Halsey Hall Chapter - SABR
About the Chapter | Officers and History | By-Laws and Procedures | Meeting Minutes
| Who Was Halsey Hall? | Chapter Events | Membership | Publications | Book Club | Awards | Research Committee | Video Archives | Regional Links | Home

Home > Chapter Publications > Holy Cow! Newsletter >

Masthead
The Newsletter of the Halsey Hall Chapter
Society for American Baseball Research (SABR)

SABR MVP Chapter 2022-2023

January 2024

Editor:
Stew Thornley

Index to past stories in The Holy Cow!

  • Halsey Hall Chapter SABR Day Events
  • Spring Chapter Meeting May 18
  • Other Upcoming Events
  • Chapter Projects Underway
  • New Members
  • Gene Gomes’s Tra La,La,La,La—Sing the Chorus Quiz
  • Cow Chips
  • Answers to Gene Gomes’s Tra La,La,La,La—Sing the Chorus Quiz
  • Calendar
  • Board of Directors
  • Resources

    Halsey Hall Chapter SABR Day Events
    Baseball: The Turbulent Midcentury Years by Steve Gietschier SABR Day January 27, the Halsey Hall Chapter will have an exhibit at Twinsfest at Target Field. Doug Skipper is once again organizating our participation. Those wanting to staff a shift at the exhibit may contact Doug, theskippers1@yahoo.com.

    Another event is a joint zoom meeting with the Ken Keltner Badger State Chapter with Steve Gietschier, author of Baseball: The Turbulent Midcentury Years. Steve has been a member of SABR since 1987, the year after he joined The Sporting News. For many years he wrote the Year in Review for the publication's annual baseball guide up through the final guide, which was published in 2006. Steve’s lasting contribution was the organization of the collection of materials into The Sporting News Research Center.

    The meeting with Steve will be at 7:00 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday, January 31. Registration is required.

    Registration for zoom meeting with Steve Gietschier.

    Go to Top

    Spring Chapter Meeting May 18
    The spring chapter meeting will be Saturday, May 18 at Faith Mennonite Church, 2720 E. 22nd Street in south Minneapolis. Registration begins around 8:15 a.m. with the program beginning at 8:45. The cost for the meeting and lunch is $10. People can pay by cash (with correct change appreciated) or check at the door.

    There will be a featured speaker in the afternoon, and the morning will consist of research presentations by chapter members. Howard will have his Improved and Still Almost New Jeopardy trivia quiz after the featured speaker along with door prizes. During the business meeting over lunch, the chapter will elect three members to two-year terms on the board of directors (term to begin July 1).

    Members are invited to submit a proposal to make a research presentation at the meeting. Proposals may be sent to Research Committee co-chairs Dave Lande or Gene Gomes and include a title and brief outline of what the presentation will consist of with emphasis on the research that will be included. Standard oral presentations are 20 minutes (with an additional eight minutes for questions) although the duration may be longer or shorter depending on the needs of the presenter and of the schedule.

    One presentation slot is always reserved for a first-time presenter until four weeks before the chapter meeting (April 20). If a slot remains after that, any member can submit a proposal until May 4, two weeks before the meeting, when the Research Committee will wrap up the schedule of presentations.

    Go to Top

    Other Upcoming Events
    The Fred Souba Hot Stove Saturday Morning, an informal breakfast gathering for the purpose of talking baseball, will be at Manning’s at 22nd and Como in southeast Minneapolis on Saturday, January 13 at 9:00 a.m.

    The next Book Club meeting will be Saturday, February 10 at Barnes & Noble in Har Mar Mall at 9:30 a.m. The book selection is Lou: Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball by Lou Piniella and Bill Madden. Brent Heutmaker has organized a list of all the book selections since the book club started in August 2002: Halsey Hall Book Club Selections.

    The next Research Committee meetings, via Zoom, will be January 15 and February 19 at 7:00 p.m. Research Committee members are co-chairs Dave Lande or Gene Gomes as well as Brenda Himrich, Sarah Johnson, Dan Levitt, Doug Skipper, Stew Thornley, Rich Arpi, Anders Koskinen, Hans Van Slooten, Mike Haupert, Bob Tholkes, Daniel Dorff, Darryl Sannes, Tom Swift, David Karpinski, Glenn Renick, John Buckeye, Terry Bohn, Ed Wehling, John Gregory, Art Mugalian, Ed Edmonds, and Bob Komoroski. Let Dave or Gene know if you would like to attend and/or join the committee.

