABR edition of The Miracle Has Landed: The Amazin’ Story of How the 1969 Mets Shocked the World, first published by Maple Street Press in 2009.

The Miracle Has Landed celebrates the lovable Mets like no other book, complete with photos and artifacts of the time. A project of the Society for American Baseball Research, this volume gathers the collective efforts of more than thirty SABR members and features profiles of every player, coach, broadcaster, and significant front-office member connected to that great Mets squad. Included are updated biographies of the recently departed “Franchise” player, Tom Seaver, and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, beloved manager Gil Hodges, the talented outfield of Cleon Jones, Tommie Agee, and Ron Swoboda, drill sergeant backstop Jerry Grote, crucial midseason acquisition Donn Clendenon, scrappy shortstop Bud Harrelson, and a pitching staff that went far deeper than just Seaver and Ryan. More than fifty years later the Miracle Mets are still revered, the first world champion expansion team and the club that stole New York’s heart.

The book features a Foreword by Jerry Koosman, and has been expanded throughout for this new edition.

Contributors include: Mark Armour, Eric Aron, Mike Bender, Sam Bernstein, Michael J. Bielawa, Talmage Boston, Michael P. Cahill, Rob Edelman, Doug Feldmann, Irv Goldfarb, Paul Hirsch, Edward Hoyt, William H. Johnson, Jacob Kanarek, Ron Kaplan, Maxwell Kates, Tara Krieger, Bill Lamberty, Len Levin, Lou Longobardi, Bruce Markusen, Les Masterson, Bill Nowlin, Len Pasculli, Neal Poloncarz, Greg W. Prince, C. Paul Rogers III, John T. Saccoman, Ken Samelson, Andrew Schiff, Matthew Silverman, Mark Simon, Curt Smith, Greg Spira, Jon Springer, Joan M. Thomas, Adam J. Ulrey, Glenn Vasey, John Vorperian, Joseph Wancho, Dave Williams, Linc Wonham, Fred Worth, and Al Yellon.

SABR members, get this e-book for FREE!

E-book: Click here to download the e-book version of The Miracle Has Landed for FREE from the SABR Store. Available in PDF, Kindle/MOBI and EPUB formats.
Paperback: Get a 50% discount on the The Miracle Has Landed paperback edition from the SABR Store ($17.95 includes shipping/tax; delivery via Kindle Direct Publishing can take up to 4-6 weeks.)

Having trouble downloading our e-books? To view PDF files on your computer, click here to download the free Adobe Reader software. Having trouble downloading e-books to your Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader or iPad? Click here for additional help.

SABR members can download all Digital Library e-book editions for free and save 50% on purchase of the paperback editions. Visit SABR.org/ebooks to find all past titles.

Joe Niese’s Zack Wheat biography wins 2021 SABR Ron Gabriel Award

SABR is pleased to announce that Joe Niese’s Zack Wheat: The Life of the Brooklyn Dodgers Hall of Famer, published by McFarland & Co., has been selected as the winner of the Ron Gabriel Award in 2021.

Niese is a library director from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, and the author of Burleigh Grimes: Baseball’s Last Legal Spitballer; Handy Andy: The Andy Pafko Story; and other articles and books on sports.

The Ron Gabriel Award annually honors the author(s) of the best research, published or unpublished, on the subject of the Brooklyn Dodgers completed during the preceding calendar year.

Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.

Join us for more Stay Home With SABR virtual events

SABR chapters and committees are encouraged to set up virtual meetings to stay engaged with our members throughout the world at SABR.org, as part of our Stay Home With SABR initiative to assist in limiting the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Can’t-Miss Event: On Saturday, April 3, at 9:30 a.m. CDT, the Halsey Hall Chapter in Minnesota will host a virtual book club meeting with Jane Leavy, award-winning author of Squeeze Play and other acclaimed baseball books. For questions or to RSVP for this meeting, please contact Stew Thornley.
Video Replays: This week, we heard from Bob Dernier (and surprise special guest Ryne Sandberg!) on the 1984 Chicago Cubs; former Boston Red Sox All-Star Rico Petrocelli; John Graf and Duke Goldman on From Rube to Robinson: SABR’s Best Articles on Black Baseball; a Negro Leagues roundtable with historians Scott Simkus and Phil S. Dixon; Clayton Grandquist of the Iowa Cubs; and authors Jerry Manheim (The Mysterious Death of Christy Mathewson), Gary Cieradkowski (Outsider Baseball), Jim Halloran (Baseball and America), and Lindsay Bell and Paul Spyhalski (“Early Iowa Baseball History”). Click here to view more video replays of virtual SABR events.

