A Nod To Three Now Gone

 The past few weeks have brought some losses. Not just on the field, but on the homefront, as several notables have passed.

 

BOBBY JENKS

   The affable reliever who won a World Series with the White Sox was a familiar face in the Southern League, first on the way up in 2005 while with the Birmingham Barons, the same season he would join White Sox postseason legends as the Chicago closer in the fall classic. Bobby Jenks was again in Barons togs in 2008 when he made a rehab appearance, taking the hill in Montgomery against the Biscuits. Talking with Jenks was a pleasure, the babyfaced hurler emanated an aura of joy and youthful excitement, he will be missed by many.

ED MICKELSON

   Ed Mickelson's Major League career spanned three seasons, but included just eighteen game appearances that culminated in 1957 with the Chicago Cubs. Among his most notable achievements was driving the St. Louis Browns franchise final run in 1953. However, he was a prolific minor league hitter and first baseman. While with Montgomery in 1950, Ed had a phenomenal season, posting a .417 average with 21 homeruns and 102 runs batted in. It was such a strong showing that Mickelson was promoted to the St. Louis Cardinals where he made his MLB debut.

  Ed Mickelson chronicled his baseball adventures in the autobiographical book, "Out of the Park: Memoir of a Minor League Baseball Star" which I found to be a wonderful read.

 

HOSKEN POWELL 

   Outfielder Hosken Powell, a Selma native, is perhaps the least recognized name among the three recent passings, but likely had the longest MLB career among them. With four full seasons in Minnesota and two years in Toronto, Powell played in nearly 600 big league games, batting .259 with 17 home runs and 43 stolen bases in his career. 

A first round draft pick by Pittsburgh in January of 1975, he stayed in college at Chipola for another six months until drafted by Minnesota, again in the first round of the June '75 draft (3rd overall). 

Hosken boasted a strong batting average in rookie and A-ball, earning a promotion to triple-A Tacoma in 1977. Powell had no trouble with minor league pitching, batting a robust .326 with sixteen stolen bases. Hoskens made his MLB debut in '78, but found big league hurlers a challenge, batting just .247 as the Twins regular right fielder. Powell's second season was perhaps his best, with career highs in average (.293), doubles (13) and runs batted in (36).

Powell spent two more seasons in the Twins outfield, playing in over four hundred games with Minnesota before being traded to Toronto for Greg Wells in December of 1981. With the Blue Jays, Hosken Powell was the Jays fourth outfielder but got into over a hundred games, batting .275 with three homers and four steals. 1983 was Powell's final MLB season, playing in just forty games before being released. Hosken spent a season with the Brewer's triple-A team and then signed with Saltillo in Mexico for one year. Powell scouted for a time after his playing days, then retired to hunting, fishing and enjoying his family. 

 

 

 Learning to Be a Caregiver to History

 I didn't set out to specialize in baseball history, but I found my local stories were mostly orphaned. When I wanted to know about baseball, there was no answer. Other cities have their totals and dates recorded, losing that information seems nearly criminal to me.

I recognize that a large part of the history I look after does not fully belong to me, requiring much respect and careful handling. These people were family to some, teammates to others, community members and sometimes unheralded stars. Some were also occasionally, or even habitually, involved in questionable situations or events, yet stories of their adventures sometimes distort the character of the individuals. I try to be cautious in how people are portrayed in my work, I try to consider how that person would react to hearing their story as I have told it, and also how their family might react to learning new details about their relations life.

I find being authentic and without judgement the best path, lay out the events and individuals involved and the reader can make their own appraisal on the merits of any certain person, subject or event.

That being said, there were a few folks in my recent studies that I was actively pulling against. Specifically speaking, racists. They stick out badly in society, they can't stay quiet about their opinions, their actions are hateful and often dangerous to everyone around them. Thankfully, describing their activities is usually enough to reveal their nature without the need for applying any labels.