    SABR 52 Logo The SABR convention is coming. Are you? The event is scheduled from Wednesday, August 7 to Sunday, August 11, and the Core Four (John Buckeye, Daniel Dorff, Gene Gomes, and a retread) encourages members to indicate your interest to be a volunteer by sending a note to Jessica Smyth, jsmyth@sabr.org.

    We can use people during the day on Tuesday, August 6 to assemble swag bags at the hotel (Hyatt Regency at 13th and Nicollet). During the convention, warm bodies are needed for a whole plethora-load of things: greeters, timekeepers for researcher presentations, staffers at the registration table. Let Jessica know if you have a particular interest in any of those things or if you’re up for anything.

    Keep up to date with chapter activities on social media:

    SABR Halsey Hall Chapter Facebook page

    Halsey Hall Chapter Twitter page

    Please visit both pages, and, if you haven’t yet, “Like” the Facebook page and “Follow” the Twitter page and set your notifications to be alerted to new posts. (The Facebook page now has 274 members. Bob Komoroski has established rules —essentially, don’t be a dink.— The page is still public although Bob has set up a series of questions for new members to cull out spammers, trollers, and other wankers.)

    Also:

    Regular Events

    Video Archives of Past Events

    Go to Top

    New Members
    The Halsey Hall Chapter welcomes Tom Mollen, Katie Roggenburk, and Jeff Schwenn.

    Our chapter has welcomed 13 new members since June 1, the beginning of the SABR fiscal year reporting period, and has 177 members.

    Really really really important stuff! Membership prices will increase for new members starting in 2024 to $25 for students, $30 for young professionals (30 and under), $80 for a standard membership, and $215 for a three-year standard membership. SABR has committed to no dues increase for current members through 2026. However, those who let their membership lapse after January 24, 2024 will have to re-up under the new rates and types. There is a built-in 10-day grace period for renewing at the existing rate, but after that a renewal would be at the new price. So don’t let it lapse!

    Know a potential member? Here are resources for getting that person happily involved in SABR:

    Membership application

    Get more out of your membership experience by checking out SABR Member Benefit Spotlight Series.

    Go to Top

    Gene Gomes’s Tra La,La,La,La—Sing the Chorus Quiz
    The December Research Committee meeting included a quiz submitted by your past president.

    1. The last name of the long-time NL reliever who started out a Milwaukee Brave but set the NL saves record (37) with the Reds (later broken by Bruce Sutter). World Series champ in 1975; nicknamed “Hawk.”
    2. The last name of the LF who finished a close second for NL MVP and won the NLCS MVP the same year. He then won a World Series with his second NL team four years later. His son was a first-round baseball draft pick in 2022.
    3. What’s the nickname of the team which played at Wrigley Field until 1958, and the nickname of the team which presently does not have its city or state on their uniforms, merchandise or baseball cards?
    4. The last names of one of the three-generation major league families. One of this clan’s grandsons is currently the manager of the organization in which grandpa and dad played for.
    5. Last name of the pitcher picked in the first round by the Cubs in the late ‘90s, and was soon traded to the White Sox for little in return. He later won games in the 2005 ALCS and World Series for the champion White Sox. Career record: 136-125.
    6. Last name of the player who pitched complete-game victories in Games 1 and 4 in his team’s “Miracle” World Series victory over the Philadelphia Athletics.
    7. Last name of this first baseman who won six Gold Gloves in a row; his most famous scoop was of a three-year-old in the 2002 World Series. That little guy is now a second baseman in the Nationals organization.
    8. The last name of the player, who with an artificial lower leg pitched pro ball in 1945, including one game in the majors (5.1 innings). He later twice won a national amputee golf championship, demonstrating great determination after his WW2 injury.
    9. Last name of the former White Sox & Red Sox outfielder famous for his poor fielding (44 errors in 418 games). He hit .305 in a four-year major league career in the ‘30s.
    10. His 2714 career minor league hits, six batting titles and a Triple Crown (.404, 45 HR, 188 RBI) for San Francisco Seals in 1928 earned him entry into the PCL Hall of Fame.
    11. The first name of the youngest of three Dominican Republic-born brothers who played in the outfield together for two innings in a game at Pittsburgh in 1963.