Here are some more upcoming virtual events you can attend online; check the Events Calendar for complete details:

March 28: Baltimore Babe Ruth Chapter meeting (7:00 p.m. EDT)
March 30: Gardner-Waterman Vermont Chapter meeting with David Krell (8:00 p.m. EDT)
March 30: IBWAA: Now Batting: Current Events in Baseball with Gabrielle Starr (8:00 p.m. EDT)
March 31: Ken Keltner (WI) Chapter Book Club (7:00 p.m. CDT)
April 1: Baseball Think Factory meeting (8:30 p.m. EDT)
April 3: Talkin’ Baseball: Brian Wright (9:00 a.m. EDT)
April 3: Halsey Hall (MN) Chapter book club meeting with Jane Leavy (9:30 a.m. CDT)
April 3: Pee Wee Reese (KY) Chapter meeting with Peter Coolbaugh (1030 a.m. EDT)
April 3: Carolina (NC) Chapter meeting (3:00 p.m. EDT)

Find more upcoming SABR meetings on our Events Calendar page.

Last call for papers: Turnstyle: The SABR Journal of Baseball Arts

Ever since baseball has been played, there has been literature written about the National Pastime. Today, there is no less an outpouring of baseball art and literature, as has been seen from the beginning of the great and glorious game.

SABR’s Baseball and the Arts Committee looks forward to presenting the third edition of Turnstyle: The SABR Journal of Baseball Arts, an offering of baseball art and literature. The deadline for submissions for Volume 3 is April 1, 2021. Please submit your baseball masterpiece to the Turnstyle editors:

Jay Hurd, jayh0912@gmail.com
Joanne Hulbert, jhulbert49@gmail.com

We will consider the following: essays, short fiction, memoirs, creative nonfiction, poetry, original illustrations, photographs that enhance a storyline, and other creative expressions of the art of baseball.

Click here to read the full announcement at SABR.org.

Register now for the virtual SABR Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Conference in April

Registration is still open for the 11th annual SABR Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference, which will be held virtually on April 22-24, 2021. All baseball fans are welcome to register for this special online event.

The 2021 virtual conference will be highlighted by a keynote address from Major League Baseball’s Official Historian John Thorn, along with a panel discussion on National League president William Hulbert with Jack Bales, Richard Hershberger, Bill Lamb, and moderator Bill Ryczek; a special presentation by Jim Gates on the “Penny Marshall Sheet Music Collection” at the Baseball Hall of Fame; a Member Spotlight interview of Tom Gilbert by Bob Bailey; plus research presentations.

Registration: Click here to register online. The cost is $35 per person. Each attendee must register separately in order to receive the Zoom meeting information.
Schedule: Click here to view the full schedule for the 2021 Ivor-Campbell Conference. Online sessions will be held from 8:00-10:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday, April 22; 12:00-5:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, April 23; and 12:00-5:00 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 24. Registration provides access to all panels and presentations for each day.

For questions, please contact Peter Mancuso at peterplus4@earthlink.net.

To learn more about the conference, visit SABR.org/ivor-campbell19c.

Become a SABR Membership Ambassador!

Would you like to volunteer as a SABR Membership Ambassador? We’re looking for anyone who has a passion for SABR, who loves meeting new people, and who enjoys establishing authentic connections to help welcome new members into our baseball community.

Our Membership Ambassadors will be asked to send a personalized email to new members each week, help promote SABR via word of mouth and/or social media, represent the member ambassador team in at least one New Member Experience online session during the calendar year, and attend a quarterly virtual Zoom meeting with our Community Engagement Manager and other Ambassadors to discuss and review their efforts.