Researching ballplayers is an adventure that develops over time, sometimes hours or days but often weeks or years. One aspect of my study took me deep into old time players and city history, as is often the case. Along the way, an event occurs and a name pops up of another person involved. It was a painful discovery, as I expanded my searching to include this new name, it became obvious they were a flat out rotten person. I did my best, but I am sure longtime readers will notice my lack of tolerance for that. As an author I was unable to resist including their comeuppance in the retelling, which I found truly sweet. And I hope you do too.

Another individual I found hard to stomach was, for a time, a Montgomery sportswriter in the old days. This respected newsman became a prominent mover in the baseball scene in the South, familiar at the time to most newspaper readers but now known mostly among baseball history researchers. I had encountered his name in previous deep dives into local baseball lore, but every time I come across his work it is difficult to interpret due to his racial bias. When a "newsman" won't print stories on Black teams, how do we take his word for it when he says so-and-so is the best player he has seen? Well, we don't. Pass the salt, I need a few grains.

 

The history portion of this post is a video of author Bill Plott speaking at last summers baseball conference. The leading authority on the Negro Southern League, Bill was also a Montgomery Advertiser reporter for decades and has a unique insight on the history of baseball in central Alabama, particularly pertaining to the Negro Leagues.

 

The Developing Story of Grey Sox Owner Osie Mitchell

Plott & Doc

While researching my upcoming book "Black Baseball in Alabama 1870-1950" I was privileged to be given access to unpublished interviews with former Montgomery Grey Sox players. More than thirty years ago, historian Bill Plott tracked down men such as Marion Cunningham and other notables from the team and he has kindly shared that information with me. It contains a wealth of anecdotal stories and names that reveal much about the development of the Montgomery Grey Sox.

The photograph of the 1916 Montgomery Grey Sox in Bill Plott's excellent book "The Negro Southern League: A Baseball History 1920-1951" is the earliest known image of the team and likely the first photo of any Black team in Montgomery. Unfortunately, it only identifies Henry Hannon Jr. among the players. However, Plott's unpublished interviews provided several other names, which I am thrilled to be able to have included in my book. Yet one figure posed a challenge, multiple interviewees tabbed the suited man seated center as "Ossie Mitchell, owner" but gave no further clues to his identity.

1916 Montgomery Grey Sox, (colorization by Dr.M for the upcoming book!)

 As I searched, I found much information on the Grey Sox of the era which helped tell the story of the team for my book, but Mitchell eluded me endlessly. There was just no info to be found on a trail so cold. After long months tracking every name that "Ossie" could be a derivative of, we were finally able to catch a break, but too late for inclusion in my book. Thanks to my good friend, reliable source and co-investigator Jo and her curious cat's assistance, a different spelling of the name was uncovered. First, a WW1 draft deferment card was found, then a Montgomery Advertiser article confirming Mitchell's connection to the club in one single mention in 1919. With some items spelling his name as "Osie", it opened the door for many new discoveries.

 

OSIE MITCHELL - MONTGOMERY GREY SOX "OWNER" 

Osie Mitchell

 In 1919 ahead of a series against the Bessemer Stars the Montgomery Advertiser reports the Grey Sox team is run by Ossie Mitchell. Taking into account the multiple spellings possible, it becomes clear Mitchell was associating with ballplayers and likely held a controlling stake in the club. He was also a very busy and wealthy guy. And probably a gangster. 

Osie Mitchell, also known as "Ocie" or "Ossie" was born in Montgomery, Alabama on November 6th 1881. He may have had a sister named Exa, they were likely brought up in and around Montgomery, but little is known about their family life. 

 In 1914 Osie was caught, along with a dozen other men, in a late-nite gambling raid on North Decatur Street. Apprehended along with Osie was Joe Scotland, likely the Montgomery-native outfielder known for playing with Birmingham and Indianapolis.

