National Baseball Federation
1919 Akron Hoover Sweepers https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/Ray-Kolp/
1938 Detroit Altes Lager
1939 Detroit Altes Lager
1916-9-17 Minneapolis General Electrics 7, Omaha Armours 3. 6K ATT
(GEs have Fred Chicken)
1918-1-17 convention - lists officers - organization hopes to establish semi-pro & amateur baseball on sound footing - setting up in the major cities
1918-6-21 vg article attendances of 80K and 90K in Cleveland in 1915 - gives overview of organization
1918 Cleveland Standard Parts
c Louis Woerth /
p George Uhle *
1b Jim Delahanty *
3b Sylvester Breen /
lf Frank Delahanty *
1919-1-24 commentary on federation which had very far-reaching goals indeed
"Evils of amateur baseball, such as the pitting of youngsters against seasoned veterans, a thing manifestly unfair, and the importing of star players for the final championships, would all be done away with.
Proper organization of the sandlot game will give better and broader executive managership, proper development of the players themselves and the right kind of interest from the public."
mm 'kay
mm 'kay
1919-5-02 NBF merges with National Amateur Baseball Association
"The time is coming, in my estimation, when sandlot baseball will be entirely a municipal proposition. When that day comes the amateur end of the national game will boom as it has never boomed before.
(The Federation...) has given much thought to the matter of improving the conditions which now exist in a large number of cities where the small boy and his larger brother are exploited as athletes for the financial benefit of some selfish promoter, who does not have the good of the sport or of the athlete at heart.
(The Federation...) has given much thought to the matter of improving the conditions which now exist in a large number of cities where the small boy and his larger brother are exploited as athletes for the financial benefit of some selfish promoter, who does not have the good of the sport or of the athlete at heart.
In some cities, lads who have not passed their twelfth birthday are already professionalized. They have lost their vision of baseball as a means to the betterment of their physical selves, and as a method of recreation, and are wedded to it because it means a half dollar in their pockets each time they play.
It is entirely needless to dilate upon the evils of such a system. It is wrong throughout, and only exists because of the selfishness of older men, who know better, and who should be brought to book by those really concerned about the welfare and advancement of the youngsters."
Again not totally on-board w/ this high & mighty reformism
judge not lest you be judged
segregationists
1919-12-31
strongest in central & middle-west. Goal: promulgation & perpetuation of non-commercialized ball.
strongest in central & middle-west. Goal: promulgation & perpetuation of non-commercialized ball.
Lists the planned sectional competitions (ex. Northwest: Minneapolis, St. Paul, Milwaukee, Duluth, Chicago etc...)
Three classes:
class A: amateur
class AA: industrial
Three classes:
class A: amateur
class AA: industrial
class AAA: semi-pro
"Aiming To Protect Real Amateurs:
The officers of the NBF are much concerned about the exploitation of amateur ball players by individuals and organizations for financial gain. For some time past it has been very hard to find a simon-pure amateur ball player, except among the younger lads. The more skilled players demanded & received sums of money and other rewards for their services as ball players. Teams playing in inclosed parks participated in the division of the net gate receipts, and many firms and individuals backing clubs have paid players on the said clubs. The federation, while recognizing that the more skilled players are entitled to whatever they can secure for their skill as ball players, insists that these kind of players be segregated from those who play the game for the love of the sport, and that more attention be paid to the young boys just taking up the game."
Sounds sort of socialist-utopian -
Pictures:
1919-9-07 Ambridge Our Boys, Pittsburg class A champions; Favorite Knit Team, Cleveland class A champions; fair rooters accompanying Cleveland
Steve Swetonic w/ Ambridge
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brookside_Stadium drew 115K one game in 1915
1930-9-24 5th round
American Baseball Congress' "Amateur world series"
1937 St. Paul J.J. Kohns
Reider, John-Jack 1937 St. Paul J.J. Kohns - born in Germany
1937-9-28 (Battle Creek) 1st team & second team all stars, + honorable mentions.
1939-9-22 Owatonna Aces arrived today at 4:00 in the morning. Had 14-2 record in league competition. Chattanooga, semi-finalists last year, have only two changes in roster from last year. A few full names listed. Have 34-17 record.
Fresno St. Alphonse CYO has a priest player-manager.
Each qualifying team is permitted to pick three batterymen from own league.
Bancroft has seven players under 21.
Analysis of Battle Creek United Steel and Wire.