If you are interested in becoming a SABR Membership Ambassador, please email Chanel Zapata at czapata@sabr.org.

SABRcast with Rob Neyer: Listen to an interview with award winners Tony Adams, Bradford William Davis

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 #103 on Monday, March 22 featured Tony Adams and Bradford William Davis, two of the three winners (along with Shakeia Taylor) of the 2021 SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards. Adams was voted as the winner of the Contemporary Baseball Analysis Award for his research and analysis at SignStealingScandal.com. Adams is a Houston-based graphic designer and web developer who spent more than 60 hours writing an application to analyze video and audio footage of the 2017 Houston Astros’ sign-stealing operation. Davis was voted as the winner of the Contemporary Baseball Commentary Award for his article “Baseball Let Unity Stand in the Way of Protest” at the New York Daily News. Davis has been a sports columnist at the Daily News since 2019. He also co-hosts the “Five and Dive” podcast at Baseball Prospectus..

Visit SABR.org/sabrcast to listen to the full episode.

Subscribe to SABRcast on your favorite podcast networks, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher, and listen to each episode as soon as it’s released on Mondays. To learn more, visit SABR.org/sabrcast.

8 new SABR biographies published

Eight new biographies were posted this week as part of the SABR Baseball Biography Project. Here are the new bios published this week:

Frank Bertaina, by Malcolm Allen
George Crosby, by Terry Bohn
Joe Giebel, by Darren Gibson
Bobby Keppel, by Kevin Bley
Paul Lo Duca, by Steve Sisto
Roy Radebaugh, by Darren Gibson
Pete Stanicek, by Malcolm Allen
Joe Zdeb, by Paul White (first-time author)

All new biographies can be found here: SABR.org/bioproject

Find any SABR biography: You can visit sabr.org/bioproject to search for any player — or manager, executive, scout, spouse, broadcaster, or umpire — who appears in the SABR BioProject. In addition, we have pages for Ballparks, Broadcasters, Executives, Games, Managers, Scouts, Spouses, Umpires, Writers, people who were Famous Outside Baseball, and a lot more.

19 new stories published at the SABR Games Project

Nineteen new game stories were posted this week as part of the SABR Games Project. Here are the new game stories:

April 13, 1921: Reds surge in eighth inning, beat Pirates on Opening Day, by John Fredland
April 14, 1921: Harry Heilmann’s walk-off hit wins Ty Cobb’s managerial debut for Tigers, by Chuck Hildebrandt
June 6, 1935: Satchel Paige strikes out 17 for Bismarck in exhibition against Monarchs in Winnipeg, by Tim Hagerty
April 25, 1939: Lou Gehrig shows final flash of brilliance with two-hit game for Yankees, by Chuck Hildebrandt
May 9, 1939: Red Sox rookie Ted Williams hits game-winning homer in 10th to beat Browns, by Bill Nowlin
August 15, 1942: Ted Williams home run provides all the offense Red Sox, Tex Hughson need, by Bill Nowlin
May 22, 1946: Ted Williams homers in the 12th inning to give Red Sox a win, by Bill Nowlin
May 10, 1953: Ernie White’s curious but short-lived two-catcher strategy, by Jack Zerby
August 13, 1953: Campanella, Furillo home runs lead Dodgers to comeback win, by Steven C. Weiner
July 10, 1976: Teenage third baseman Daniel Monzon shines in minors before his tragic death, by Kurt Blumenau
July 23, 1979: Manager Dave Garcia takes over Indians, wins first game of second-half surge, by Andrew Harner
September 25, 1982: Giants’ Greg Minton records 30th save of season, by Tom Schott
September 17, 1983: Johnny Bench celebrates Riverfront Stadium farewell with final home run, last catching appearance, by Gordon Gattie
June 28, 1984: Boston’s Dwight Evans hits walk-off home run to complete the cycle, by Mike Onigman (first-time author)
June 22, 2000: Shawon Dunston’s unlikely home run, 6 RBIs bring Cardinals back from 7-run deficit, by Madison McEntire
August 3, 2008: Xavier Nady drives in six as Yankees score 10 unearned runs to beat Angels, by Madison McEntire
May 13, 2015: No Harper, no problem: Taylor’s first grand slam wins it for the Nationals, by Laura H. Peebles
September 8, 2017: Michael A. Taylor’s inside-the-park grand slam wins one for the Nationals, by Laura H. Peebles
June 4, 2019: Stephen Strasburg records 100th career win for Nationals, by Laura H. Peebles

