Scott County Baseball
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Scott County Baseball is a 488 page book with more than 300 photographs and an index of 1600 names about the history of baseball in Scott County . I have been working on the book for four years and it will be available in early spring of 2008.
The book records the history of baseball in Belle Plaine, Elko, Jordan, Marystown, New Market, New Prague, Savage, St. Benedict, St. Patrick, Shakopee, and Union Hill, including interviews and articles about outstanding players. Each chapter records the results of every state tournament game, including game summaries and statistics, as well as team photographs, player names, and game box scores when available.
What else is included in Scott County Baseball?
The first chapter highlights the careers of the nine Scott County members in the Minnesota Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame.
Chapter two focuses on three players who had more than 1000 career hits—Paul Buss, and Ron Beckman from Jordan , and Ty Dombeck from Elko. There may be more, but none are documented.
”Kicking”: Scott County baseball has a rich history. Baseball games were filled with more than base hits and strikeouts. During the years before organized leagues were formed, many players were involved in “kicking” (arguing, fighting, and quitting). Here’s one of many examples of “kicking.”
May 25, 1904: Belle Plaine Herald
Henderson Forfeits Game. Contest Marred by the Action of Visitors in Leaving Grounds.
“August Bosel tried rough work with Burns by blocking him, roughly pushing and rubbing in his elbow uncomfortably. He waded into his bigger antagonist. They clinched, but several Belle Plaine players near first promptly separated the combatants.
“Suddenly a fan by the name of Mr. Wiest raced across the diamond and kicked Burns in the face. A police officer arrested Wiest and removed him from the diamond. A few of the Henderson players used this arrest as a pretext for not continuing the game. The umpire forfeited the game to Belle Plaine.”
For drama, nothing quite matches the thrill of watching a pitcher go after a no-hitter. This chapter includes a history of those games. The first documented no-hitter was thrown in Scott County in 1905 by Shakopee’s “Shooty” Niedenfuehr and the last in 2006 by Elko’s Brian Muell. Many were thrown between these years. Here’s one from that chapter.
August 6, 1953
Marystown Pitcher Hurls Perfect No-Hit, No-Run Game
“James Busch, 17-year-old pitcher for the Marystown team, carved himself a niche in the Dakota-Rice-Scott league Hall of Fame Sunday when he turned in a no-hit, no-run performance against Veseli. Marystown won, 1 to 0, in the last regular scheduled game prior to the playoffs.”
Were amateur ball players paid?
In 1905 Belle Plaine hired a former major league pitcher. Jordan later hired the same player. “Money, Money, Money” documents that players were hired as late as 1957.
Chapter 5 records the history of the Class A Minnesota River League teams from 1947-1957: Belle Plaine , Jordan , New Prague, Shakopee, and New Prague. Every team in the league hired at least two players legally. This chapter summarizes each team’s performance, including box scores.
Many professional players took their positions on the diamonds of Scott County . Some formed all-star teams to make extra money. In September of 1947 “Babe” Barna and other Minneapolis Millers (Class AAA) took the field against the Belle Plaine Tigers. In 1948 the Shakopee Indians and a few all-stars from Jordan and Chaska took on a team of played who were banned from professional ball and played in the Mexican League. New York Giants ace Sal “the Barber” Maglie pitched for the professional all-stars.
During World War II many ball players served in the Armed Forces and only a few towns were left with enough players to field teams. A few Belle Plaine men joined the Jordan team; Prior Lake and Shakopee combined to form a team, and players from St. Benedict joined the players from Union Hill.
The chapter, “There Used to Be a Ball Team Right Here,” focuses on Cedar Lake , Credit River , Eidswold , Lydia , and Shakopee’s Two Bens.
“The Longest Game” includes interviews, the box score, and copies of the score book pages from the longest game ever played in the county, a 24-inning marathon between Shakopee and St. Peter in 1950.
From the late 1950 through the early 1970, players and fans eagerly awaited the arrival of that game’s Northwest umpire. He brought with him copies of the “Northwest Umpires Review,” which contained league standings and individual batting averages. Copies of the final issue of the Northwest Umpires Review from 1958, 1962, 1968, and 1971 are included in the book as well as the names and batting averages of the leading hitters from the River Valley and D-R-S leagues from 1961, 1963, 1964, 1965, and 1970. In 1964 Pat Devitt from Prior Lake hit .561, to lead the River Valley League, and in 1968 Dick Schmitz from New Market led the D-R-S with .403.
Included in the book are feature articles on outstanding players and managers from each decade, from the early 1900s through 2007.
Test you knowledge about baseball in the county.
1. What team played on Mr. Smail’s farm field?
2. What Union Hill hitter ended his career with 769 hits and a career average of .400?
3. What team has played in Union Square since 1884?
4. Name the batter who has more official at bats than any other player in the county.
5. Jordan had two pitchers who won the Most Valuable Player Award in the state tournament. Name them.
6. In what year did the D-R-S begin?
7. Name the only player born in Scott County to play in the major leagues.
8. Who are the nine men elected to the Minnesota Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame?
9. Which Scott County teams have never played in the state tournament?
10. Name the member of the Philadelphia Athletics who played in Scott County .
11. Why was Mike Rybak named Mr. Baseball in New Prague after World War II?
13. Which ball parks are owned by churches?
14. Which is the only field in Scott County owned by the team?
15. Who was the 2007 manager of the St. Patrick Irish?
16. Who are the three players who have documented 1000-career hits?
17. Which team had 12 players from one family?
18. Which team was named the Knights?
19. Who is the oldest active player in Scott County ?
20. Where is the site of the 2008 Minnesota State Amateur Tournament?
You can find the answers to all these questions in the book.