 

By the time WW1 starts, Osie was in his mid-30's and married to Olivia, they would split up in the 1920's without any known children. Mitchell signed his name with a single "s" on his draft deferment, indicating that he used "Osie" as the preferred spelling. It was "Osie" for the census takers in 1920 and 1940, but other documents listed him as "Ocie". 

During World War One, Osie Mitchell was employed by the Army quartermasters at Camp Sheridan, a lucrative and enviable job in "acquisitions" was possibly a role related to his pre-war occupation.

Osie Mitchell ran a bar/pool hall and lived at the corner of Yougene and Smythe Streets, in the center of what is now The Plaza at Centennial Hill. The place was a popular local hangout, Mitchell took it over sometime after 1910 after being employed there as a bartender. 

Osie was deeply involved in illegal liquor. Alabama's alcohol prohibition began in 1907, well before the national booze ban, sending bootleggers into action. Mitchell was picked up by police at fairly regular intervals, often while delivering bottles to clients around the city. Some are elite socialites, others average citizens, race seems to have no bearing on Osie Mitchell's delivery service.

Osie's bar was the location of several prohibition violation raids and vice busts. A few times police sweep in to arrest gamblers, resulting in fines for Osie as owner. At least once a deadly shooting took place, though Osie was not involved, nor even at the location when it happened.

Which is probably a good thing, Osie was often brought to court to account for being caught with concealed weapons. Mitchell pays fines in cash easily, rarely being locked up for more than a night. A fifty dollar fine is simply an annoyance for Osie Mitchell. 

From the turn of the century and through the 19-teens and 1920's, Osie Mitchell was a regular among Montgomery courtroom attendees, but seems almost untouchable. In 1917 Osie and thirteen others, mostly women, had their cases dropped when the arresting detectives, two Black men from Birmingham, conveniently disappeared and were unable to testify.

However, there are always complications for those who operate outside the lines of legality. When police found gallons of booze in half-pint and one quart bottles at his pool hall in 1927, Mitchell was arrested but he quickly posted the $200 cash bail and went back to work. Occasionally white policemen raid the location, more often Mitchell was caught by Black officers working undercover.

In 1928 Osie had a prohibition violation overturned on appeal, an expensive lawyer found multiple courtroom errors during his trail. Then, after a shooting at Osie's poolhall resulted in the closing of his bar, things started to unravel. In 1929 he was slapped with a thirteen month sentence for receiving stolen property. Finally unable to avoid being locked up, Osie spent a year at Atmore's correctional facility (which recorded him as "Ocie Mitchell") before being released in November of 1930.

It's back to work for Osie, who was once more caught selling bootleg liqour in 1934, five cases of bottled hooch were found at his place on Yougene Street. In 1937 he was again in court on "internal revenue" charges relating to unlicensed alcohol sales. This time it was revealed he was involved in a moonshine smuggling operation, his place used as a distribution point for sales of 200 gallons of corn whiskey a week. Osie Mitchell (this time reported as "Obie") got a three year sentence in Atlanta's penitentiary, apparently ending his business for good. The case was noted as the first in the area to be tried with equal members of white and Black jurors.

Following his release, Osie Mitchell seems to have lived quietly until his passing on October 28th of 1957, he was buried in Lincoln Cemetery where many well-known Black Montgomery residents are interred.

 Osie Mitchell was an important part of the transition from Montgomery's 19th century baseball teams to the club that was admitted to the Negro Southern League in 1920. It is Osie Mitchell paying the players, funding the roadtrips, covering visiting teams guarantees and paying the rent on the ballparks being used. Mitchell is seated with the team for the 1916 photo and mentioned as controlling the club in 1919, but after that he is never again publicly connected with the team. When Osie Mitchell first gained control of the team and how he later handed it over to Henry Hannon is currently unknown, but it is likely that is exactly what took place. 