1939-9-24 (p.1) Owatonna boys are proud of their butter
1937-9-20 VG boxes for all games
National Baseball Congress
list of champions & MVPs
1935
1938
1938-8-15 B Commentary. Claude Gilchrist, 1937 tournament MVP, has stolen 54 bases this year. Hugh Willingham drove in at least two runs each game for 24 consecutive games.
1938-8-16 B Commentary. Dumont profile.
1938-8-28 E Plenty of pics + what players do outside of baseball.
1939
1939-8-06 Eagle. Some previewing. Meh.
1939-8-07 Eagle.
Some basic facts about tournament. Duration: 8-11 to 8-23. Expected attendance: 110K. 32 team bracket from the winners of 47 state tournaments.
Baton Rouge Esson will play (alleged.)
18 teams have been certified with 14 to go.
1939-8-07 Beacon.
Some details about LA Shells and Silverton Red Sox. Silverton Red Sox are 18-1, LA Shells are 24-8. Some commentary on players.
1939-8-08 Eagle. Silverton team pic. The Silverton team represents lumber mills owned by Tom Yawkey.
Civics are adding five new players (tho one of them, Claude Willoughby, will end pitching for Chanute)
1939-8-08 Beacon. Fairmount Collegians team pic.
Brief previews of some of the teams. Worcester Nortons have been organized for fifteen years; have 23-5 record. Four with experience in IL and EL.
1939-8-09 Eagle
Golden Coors beat Pueblo Peppers 10-3 to qualify.
Denver Post tournament prizes: Enid Champlin Refiners, $5,629.48; Buford Bonna Allen, $4,222.11; Duncan Halliburton Cementers and Miami Ethiopian Clowns, $1,407.37 each; Flagstaff AZ, $100; Leoti, KS and Ogallala NE, $50 each.
"It's going to be about as easy stopping Enid as fanning Foxx with a tennis ball, but it might be done."
Civics lost their double play combination and winning pitcher from state-winning team.
Trenton team is composed entirely of prison guards.
1939-8-09 Beacon. Four teams certified for tournament; three of them, the Manchester NH McElwains, the Ninety-Six club of SC, and the Indianapolis Firemen, will not play.
1939-8-10 Eagle. Last minute plans. Mt Pleasant MI enter tournament.
Teams are better backed than in 1935.
Pic: Civics' new double-play partners
1939-8-10 Beacon. Pics of players groggy after travel.
Chanute will fill a vacancy; approved by Sisler.
Pic of new Civics Brickell and Lang.
Broadview Hotel is official HQ of tournament.
Manchester NH is team coming from furthest away (they never came)
1939-8-11 Eagle.
Pic: Red Clark(e), Civic Theater pitcher.
Pic: Doc Regele, umpire from Salem OR.
George Sisler busy and excited.
LA Shells have 27-8 record, and ex-Coast League pitchers.
1939-8-11 Beacon.
Pic: Civics' manager and coach.
Pic: Michigan Roosevelt Oilers
Commentary.
1939-8-12 p.1 - Dixie belle throws out first pitch - actually makes it over home plate. 9K ATT - biggest opening day crowd.
1939-8-12 Eagle. LA Shells 9, Civics 8.
Silverton 5, Golden Coors 3.
Action pic.
1939-8-12 Beacon. Fairmount has won 11 straight games.
Nat tournament is doing much for southern Kansas.
1939-8-13 Eagle
Pic: Enid infield
Pic: Brickell
"Pairing a team with Enid is just like matching someone to fight Joe Louis for a ham sandwich a cup of coffee." But Gus Hoffman, sponsor of the Mt. Pleasant Cubs, is unafraid.
1939-8-13 Eagle. Buford 18, Fairmount ND 2. (Combined no-hitter.)
Chanute 12, Palmer House 4.
Claude Willoughby of Chanute had gone 35 innings w/o ER before 7th.
Action pic.
Lauri Myllykangas, p-cap of Worcester. Former IL.
Shirts will be given by Spines to every player who hits over-fence homer during tournament.
Combined crowds of today - afternoon and evening - are supposed to total 15,000.
1939-8-14 Eagle (p.2)
Pic: Cecil Smith, Duncan ss, crossing plate after homer.
Pic: Major league scouts watching
Indianapolis police officers take Golden Coors pitcher into custody. He was wanted for parole violation.
1939-8-14 Eagle. Colo. Coors 3, Fairmont ND Collegians 2.
Worcester 14, Mt. Pleasant MI Roosevelts 2.
Mt Pleasant TX 8, Enid 3.
Duncan 11, Wichita All Steel 1.
Pic: Cecil Smith scores one of his four runs for Duncan
Youth will meet age today as Silverton faces Cementers.