In addition, the following articles from SABR’s Whales, Terriers, and Terrapins: The Federal League 1914-15 book were also posted online:

May 6, 1914: Pittsburgh’s Ed Lennox becomes only Federal League player to hit for the cycle, by Mike Huber
July 17, 1914: Gene Packard goes the distance as Packers defeat ChiFeds in 14 innings, by Frederick “Rick” Bush
July 25, 1914: Pittsburgh Rebels sweep doubleheader in extra innings at Exposition Park, by Andy Terrick
August 24, 1914: Indianapolis Hoosiers are Tip-Top in doubleheader sweep, by Kevin Larkin
September 12, 1914: Bob Groom umpires and pitches in same game for St. Louis, by Bill Nowlin
April 24, 1915: No offense in Gateway no-no: Frank Allen pitches a no-hitter for Pittsburgh, by Kevin Larkin
August 16, 1915: The Main Event: Kansas City’s Alex Main tosses no-hitter in Federal League, by Mark Pestana

New Games Project stories can be found at SABR.org/gamesproject.

Get involved: Have memories of a game you attended? Or a game you watched that caught your interest? Write about it! Writing for the Games Project is an easy way to get involved as a SABR member. Find out how by reading the Games Project FAQs section or checking out the Authors’ Guidelines. We have editors and fact checkers who are willing to help you write your first article.
Social media: Follow the SABR Games Project on Twitter or Facebook to keep up with new stories and updates.

Listen to a new episode of Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM on Saturdays

Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM, a radio show hosted by former SABR Board President Vince Gennaro, is back at a new time. Listen to new episodes at 4:00-5:00 p.m. ET on Saturdays on MLB Network Radio.

You can also listen to archives of recent episodes on-demand on the SiriusXM Internet Radio app.

Behind the Numbers: Baseball SABR Style on SiriusXM focuses on examining and interpreting the statistical analysis that plays a critical role in baseball today. It airs weekly throughout the year on MLB Network Radio, available to subscribers nationwide on XM channel 89, Sirius channel 209, and on the SiriusXM Internet Radio App.

February 17 Board minutes posted

Minutes from the Board of Directors virtual meeting on February 17, 2021, has now been posted on the SABR website.

You can view all past minutes of SABR Board meetings by clicking on the link below:

https://profile.sabr.org/board-minutes

Or you can go to the Members’ Info page and click on “Org. files”, then “Board Minutes” to view the minutes.

ICYMI: Highlights from last week’s This Week in SABR

Here are some major headlines from recent weeks that we don’t want you to miss:

All previous editions of This Week in SABR can be found here: SABR.org/this-week-in-sabr-archives.

Welcome, new members!

We’d like to welcome all of our new SABR members who have joined this week. You can find all Members-Only resources at members.sabr.org and the Membership Handbook can be downloaded here.

Please give these new members a warm welcome and help them make the most of their membership by giving them the opportunity to get involved in their local chapter or a research committee.

You can find contact information for any SABR member in the online Membership Directory.