Osie Mitchell is an example of the swiftly changing nature of our knowledge of early Black baseball. Literally a week ago there was zero understanding of who this man was, an unnamed person in an single photograph from a hundred years ago, a human essentially lost to history. Today, we can recognize him as an owner and promoter of the Montgomery Grey Sox, Osie Mitchell was also a part of the lively culture developing in Alabama as Black entrepreneurs learned to navigate in society and around the law in order to maintain their independence in the face of Jim Crow.  

 

If you would like to know more about Alabama's baseball history, I hope you will consider purchasing my new book, "Black Baseball in Alabama 1870-1950" due out this summer! 

 

Book Talk, My Misconceptions!

 

A year ago I presented my research on the origins of Black baseball in the area to the 19th Annual Southern Association Baseball Research Conference. Twelve months later that work has become the book "Black Baseball in Alabama 1870-1950: The Rough Diamonds of Dixie", the first ever published on that topic as far as I am aware of, a trend that gives me immense pride to buck. That no one had taken the time to research and document the stories of Alabama's rich baseball history seems almost criminal. Few states, if any, have such a wealth of history, for it to remain hidden simply could not continue, someone had to help tell the stories of these incredible men and women.

Yes, women. There were multiple teams of Black women playing baseball as early the the 1880's, all across Alabama. Some women's teams travel from other places to Alabama, touring the country and taking on teams of men and women wherever they went. Few individuals are named in connection to the clubs, which often prefer to play games away from prying eyes and hooting fans.

Alabama's influence in Black baseball is not just local, it stretches across the country and beyond. The entire nation of Cuba has baseball largely because Alabama shared it with them, they returned the favor by hosting Alabama's top Black baseball stars in popular Caribbean leagues. Chicago became a Black baseball metropolis thanks in a large part to the efforts of a formerly-enslaved Alabamian.

Early baseball teams were closely connected with politics, infusing ideals with the game that still exist. Soon, however, the rowdy nature of the players often found them being portrayed as low class, which simply was not true. Many Black athletes were well-schooled gentlemen educated in the finest institutions in the country. They are often doctors, politicians, teachers and citizens of the highest social standing.

Communities were connecting and baseball was a perfect vehicle for social interaction. The result was a mix of well-to-do gentlemen and blue-collar laborers playing to defend their respective perceived honors in mock societal combat. With bragging rights at stake, people took interest and started showing up to watch in such numbers that it demanded organization.

The stories of the players and games in my area were one of the things that first interested me in Black baseball history, to that end I included as much information about the players and games in all locations across the state. I hope that anyone in Alabama will find at least one item connected to their city, or within forty miles of it.

 

I had many, many misconceptions about Negro League baseball before I began this project. Such as:

I thought the seasons were shorter. Instead I found Black teams played a lot more games than white clubs. They had to, in order to survive. An idle team makes no money.

I thought the players were unknown/undocumented. I found that false in the sense that "official" documentation is still an ongoing process, leaving many players waiting for their due credit, even though their names are easily found and attached to teams and events. Also, Alabama's teams have largely been pooh-poohed by baseball historians, who overlook huge events and brush off important details.

I thought Black teams were disadvantaged in terms of equipment. I found this unequivocally false, they utilized cutting edge gear. Black teams, like their white counterparts, were equipped on the level of their financial backing, and varied widely. The first catchers masks in Alabama were worn by a Black team.

I thought Black teams played at their own parks away from white teams. I found that after 1920, white and Black teams often shared fields. When any team acquired a new field, local teams of the opposite race were usually given access, as finances dictated the success of any team or ballpark. An idle ballpark makes no money.

I thought Black teams played for Black fans. I found that after the 1880's crowds were primarily mixed, with the general feeling among white fans that it was much more enriching to sit alongside Black fans who knew the players and teams well and were active baseball supporters.

I thought Black teams struggled financially. I found that in Alabama, Black teams often earned more at the gate by drawing larger crowds than white teams in the same city and had executives on par with the best in the country.