1939-8-14 Beacon. Terrell Traweek of Mt Pleasant TX greeted at plate after homer.
Misplaced chivalry in foul ball incident.
Mt Pleasant Cubs are dark horses making good.
Duncan, Enid, Buford, and Civics were seen as teams to beat going into tournament.
1939-8-15 Eagle. Vandergrift 8, Branson 3.
Wichita All Steel 5, Chicago Palmer House 3.
About Mt Pleasant uniforms. Colorful is the word. A few of the teams are slow in arriving and may have to default such as Rhode Island's champions, who won their tourney only 8-13.
1939-8-15 Beacon. Previews.
George Sisler announces list of seven state commissioners for 1940.
When a game is being played the ball players all clear out from the hotel lobby to watch. They practice every day, play every other day, and still can't keep away from the park.
Claude Willoughby talks about why he is still successful.
1939-8-16 Eagle. Last two nights have been rained out, but prize money is still higher than at corresponding time last year.
Mount Pleasant's satin uniforms are causing a stir.
1939-8-16 Beacon. Lots of commentary, and vg.
1939-8-17 Eagle. Duncan 6, Silverton 0.
Trenton 7, Slater 2. 16K
Wichita Civics 7, Branson MO 2.
Enid 2, Mt Pleasant MI 1.
Struthers 5, Phoenix 3.
Four injuries were suffered at yesterday's baseball in four different ways.
Mt. Pleasant MI has just two players with any pro experience. Enid battery has 30 years of pro ball between the two of them (and 76 years of living.)
Commentary. LA manager = Pete Sanchez.
1939-8-17 Beacon.
Pic of Phil Weinert and Lefty Nix, Buford pitchers.
Pics: Charles Derrington, LA Shells lf. Maurice Harris, Buford. (w/ profiles)
Pic of argument at plate. Jack Mealey, 38-year-old Enid catcher, tossed for using foul language.
Buford has 80-10 record this year. All their players have been in big leagues.
Jesse Collyer, umpire, is instructor at Sing Sing. Tells of baseball there.
1939-8-18 Eagle. Buford Bona Allens 11, LA Shells 0.
Silverton 11, Slater SC 2. Slater made ten errors.
Rome GA 8, Sardis GA 1.
Worcester 10, Vandergrift 5. (line only)
Commentary, and plenty of it. Melton is on Cardinals suspended list.
Upcoming games listed.
1939-8-18 Beacon.
Pic: Duncan infield.
Pic: Gus Hoffman, Mt Pleasant cf, helped off field by Johnnie Hill after ankle injury.
Standings listed.
Buford pitchers have allowed one hit in two games.
1939-8-19 Eagle. 4K ATT. Mt. Pleasant 3, Chanute 2.
Buford 10, Trenton 2. (line only)
LA Shells 5, Sardis GA 0.
Struthers described as Slovakian.
Buford team has worked out dissent which plagued them at Denver.
1939-8-19 Beacon. Rome has won 27 of last 32 games.
Commentary. Claude Willoughby had given up just 2 earned runs in 43 innings - until last night.
1939-8-20 Eagle. Duncan 9, Rome 1.
Lots of pics.
Pic of Frank Melton and Phil Weinert, Buford's pitching hopes.
Plenty of commentary, some about Frank Melton. Iron man.
1939-8-20 Eagle. Action shot - play at the plate.
Chanute 6, Phoenix Thunderbirds 4.
Mt. Pleasant 10, Struthers 1.
Tourney standings listed.
1939-8-21 Eagle. Enid 3, Vandergrift PA Carnegie Steel 0.
Silverton 6, Wichita All-Steel 0.
Trenton 9, Struthers OH 1.
Mt. Pleasant 1, Buford 0.
Chanute 5, Rome Tibize GA 0. 2K ATT.
Pic of argument at plate.
There was the possibility of a protest of Buford's pitchers Melton and Weinert, but players decided they wanted to play. Melton's situation explained. Is not an outlaw nor ineligible.
Preview.
5th round pairings listed.
1939-8-21 Beacon. Pic: Mt. Pleasant catcher Keith Clark congratulates pitcher Vance Cauble.
Pic: Johnnie Hill, MT Pleasant 1b.
Pic: Balsavich, slick-fielding first baseman for Worcester.
Commentary.
1939-8-22 Eagle. Golden Coors 3, Wichita Civics 2. 13 innings. 2.5K ATT.
Red Scourge of Duncan 15, Worcester Nortons 3.
There were high scores in Denver tournament but low scores here. (Mostly.)