    Quiz answers below

    Go to Top

    Cow Chips
    Terry Bohn has written an article on William Parson for the SABR BioProject.

    Town team baseball book

    Jim Cox has an extra copy of The Early Years: Celebrating Minnesota Town Ball 1857-1973. If you are interested, contact Jim, jcox321@hotmail.com.

    Mike Haupert has an article on the opening of Yankee Stadium in 1923 in the Fall 2023 edition of Outside the Lines, the newsletter of the SABR Business of Baseball Committee. Mike and Dan Levitt are co-chairs of the committee, and Rich Arpi is also a contributor.

    The December 2023 edition of Keltner’s Hot Corner, the newsletter of the Ken Keltner Badger State Chapter, is on-line:

    Keltner’s Hot Corner, December 2023

    For past Keltner’s Hot Corner newsletters:

    Keltner’s Hot Corner

    Go to Top

    Answers to Gene Gomes’s Tra La,La,La,La—Sing the Chorus Quiz

    1. (Clay) Carroll
    2. (Matt) Holliday
    3. Angels
    4. Bell
    5. (Jon) Garland
    6. (Dick) Rudolph
    7. (J. T.) Snow
    8. (Bert) Shepard
    9. (Smead) Jolley
    10. Jesus (Alou)

    Go to Top

    Calendar
        January 13—Fred Souba Hot Stove League Saturday Morning, 9:00 a.m., Mannings’s, Minneapolis.

        January 15—Research Committee meeting, 7:00-9:00 p.m. via Zoom. For more information, contact Dave Lande or Gene Gomes.

        January 27—Twinsfest on SABR Day. For more information, contact Doug Skipper.

        January 31—Joint Zoom meeting with Ken Keltner Badger State Chapter with guest Steve Gietschier, author of Baseball: The Turbulent Midcentury Years, 7:00, p.m. Registration for zoom meeting with Steve Gietschier.

        February 4—Halsey Hall Chapter Board of Directors meeting, 7:00 p.m. For more information on attending, contact Rich Arpi.

        February 10Book Club, Barnes & Noble, Har Mar Mall, Roseville, 9:30 a.m., Lou: Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball by Lou Piniella and Bill Madden.

        February 19—Research Committee meeting, 7:00-9:00 p.m. via Zoom. For more information, contact Dave Lande or Gene Gomes.

        May 18—Spring Chapter Meeting, 8:45 a.m., Faith Mennonite Church, Minneapolis. For more information, contact Howard Luloff, 952-922-5036, or Bob Komoroski.

        August 7-11—SABR Convention, Minneapolis.

    Go to Top


    Board of Directors 2023-2024
    President—Rich Arpi
    Vice President—Bob Tholkes
    Secretary—Daniel Dorff
    Treasurer—Jerry Janzen
    John Buckeye
    Ed Edmonds
    Howard Luloff

    Events Committee Co-Chairs—Howard Luloff, Bob Komoroski
    Research Committee Co-Chairs—Dave Lande, Gene Gomes
    Membership Committee Co-Chairs—Stew Thornley, John Buckeye
    MVP Chapter Committee Chair—Gene Gomes

    The Holy Cow! Editor—Stew Thornley
    Ass. Editors—Jerry Janzen, Brenda Himrich, and John Buckeye
    Webmaster—John Gregory
    Ass. Webmasters—Frank Kadwell, Hans Van Slooten, and Stew Thornley
    Social Media Directors—Bob Komoroski, Facebook; Hans Van Slooten and Tom Flynn, Twitter

    Halsey Hall Chapter Web Page

    Past issues of The Holy Cow! are available on-line.

    Chapter History

    Chapter Procedures and By-Laws

    Society for American Baseball Research

    Go to Top


    Resources

    Go to Top