I thought Negro League history just laid there. I found that it was actively changing, almost daily new information is becoming available. A thriving community of researchers, biographers, baseball enthusiasts and historians are busy uncovering details and updating our understanding all the time. 

Lastly, I thought Black baseball was about baseball. It is so much more than that alone, influencing every aspect of American society and culture. Movies, music, politics, food, dance, law, finance, there was no area that Black baseball was not somehow closely tied to.

 

It's been an incredibly enriching experience to expand my understanding of Alabama's baseball history as regards it's amazing Black baseball legacy. I hope you will consider giving it a look when it appears on shelves later this summer.

Announcement! Black Baseball in Alabama 1870-1950: The Rough Diamonds of Dixie

While waiting for the Biscuits to get their heads together on how they want to handle their most vocal internet supporter, I have much more important news!

 

At the NSL Museum

On Saturday I enjoyed the Jackie Robinson Day festivities in Birmingham at the Negro Southern League Museum, meeting again with its founder, Dr. Layton Revel as well as Dan Creed, the senior researcher on the NSLM staff. I also met Bham Mayor Randall Woodfin and several former Negro League players, including one from Montgomery who had some wonderful tales.

Also on the agenda was visiting and photographing the location that was formerly West End Park, known as the Slag Pile, where Birmingham's biggest ballgames were held before Rickwood Field was constructed. This will all come in very handy for my upcoming project, which I am now very happy to be able to announce.

 

 BLACK BASEBALL IN ALABAMA 1870-1950: The Rough Diamonds of Dixie

Coming to bookshelves this summer, my first book, "Black Baseball in Alabama 1870-1950: The Rough Diamonds of Dixie" will be available and I can not be more excited about it! From The History Press publishers, it should be in stores across the state, nation and perhaps beyond by September. For me, it is the culmination of years of study and research, I am thrilled to have the chance to share it with everyone.

The overlooked stories of the men and women in Alabama who aided the development of baseball have long been in danger of being lost, the African American contributions to the sport are immeasurable and a crucial part of the American experience. Lending a voice to those who can no longer tell their stories themselves and sparking more discussion on the amazing and largely unheralded history of Alabama's Black baseball legacy has been the most amazing adventure.

 

PREPARE FOR A SHOCK

There are many surprising stories, shocking me even as I researched them. Some are so incredible you will wonder if they can possibly be true. You will question what you have been previously told about famous players, teams and events after reading this book! 

What I thought I knew about baseball was wrong. 

What I thought I knew about Negro League baseball was wrong. 

What we are told is a streamlined myth, a fairy tale crafted to let young children sleep easily.

There is simply no area of American life that was not in some way connected to Black baseball in Alabama. Alabama Black baseball influenced, and was influenced by, everything across the country, from music to food to education to travel to politics. 

WHATS IN THE BOOK?

With the Dr. Miraculous style that has, to many, become synonymous with telling Alabama baseball history, lost stories are brought back from the past to be held in the light of the sun, often for the first time in decades. Forgotten players who were legends in their day are again heralded, juggernaut teams that have fallen into oblivion are again championed, even cities that no longer exist are given their due for the game they loved.

The tales and images range from old-time 1800's to mid-20th century and modern, they illustrate the life and times of ballplayers and the spread of baseball from city to city. People and places are the focus, identifying as many individuals as possible and sharing their struggles and victories, as well as the constant dangers that existed for those who simply sought to play baseball. 

1880's Western Railway of Alabama, now the location of Riverwalk Stadium

WHO'S IN IT?

Lots of famous players are mentioned, including info about Satchel Paige never printed before. Stars like Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella appear, but just as shining are the unheralded greats such as Geechie Meredith and George Lockhart. 

Some have tragic stories, the dangers of being a Black ballplayer in Alabama were inescapable. Police reports were as common as scouting reports in my research. I was surprised at the body count for this baseball history, which will also fall into some readers "True Crime" collections. It is not for the fainthearted. 