Lefty Cauble has plenty of pro experience.
Houston tournament starts late this week.
1939-8-22 Beacon.
Team averages listed. Previews. Commentary.
1939-8-23 Eagle. Enid 15, LA Shells 3.
Silverton 5, Chanute KS 1.
Mt. Pleasant Cubs are very popular - most popular Texas club to play in Wichita since Cisco Kittens.
1939-9-23 Beacon.
Pic: Duncan pitching staff.
Pic of umpires - they wear striped suits.
Pic: Keith Clark, c-MG of Mt. Pleasant
Letter from guy saying that semi-pro is better than amateur - aboveboard - talks of Ban Johnson Leagues in Kansas City - complains that KC papers give no coverage to NBC.
Lots of commentary - interesting stuff - notes variety of team sponsors.
1939-8-24 Eagle. Duncan 2, Mt. Pleasant 1. 11K ATT.
Buford GA 7, Worcester Norton Abrasives 2.
Golden Coors 3, Trenton NJ Prison Guards 2.
Blurry action pic from night game.
9.2K fans went through paid turnstiles last night, not counting 1K knot hole gang, + officials. players' wives, etc. 11K altogether - biggest sports crowd in Wichita history.
Commentary.
Buford Bona Allens finished 2nd in 1936, 2nd in 1937, and 1st in 1938.
Tomorrow's games will be at 8 PM and 10 PM. Previews.
p.1 Pic of Otto "Tarzan" Utt, 250-pound Duncan catcher whose two-run homer beat Mt. Pleasant.
1939-8-24 Beacon. Game previews.
Pic: Johnson Brothers, Moose and Andy, of Buford.
Les Munns and Abe White, Buford pitchers. Munns is former BRO.
1939-8-25 Eagle. Silverton 6, Buford GA 0. 2.5K ATT.
Mt. Pleasant 2, Golden, CO Coors 0.
Silverton has best young team. Roy Helser has won 20 games without a defeat this year. Is the oldest player on the team besides the manager.
Cartoon of man speaking to fireman about to save him: "Could you wait about five minutes please - I wanna listen to this last inning of the Mt. Pleasant game?"
Duncan-Enid preview. Both are former nat. champs.
1939-8-25 Beacon. Enid team pic.
Pic: Chody and Pruitt, Duncan pitchers.
Pic: Abe Miller, Mt. Pleasant pitcher.
Profile of John Henry Hill.
1939-8-26 Eagle. Duncan 5, Enid Champlins 3. p.1 6K ATT. Enid had beaten Duncan 8 out of 9 games this year, including beating them 16-10 in Denver tournament.
Commentary.
Pic: Doc Graves, Duncan right fielder.
1939-8-27 Eagle.
Duncan has retained only four players from nat. champion 1936 squad. All-new pitching staff.
Frank Isbell says umpires need to work out ground rules (if only they had.)
Pic: Roy Helser, MVP.
Mount Pleasant Cubs infield.
1939-8-27 Eagle. Mt. Pleasant 2, Silverton 0. 7K ATT. Biggest Saturday crowd in tournament history.
Tournament youngsters' all-star team named.
Pic: Duncan Halliburton Cementers outfield.
Pic: Virgil and Claude Gilchrist of Enid. George Hall. McConnell.
1939-8-28 Eagle - p.1. Pic of riot. 11,500 ATT.
1939-8-28 (Eagle) Duncan 5, Mt. Pleasant 2. Box. Riot over umpire ruling - explained.
Total prize money of $15,027.30 given to teams, including $2,925.46 for mileage. 1st place, Duncan Cementers, got $5,000 +119.46 mileage, plus all-expenses paid trip to Puerto Rico.
The other nine prize winners received a total of $6,982.26.
Crowd last night was $5,000.
Pic of debris around home plate.
Player awards:
Best hitter: Bruce Sloan, Duncan
Best pitcher: R. Helser, Silverton
Best player: J. Morrow, Mt. Pleasant, in Enid game
Best dressed club: Rome, GA
Most popular player: Johnny Hill, Mt. Pleasant
1939-8-28 (Beacon) Pic of riot. Commentary on controversial decision.
Pic of Ed Lowell, 1b-MG of Halliburton Cementers.
Pic of Halliburton and Mt. Pleasant managers shaking hands.
Pic of John Henry Hill, Mt. Pleasant Cubs 1b, receiving Eagle trophy for most popular player.
Cementers will meet San Juan, PR, for championship of the Americas.