Name	Hometown	Name	Hometown
Kenny Ayres	Havertown, PA	Daniel Lane	Chicago, IL
John Bath	Gahanna, OH	Jeffory Livingston	Tipton, IA
Chris Butts	Cherry Hill, NJ	Greg Macedo	Ocean View, DE
Russell Carleton	Atlanta, GA	Brian Mazmanian	Scituate, MA
Jim Cruse	East Meadow, NY	David Nesbitt	Mission, KS
Rick Ellison	Savannah, GA	Ronald Rodin	Tucson, AZ
Ari Guttman	Skokie, IL	George Rousos	Massillon, OH
Nick Hamze	Sioux Falls, SD	Daniel Scott	Lake Ozark, MO
Jerome Husayko	Orland Park, IL	Joel Stewart	Providence, RI
Jeffrey Jerez	Orlando, FL	John Walsh	W. Brandywine, PA
Jon Yanders	Altoona, IA

Research Committee news

Here are the new research committee updates this week:

Collegiate Baseball: Spring/Summer 2021 newsletter
Statistical Analysis: March 2021 newsletter

Find all SABR research committee newsletters at SABR.org/research/committees.

Regional Chapter news

Here are the new regional chapter and chartered community updates this week:

Boston Chapter: Read the final “Dispatches From the Mudville Bureau,” by Joanne Hulbert (Boston, MA)
Halsey Hall Chapter: April 2021 newsletter (Minneapolis, MN)
Hemond AZ Chapter: SABR’s Arizona chapter, recently renamed after baseball executive and longtime member Roland Hemond, has a new website at AZSABR.org. Check out the new site for information on upcoming events around the Phoenix area and articles on Arizona baseball.

Visit SABR.org/chapters for more information on SABR regional chapters.

Around the Web

Here are some recent articles published by and about SABR members:

Rowan Ricardo Phillips: Justice for the Negro Leagues Will Mean More Than Just Stats (New York Times Magazine)
Sarah Langs: A discussion with trailblazer Suzyn Waldman (MLB.com)
Pablo Suarez: Smith Alum Tyrone Brooks Goes to Bat for Diversity in Baseball (Maryland Today)
Russell A. Carleton: Should I Go to a Baseball Game? (Baseball Prospectus)
Jared Diamond: Baseball’s Oldest Living Player Got His Vaccine Shots. He Headed Back to the Ballpark. (Wall Street Journal)
Rob Arthur: Outfield Shifts Are Shockingly Effective (Baseball Prospectus)
Eno Sarris: Does a pitcher’s command improve with age? (The Athletic)
Stephanie Apstein: How Jose Altuve Got Thrown Off (Sports Illustrated)
Evan Drellich: MLB will use Statcast, lab testing to catch pitchers doctoring baseball, but punishments could be tricky (The Athletic)
Hannah Keyser: Meet baseball’s 2021 breakout players, according to their GMs (Yahoo! Sports)
Andrea Williams: Baseball’s Erasure Of Black Managers And Executives Shows Who MLB Believes Is Worthy To Lead (Defector.com)
Howard Megdal: Shohei Ohtani Is Gonna Take Baseball By Storm (Baseball Prospectus)
Rob Mains: When DRC+ Doesn’t Agree with OPS+ and wRC+ (Baseball Prospectus)
Grant Brisbee: The nostalgia, beauty and fun of Mother’s Cookies baseball cards (The Athletic)
Tom Shieber: The Federal League in Film – Part II: “Hearts and Diamonds” (Baseball Researcher)
John Lingan: How the Baseball Cap Went From Athletic Gear to Fashion Statement (Smithsonian Magazine)
Zach Buchanan: Randy Johnson threw a fastball, and a bird disappeared: 20 years since baseball’s wildest moment (The Athletic)
Hannah Drossman, Davy Andrews, Daniel R. Epstein, and Roger Cormier: Too Far From Town: West Virginia Black Bears (Baseball Prospectus)
Jay Jaffe: Do Not Sleep on Ronald Acuña Jr. (FanGraphs)
David Laurila: Orioles Hitting Coach Don Long Answers a Question (FanGraphs)
Tom Hoffarth: It takes more than Wa to want to know more about the Japanese history (Farther Off the Wall)
Max D. Danish and Keith Danish: A Handful of Interesting, Timely Topics, and: The Polo Grounds is my Field of Dreams (NINE Journal)
Shawn Hennessy: Visual Traces of a Wartime Service Career (Chevrons and Diamonds)
Jason Schwartz: Girl Power (SABR Baseball Cards Blog)

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.

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