There are ballplayers, managers and owners too. But the cast of characters includes much more. Jazz and blues musicians rub shoulders with gamblers and gangsters, politicians and actors are involved, as are bootleggers and policemen. There are a lot of names you will know, some you won't and many you should.

Dozens of cities across Alabama, large and small, are documented for their earliest and most successful Black teams. Crossroads and ditches, mills and mines, colleges and fire department teams and their players are recognized for their baseball accomplishments. 

Many players career records are identified for the first time, entire cities are added to the map of important Alabama locations that have featured major league players, teams and hosted games.

Many players, including Hall of Famers, are identified as appearing with Alabama teams for the first time.

CANT READ? THATS OKAY!

Look at the pictures! 

Norman "Turkey" Stearnes

Oh, these images, if I have been errant in my attention to you on the blog it has largely been due to the challenging hunt for rare photos to accompany the stories and characters described. And that hunt has been very fruitful, I am happy to report. I have scoured the planet and found help from the very best in the baseball research world and beyond. 

Institutions such as Harvard, UCLA, Tuskegee University, Alabama State University and many others opened their archives for this project, some for the very first time in their history. Libraries of ten American cities shared info and photos, some never before published. 

Dr. Ravel of the Negro Southern League Museum kindly provided many more, often unseen, photos. Historian William Plott gave use of his images, including some photos never before seen and unpublished interviews with Montgomery Grey Sox players. 

Museums were generous with support, including leading photography galleries in New York. Locally, the Alabama Department of Archives & History and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts were extremely helpful.

Many nationally recognized Negro League experts, simply too many to name individually, assisted with info or shared player and team images for this project.

 

 NEED MORE? OF COURSE WE DO!

George  "Tubby" Scales

But it's not enough to just have pictures. We need names.

Again, I gotchu fam.

 I identify teams that have been lost to history for decades, in many cases over a hundred years, and include the names of their known players in order for their modern descendants to locate them and for researchers to locate them in other known photos.

If that's not enough, I include every nickname I could find, Steel Arm and Candy Jim are just the tip of the Cool Papa Bell iceberg. 

WHAT WILL BE LEARNED?

Montgomery's first No-hitter was thrown by a Black man. You will see his name and face together for the very first time.

The legendary Satchel Paige has some very startling revelations, including how he got started in pro baseball and other stories never told before.

Read the origin story of the Montgomery Grey Sox, previously entirely unknown, and how it was sparked by the most notorious gangster in town. 

The Birmingham Black Barons beginnings are laid bare, as are the organized crime syndicates battling for control of the team.

Discover who won the disputed Negro Southern League championships of 1920 & 1921, the mystery finally untangled.

Hear how Birmingham and Montgomery became major league teams, and the players who starred for them. 

Josh Gibson brought his Homestead Grays to many Alabama cities, including one of the biggest games of his career.

See the faces of the men who played with Montgomery's major league team for the very first time.

Barnstorming became a way of life, learn how it saved the Black Barons and cemented their legendary status.

Stories include, bats, balls, gloves, facemasks, guns, knives, razors, poison, cars, busses, trains, tornadoes, electric chairs, moonshine, phrenology, the KKK, chain gangs, minstrels, and so much more!

 

WHERE DO I GET IT?

The release date has not yet been announced, and I will be debuting the cover in about six weeks or so. I expect the book to be on shelves in bookstores and ballparks across the nation, particularly in the South and in Alabama. Of course as I am able to, I will share updates on when/where to get it, and I look forward to sharing the stories of Black Baseball in Alabama with everyone!

 

 

It's Just Some Pictures, Guys

It's just pictures, guys. Let's go!

Let me explain.

In 2016 I was approached by the team front office for images of their players to supplement their promotions. I said no problem, I like to help out. I had previously been providing them images as requested for free, but the team indicated they wanted to move beyond that and work together. I was happy to do so. 