1939-7-12 Erle P. Halliburton fined $13K for sailing his $1.6M yacht where he oughtn't to have.
1941-6-01 eccentric innovations of Ray Dumont, the NBC pres.
1943
1943-8-18 Enid Airs with Cot Deal & Monty Basgall - Portland Firefighters with Barney Koch
1943-9-12 "8K to 12K ATT in almost every game" - woman arbiter hired for publicity purposes - calls only one play - Portland Firemen finished 7th
1943
1943-8-18 Enid Airs with Cot Deal & Monty Basgall - Portland Firefighters with Barney Koch
1943-9-12 "8K to 12K ATT in almost every game" - woman arbiter hired for publicity purposes - calls only one play - Portland Firemen finished 7th
1946
1947
1951
1954
1955
1955-8-31 standings, boxes etc.
"During the Korean War, an Alpine, Texas
team paid Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Johnny Podres, then in
the United States Navy, $1000 a game and $100 a strikeout.
Podres made $2200 in one game ," (p.2/9)
Virgil Cory of
the Wichita Eagle wrote,
"A national just wasn't possible. The idea had
been toyed with by promoters in New York,
Chicago, San Francisco and other centers of
population for years and had been discarded for
several reasons. Too much expense, failure to
get genuine representation of teams from coast to
coast, and an utter lack of a central governing
organization were chief drawbacks in staging a
national tournament." - (/15)
"Dumont
promised Paige $1,000 to bring his Bismarck, North Dakota
"colored" team to the tournament in Wichita." /16
"With Paige's entry set, Dumont enlisted more teams of color. An American Indian team from Wewoka, Oklahoma and a Japanese-American club from Stockton, California accepted invitations from Dumont. Four other teams of African Americans entered the tournament : the Texas Centennials of Dallas, Texas, the Ft . Scott Blackhawks of Kansas, the Memphis Red Sox of the Negro National League; and the Monroe (Louisiana) Monarchs. 13 Dumont filled out the tournament brackets with an eclectic group of teams from around the United States: Gadsden, Alabama ; Jonesboro (Arkansas) Giants; Shawnee (Oklahoma ) Athletics; Poplar Bluff, Missouri; Union Circulation Co. of New York; Halliburton Cementers of Duncan, Oklahoma; Lompee, Cali fornia; Phoenix, Arizona; Byron, Nebraska; Holy Name of New Orleans; Lorraine, Texas; Blue Coals of Buffalo, New York; the Eason Oilers of Oklahoma; Chicago Sheridans; the Ford V-8's of Omaha, Nebraska ; Oceanside, California; Jones Stores of Kansas City, Missouri; Cleveland Mills of Shelby, North Carolina; Stanzal Brothers of Waukegan, Illinois ; ' ~ 9 Shawnee, Oklahoma; Patterson, New Jersey; the Wichita Wings; the Arkansas City (Kansas) Dubbs; and a Kansas All10 Star team. In all, 32 teams from 24 states participated in the inaugural National Semipro Baseball tournament." /17-18
"Wichita Eagle sportswriter Pete Lightner wrote: By Sunday, teams will be arriving for the national semi-pro tourney. Some of the teams have booked games en route to help absorb the expense. It takes plenty of money to get those teams here. The tournament headquarters estimate that each team will spend at least a thousand and in some cases considerably more to get here and live while here." /18
"The tournament finished with over 50,000 fans attending over a t wo-and-a-half week span . Hap Dumont declared it a rousing financial success, making money even after paying Satchel Paige his $1 ,000 " salary."" 11/19
12-13 supported by Landis and Spink of TSN
"All- black teams would be accepted in future years, but that would be up to individual member states that were part of the National Baseball Congress to decide. From 1936 on, the wi nners of the state or regional tournaments were granted entry into the national tournament, with Hap Dumont and his associates picking and choosing teams to round out the field." /21-22
"The 1936 tournament saw Lawrence stadium expand to hold 20,000 fans . Those fans were charged anywhere from forty cents to $1 . 10 to watch the games. Ten teams eventually divided the prize money of $14,617.45. Fans of teams such as the Duncan, (OK) Halliburton Cementers were even able to listen to the games on the radio." /22
"With Paige's entry set, Dumont enlisted more teams of color. An American Indian team from Wewoka, Oklahoma and a Japanese-American club from Stockton, California accepted invitations from Dumont. Four other teams of African Americans entered the tournament : the Texas Centennials of Dallas, Texas, the Ft . Scott Blackhawks of Kansas, the Memphis Red Sox of the Negro National League; and the Monroe (Louisiana) Monarchs. 13 Dumont filled out the tournament brackets with an eclectic group of teams from around the United States: Gadsden, Alabama ; Jonesboro (Arkansas) Giants; Shawnee (Oklahoma ) Athletics; Poplar Bluff, Missouri; Union Circulation Co. of New York; Halliburton Cementers of Duncan, Oklahoma; Lompee, Cali fornia; Phoenix, Arizona; Byron, Nebraska; Holy Name of New Orleans; Lorraine, Texas; Blue Coals of Buffalo, New York; the Eason Oilers of Oklahoma; Chicago Sheridans; the Ford V-8's of Omaha, Nebraska ; Oceanside, California; Jones Stores of Kansas City, Missouri; Cleveland Mills of Shelby, North Carolina; Stanzal Brothers of Waukegan, Illinois ; ' ~ 9 Shawnee, Oklahoma; Patterson, New Jersey; the Wichita Wings; the Arkansas City (Kansas) Dubbs; and a Kansas All10 Star team. In all, 32 teams from 24 states participated in the inaugural National Semipro Baseball tournament." /17-18
"Wichita Eagle sportswriter Pete Lightner wrote: By Sunday, teams will be arriving for the national semi-pro tourney. Some of the teams have booked games en route to help absorb the expense. It takes plenty of money to get those teams here. The tournament headquarters estimate that each team will spend at least a thousand and in some cases considerably more to get here and live while here." /18
"The tournament finished with over 50,000 fans attending over a t wo-and-a-half week span . Hap Dumont declared it a rousing financial success, making money even after paying Satchel Paige his $1 ,000 " salary."" 11/19
12-13 supported by Landis and Spink of TSN
"All- black teams would be accepted in future years, but that would be up to individual member states that were part of the National Baseball Congress to decide. From 1936 on, the wi nners of the state or regional tournaments were granted entry into the national tournament, with Hap Dumont and his associates picking and choosing teams to round out the field." /21-22
"The 1936 tournament saw Lawrence stadium expand to hold 20,000 fans . Those fans were charged anywhere from forty cents to $1 . 10 to watch the games. Ten teams eventually divided the prize money of $14,617.45. Fans of teams such as the Duncan, (OK) Halliburton Cementers were even able to listen to the games on the radio." /22
Tightens eligibility standards /22
"The 1938 tournament incorporated almost eighty percent of the teams from industrial firms and not one of them was integrated." /23-24
"Originally, Dumont and his advisors made it extremely 22 difficult for military teams to participate in the NBC tournament. Teams would have to qualify in numerous district games, which service clubs found difficult to attend due to their military obligations. Special Services Captain Leroy Mounday of Fort Riley, Kansas, who had one o f the better military teams in the Midwest, asked the NBC hierarchy to amend the rules that better allowed the service clubs to participate in the NBC tournament. Mounday recommended that they be exempted from district qualifying and that professionals players be allowed to play (which the NBC banned from competition up until this point), permitted them to play at the site closest to their state tournaments, and gave them flexibility in scheduling games . Dumont acquiesced to Mounday's recommendations and granted the service clubs permission to play in the 1942 NBC tournament." /30-31
"Competition for the average citizen's dollar was at a premium during the war years, and Dumont knew that he had to make his tournament and program more attractive than other activities. In fact, the American Baseball Congress, a rival organization, decided to suspend operations for the duration of the war. As a result, the ABC never again was able to achieve the popularity and success of the National Baseball Congress ." /33-34
Dumont's innovations, good and bad /33-40
"Wichita Eagle columnist Pete Lightner wr ote that "the early national tournament drew around $19,000, or not so much as a present state tourney. Quite a boost , and prexy Dumont expects the national to go up a r ound $36,000 or more (in 1945), twice as high as what his first one grossed." /41-42
:By the tenth anniversary of the tournament in 1945, Dumont had lined up an international semi-pro tournament." /42
- invited Japan to play in international tournament in 1945 - PR blunder /43
"Whoever wants to know the heart and soul and mind of America had better lear n baseball, the rules and r ealities of the game-and do it by watching first some high school or small-town teams." Historian Jacque Barzun in God's Country and Mine: A Declaration of Love Spiced with a Few Harsh Words - /50
"An exhibition game in September 1950 between that year's National Baseball Congress champions, the Ft. Wayne , I ndi ana Capeharts against a Japanese semi-professional team from Osaka named the All- 44 Kanebo club was the first stage in Dumont's plan to promote his brand of baseball overseas." /51-52
"The five game series ended up drawing 317,000 Japanese fans and, if Cookson is to be believed, performed perhaps one of the greatest Trojan horse maneuvers in history" /53
"In 1954, Dumont decreed that camp teams could no longer play as units in the National Baseball Congress 46 tournament . Billy Martin, who would go on to play second base for the New York Yankees and manage numerous Major League Baseball teams, said, "As Whitey Herzog will tell you, Hap Dumont made it tough on service players in 1954 by not letting camp teams play as units, but we moonlighted, like I did from Camp Carson, Colorado with Goodland, Kansas. Nice people, nice town, even if we couldn't beat Herzog's guys from Springfield, Missouri." /53-54