 

I shot the pictures for the team baseball card set and heard a lot of good feedback from players, fans and the front office. I was paid exactly one hundred dollars for what amounted to two weeks of shooting, focused on getting usable shots of each player. It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed it and didn't mind the low pay. Probably came out to about two dollars a picture, instead of the usual pro rate of $25-$125 per. I was helping the team, right?

Later that summer I was told by the front office
that my images had been mistakenly passed to an advertiser, but was not told who. My images were on a portable usb device that had somehow been handed off, and I would not get my usb device back. Okay, fine.

 

Then I found my images used without my knowledge for third-party merchandise. As many as four images of players I had shot were included in the Southern League All-Star team card set produced by the Mississippi Braves. I was not asked and if I signed away permission for their use I do not recall it, as I was under the impression our agreement was for the use of my images for Biscuit promotions. 

Either way it would have been nice to be compensated, provided a copy for my own archives or at least told about the use.

After that, I was quietly refused further photography jobs with the team. I have repeatedly asked what we can do to continue our work together. But instead, the club first handed an expensive camera to entry level staffers before finally hiring a media person for camera work along with many other duties during games. Fine, whatever.

When MLB took over MiLB and the pandemic shut down the season, my media pass became obsolete. Since then I have repeatedly requested media access from the Biscuits, who have said "Oh sure we will email you that info. It comes from MLB now." It is literally the same guy I worked with when shooting for MiLB.com and Minor League Baseball with no problems, but I don't have his contact info so I requested several times to be put in touch. 

I've been waiting to hear back from the Biscuits with that contact info, which I request every six months.

For four years.

I do not understand the delay. Nor do I appreciate it, since I have been quietly sitting on the fact that my images were likely used for third-party merch and been denied further work with them.

My photography over the past twenty years includes working with equipment companies, sports agents and players themselves. My photos have appeared in magazines, newspapers, MLB programs and promotions, as well as on national television news programs. I have worked as an on-field photographer at multiple MiLB parks, in dugouts and bullpens during games, quietly doing the job at hand while building a reputation for quality pictures.

Before each game I go to the pressbox and find the info package made available to the media. The Biscuits used to offer that info for season ticket holders, of which I am also one. But they quit that, in spite of the fact that after the game those very sheets of paper are literally dropped in the trashcan. 

This past season I was stopped by an usher who accosted me about going upstairs, verboten to ye peasants of the seating bowl. I mentioned that I had previously had a pass, and he demanded to see it. When I brought the expired pass, which I explained WAS EXPIRED, he took it as valid and said I was good to go upstairs. Uh okay. Of course a day or two later I was again stopped by said usher, who was mad that I had deceived him with my old pass! 

So now, every usher in Biscuitville has my mugshot saying - DO NOT LET HIM UPSTAIRS. 

My buddy goes up to get the same media info every game. I followed him and got tagged by the usher like a highschool kid caught smoking in the boys room.

As with the MLB/MiLB contact, I have repeatedly requested this media stat pack of info, being told "Oh sure, we will bring it to you." only to have it be brought one time and then forgotten. Which is fine if I have access to grab that handful of wastepaper myself.

THE SECRET INFO

Whats in those secret files that are being secured behind an army of polo-topped sentries?

The media pack includes a single page with both teams lineups on the face, along with the umpires and a list of each teams roster by uniform number. This is incredibly valuable to a photographer, knowing the actual players and positions instead of the often errant lineup published early in the day is golden. Not to mention being able to tell quickly who a substitution is by the their uniform number, which is also often incorrect in programs and pre-game lineups.

There is also a deep list of player and team stats. Also worth its weight in gold for photogs. Learning who might be utilized due to their metrics helps prepare for action, knowing a hitter is scuffling means you get a shot of him in the field or else you will end up with pictures of him striking out or staring at an infield popup in the batters box. Players KNOW, multiple times I have had a guy say "Oh man thats a swing-and-miss" on a shot of them at bat.