"The 1938 tournament incorporated almost eighty percent of the teams from industrial firms and not one of them was integrated." /23-24
"Originally, Dumont and his advisors made it extremely 22 difficult for military teams to participate in the NBC tournament. Teams would have to qualify in numerous district games, which service clubs found difficult to attend due to their military obligations. Special Services Captain Leroy Mounday of Fort Riley, Kansas, who had one o f the better military teams in the Midwest, asked the NBC hierarchy to amend the rules that better allowed the service clubs to participate in the NBC tournament. Mounday recommended that they be exempted from district qualifying and that professionals players be allowed to play (which the NBC banned from competition up until this point), permitted them to play at the site closest to their state tournaments, and gave them flexibility in scheduling games . Dumont acquiesced to Mounday's recommendations and granted the service clubs permission to play in the 1942 NBC tournament." /30-31
"Competition for the average citizen's dollar was at a premium during the war years, and Dumont knew that he had to make his tournament and program more attractive than other activities. In fact, the American Baseball Congress, a rival organization, decided to suspend operations for the duration of the war. As a result, the ABC never again was able to achieve the popularity and success of the National Baseball Congress ." /33-34
Dumont's innovations, good and bad /33-40
"Wichita Eagle columnist Pete Lightner wr ote that "the early national tournament drew around $19,000, or not so much as a present state tourney. Quite a boost , and prexy Dumont expects the national to go up a r ound $36,000 or more (in 1945), twice as high as what his first one grossed." /41-42
:By the tenth anniversary of the tournament in 1945, Dumont had lined up an international semi-pro tournament." /42
- invited Japan to play in international tournament in 1945 - PR blunder /43
"Whoever wants to know the heart and soul and mind of America had better lear n baseball, the rules and r ealities of the game-and do it by watching first some high school or small-town teams." Historian Jacque Barzun in God's Country and Mine: A Declaration of Love Spiced with a Few Harsh Words - /50
"An exhibition game in September 1950 between that year's National Baseball Congress champions, the Ft. Wayne , I ndi ana Capeharts against a Japanese semi-professional team from Osaka named the All- 44 Kanebo club was the first stage in Dumont's plan to promote his brand of baseball overseas." /51-52
"The five game series ended up drawing 317,000 Japanese fans and, if Cookson is to be believed, performed perhaps one of the greatest Trojan horse maneuvers in history" /53
"In 1954, Dumont decreed that camp teams could no longer play as units in the National Baseball Congress 46 tournament . Billy Martin, who would go on to play second base for the New York Yankees and manage numerous Major League Baseball teams, said, "As Whitey Herzog will tell you, Hap Dumont made it tough on service players in 1954 by not letting camp teams play as units, but we moonlighted, like I did from Camp Carson, Colorado with Goodland, Kansas. Nice people, nice town, even if we couldn't beat Herzog's guys from Springfield, Missouri." /53-54
"The 1951 National Baseball Congress state tournaments
were ones in which eighty percent of the participating
teams represented towns of 5,000 people or fewer . These
teams, for the most part, were munic i pally owned
franchises. The remaining twenty percent were s p lit
between industry-sponsored teams and the teams from
military installations. 4 The 1952 NBC tournament saw the
last hurrah for military service teams, as fourteen out of
the thirty-four teams were from military posts. 5 The Fort
Leonard wood players, representing Springfield, Missouri ,
managed by Whitey Herzog, could not even make it to the
finals in Wichita in time to play in the tournament due to
their participation in the All-Service baseball tournament
in Denver, Colorado." /54
"Johnny Braden, the general manager of the employee relations department at General Electric, headed up the Fort Wayne baseball club. The G.E. plant supported Braden and his dream of putting together a stellar baseball team, by compensating each player with $600 extra dollars. 8 During Ft Wayne's incredible run, Braden used sixty-two different players, onl y seventeen of whom were on more than one championship team . Fort Wayne was such an established semi- pro town that when the Pittsburgh Pirates tried to launch a professional farm club chere in 1948, the team folded wi thin a few years." /55-56
fn: "General Electric sponsored the team for several years and then they decided to part ways with Johnny Braden. Braden, though did not have any trouble finding sponsors: the 1950 team was called the Capeharts and the 1956 title squad was known as the Dairymen. The players were still employed at the General Electric plant."
"Johnny Braden, the general manager of the employee relations department at General Electric, headed up the Fort Wayne baseball club. The G.E. plant supported Braden and his dream of putting together a stellar baseball team, by compensating each player with $600 extra dollars. 8 During Ft Wayne's incredible run, Braden used sixty-two different players, onl y seventeen of whom were on more than one championship team . Fort Wayne was such an established semi- pro town that when the Pittsburgh Pirates tried to launch a professional farm club chere in 1948, the team folded wi thin a few years." /55-56
fn: "General Electric sponsored the team for several years and then they decided to part ways with Johnny Braden. Braden, though did not have any trouble finding sponsors: the 1950 team was called the Capeharts and the 1956 title squad was known as the Dairymen. The players were still employed at the General Electric plant."
"A West Texas millionaire named
Herbert L . Kokernot owned one such team, the Alpine City,
Te x as, Cowboys . Koker not threw money at accomplished
baseball players, such as Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher
Johnny Podres, and lured them to play in a ballpark that
was reminiscent of some professional baseball facilities. " /56-57
College players introduced in 1960s, quickly became big part of tournament /70
Alaska /71
Daryl Spencer during 1960s: ""Twenty years ago it seemed like every town in America had a minor league team. Everyday kids were getting released and coming back home to play semipro ball. Nowadays you don't have but a handful of minor leagues, and when a kid does get released, it seems like he always quits." /72
Boulder Collegians find recruitment easy - lots of fut. pros /73
"Dumont could not control fate, as some of the men who had influenced him and the early success of the NBC tournament passed away during the sixties. Pete Lightner died in a private plane crash in the early summer of 1960. Lightner was returning from an assignment for the Wichita Eagle, for which he had served as the sports editor for well over thirty years, when the accident occurred. When Lightner passed away the coverage of the NBC tournament in the Wichita Eagle, while still abundant, lacked the personal touch that Dumont's dear friend brought to it." /76
"At the end of the 1970s, the National Baseball Congress changed ownership hands again. Joe Ryan, the president of the American Association since 1972, acquired the NBC tournament along with a Miami attorney, Ron Fine. Ryan said at the time, "I not only respect Ray Dumont as a promoter and a person and Wichita as the traditional site of the tournament. But I also knew that with the college fountainhead of talent, the NBC was like a pretty good minor league . Basically, Class A and some teams even stronger. " 13 Ryan kept the NBC tournament in Wichita at a time when it seemed destined to ride off to greener pastures in another city." /90
Considered moving tournament to different place; Milwaukee, perhaps. (May have only been for publicity.) /58
Pushback on proposed legalized gambling /61
College players introduced in 1960s, quickly became big part of tournament /70
Alaska /71
Daryl Spencer during 1960s: ""Twenty years ago it seemed like every town in America had a minor league team. Everyday kids were getting released and coming back home to play semipro ball. Nowadays you don't have but a handful of minor leagues, and when a kid does get released, it seems like he always quits." /72
Boulder Collegians find recruitment easy - lots of fut. pros /73
"Dumont could not control fate, as some of the men who had influenced him and the early success of the NBC tournament passed away during the sixties. Pete Lightner died in a private plane crash in the early summer of 1960. Lightner was returning from an assignment for the Wichita Eagle, for which he had served as the sports editor for well over thirty years, when the accident occurred. When Lightner passed away the coverage of the NBC tournament in the Wichita Eagle, while still abundant, lacked the personal touch that Dumont's dear friend brought to it." /76
"At the end of the 1970s, the National Baseball Congress changed ownership hands again. Joe Ryan, the president of the American Association since 1972, acquired the NBC tournament along with a Miami attorney, Ron Fine. Ryan said at the time, "I not only respect Ray Dumont as a promoter and a person and Wichita as the traditional site of the tournament. But I also knew that with the college fountainhead of talent, the NBC was like a pretty good minor league . Basically, Class A and some teams even stronger. " 13 Ryan kept the NBC tournament in Wichita at a time when it seemed destined to ride off to greener pastures in another city." /90
Considered moving tournament to different place; Milwaukee, perhaps. (May have only been for publicity.) /58
Pushback on proposed legalized gambling /61
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