Team notes. Each team's media crew provides a brief that includes a bio of the days starting pitcher and each of the position players. It also provides info on the relievers and serves as a mini media guide. All the info you won't be hearing from the broadcast booth because you are shooting the game and not listening to the radio/tv call. Many who get these sheets may not read them but it is part of my pre-game to go through EVERY PAGE and highlight any stats that seem like they would impact my days photography. If you have seen me at the ballpark before the game with my nose in some papers and a pen in hand, that's what I am doing.  

I've never requested an autograph while working with credentials, never kept a foul ball or asked for a souvenir while working. I practically refuse to speak to players while on the field. I've never fraternized with players or officials before or after a credentialed media event and I have tried to handle business with respect and professional courtesy.

I'm not demanding a job, if they want to pay a staffer who won't spend it at the beer cart, that is their decision and something that should have been happening every game since 2004. I'm also not competing with them, in fact I think I hype their brand more than any single non-team entity.

Why the delay on the MLB media contact and the refusal for stat packs that literally help me pimp them?

So thats why I say, it's just some pictures, guys! Let's go!

 

 

Rebels Footage By Request! Back to Baseball

Can we get back to baseball now? Great!

I said last time that the Biscuits may be for sale, and that could be a possibility. It could also be that they are suffering from back-burner-ism, with the Rays concerned about where they will play and owner Lou working to secure the same details for his Flying Squirrels. Montgomery fans may have to sit on their hands and wait their turn. 

Whether those details could play into the future of the Biscuits is up in the air, though I would think the Rays might kick the can down the road just to not have another thing to worry about during their ballpark transition.

 

GOOSE

Meeting Goose Gossage was pleasant, he told me a nice story about playing in Japan. "It was just like 'Mr. Baseball'" he told me, and mentioned the move came about due to being blackballed by MLB managers Don Zimmer and Roger Craig. "We have since buried the hatchet," he said, but I could tell he wished it was buried in someones neck instead of wherever they had left it when they made amends. Gossage was great, launching quickly into ballplayer mode with full swearing and gesturing, regardless of the high class location and proximity to expensive suits.

 

REBELS FLASHBACKS

Someone asked recently if I had any Alan Trammell/Lou Whitaker Montgomery Rebels stuff. Oh the delicious irony. Someone else had just recently sent me a link to old broadcasts of local news shows. Talk about a wayback machine, I could not turn my eyes away! After two days of drying my retinas nonstop I found a few gems that I think everyone might appreciate. 

 

Here is a great clip worth clicking thru to watch...

https://youtu.be/tTDvps96ExI?si=JBP_d3PrXrHlA6f-&t=732

Beginning at 12:12 you will see the Montgomery Rebels first spring workout at Paterson Field in 1977, this is the first time Trammell and Whitaker worked together outside of spring camp, having not yet appeared in a single game. 

I will save you the effort of watching the hours of footage like I did. There were only a handful of baseball related items.

 

It's a real blast from the past!

Rebels footage is found in this broadcast, gotta love those classic orange tops! 

More orange tops in this interview with Al Green, Rebels outfielder in '78.

 

This image is Ted Brazell, Mark Fidrych and other Rebels doing groundskeeper work when the city decided to punish the team by pulling basic support.

PODCAST!

The tech thing kicked our ass. We recorded about three epi's but the sound levels were atrocious, and holiday fun prevented us from working it up. Not to worry, Uncle Mikey and I will be back at it in the next few weeks producing new content with new equipment! Thanks for sticking it out and not throwing things at us. Yet. 

SOMETHING EXTRA

Since I have been tardy and ya'll been so patient, I'm including another video.. yeah ikr.. this one is from last years conference, Jeb Stewart gave a fantastic bio of former Montgomery Negro League catcher Paul Hardy.