The price of the book is $25.00, which does not include sales tax or shipping. The book will be available in April or May. Copies may be purchased at that time from the Scott County Historical Society in Shakopee and at designated sites. Please watch for further information once I have received the books.
I plan to print 350 copies of the book. This will be a one-time printing. No books will be sold at book stores. If you would like to order a copy or copies in advance, please contact me at one of the following:
tsmelch@msn.com
952-445-4109
or Tom Melchior, 1901 125th St. W , Shakopee , MN 55379
Draftees
Trent Bohnsack & Tyler Oakes were drafted by Chaska. While Scott Hollingsworth was drafted by Green Isle, good luck to both teams in the upcoming State Tournament! If anyone is interested the Green Isle Irish play at 5:00pm on Friday against Blaine in Norwood, while Chaska plays at 7:30pm against Cold Spring in Norwood on Friday.
2nd Round of Playoffs Schedule
The Brewers have now advanced into the final four round and here is the schedule for that round:
Chaska is #1 seed for the next round and Green Isle is the #2 seed. The #3 is the Brewers & #4 seed is Victoria.
Game #1 Sunday, August 5th at 6:00pm
Victoria 1 @ Chaska 2
Game #2 Sunday, August 5th at 2:00pm
Jordan 0 @ Green Isle 4
Game #3 Tuesday, August 7th at 7:30pm
Green Isle 5 @ Chaska 4(Green Isle advances to State)
Game #4 Wednesday, August 8th at 7:30pm
Victoria 4 @ Jordan 9(Victoria Eliminated)
Game #5 Friday, August 10th at 7:30pm
Jordan 1 @ Chaska 5 (Chaska advances to State)
Game #6 Sunday, August 12th at 6:00pm
Green Isle 5 @ Chaska 4(Championship Game)
Draftees:
Green Isle
Ryan Cattell
Scott Hollingsworth
Brad Everett
Chaska
Trent Bohnsack
Tim Theis
Tyler Oakes
Good luck to all!
Section Playoffs are underway!
Pool A
#1 Chaska 2-2 #1 Seed for 2nd Round
#4 Victoria 2-2 #4 Seed for 2nd Round
#6 Prior Lake 2-2
Pool B
#5 Jordan 4-0 #3 Seed for 2nd Round
#2 Green Isle 2-2 #2 Seed for 2nd Round
#3 Shakopee 0-4
Scores:
Sunday July 22nd
Shakopee 2 @ Jordan 8
Victoria 5 @ Prior Lake 4
Tuesday July 24th
Chaska 10 @ Victoria 7 15 innings
Wednesday July 25th
Green Isle 3 @ Shakopee 2 10 innings
Friday July 27th
Shakopee 6 @ Green Isle 7 10 innings
Victoria 4 @ Chaska 0
Sunday July 29th
Jordan 4 @ Green Isle 2
Prior Lake 4 @ Chaska 10
Tuesday July 31st
Prior Lake 6 @ Victoria 1
Jordan 8 @ Shakopee 3
Thursday August 2nd
Chaska 12 @ Prior Lake 13
Green Isle 5 @ Jordan 11
Friday August 3rd
Prior Lake 0 @ Victoria 10 7 innings
Jordan squeaks by Gaylord
The Brewers allowed 3 unearned runs in the first 2 innings thanks to some "shifty" fielding. Coach Chalupsky righted the ship in the third and it was smooth sailing from there.
Jeremy Negen hit his second homerun of the season and Scotty Ahlbrecht added 2 hits including an RBI double that proved to be the game winner.
Next up the New Prague Tournament. News to follow later this week.
Brewers get viced by the Vics
Jordan gets shut-out for the first time this season at home against the Vics. Here are some key stats of the game. Jordan out hit the Vics 9 to 8. Jordan left 13 runners on base. Jordan went 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position.
Jason Chalupsky went 5 innings allowing just one run while striking out 7 to pick up his first loss of the season. Combined Jordan pitchers K'd 12 hitters while only walking 4 (2 of those were intentional).
Next up is the Gaylord Islanders tonight at the Mini-met. game time is 7:30pm. Coach Chalupsky has promised the young kids some playing time in an effort to rest the regulars for this weekend's New Prague Tourney.
Weekly Updates
The website staff will try to keep baseball fans informed through weekly news updates every friday.
Jordan thumps LeSueur 16-6
The Brewers traveled to LeSueur on Sunday to try and get back in the win column. They did just that as they took advantage walks and errors with timely hitting. They tallied 16 runs to end the game early in seven innings. Scott Hollingsworth got start for the Brewers and went five strong innings giving up only two earned runs. Scott also added three hits on the day. With the win Scott goes to 2-0 on the season. Leading the way for the local nine on offense was Paul Buss and Jeremy Negen. Buss had three hits and three rbi while hitting his first homerun since the 2005 season. Negen also added two hits and three rbi in the victory. The Brewers are back in the win column and are now 3-1 on the season. Jordan travels to Arlington on Wednesday May 16th to take on the A's. Game time is at 7:30 as the local nine try for win number four.
Brewers drop 1st game of the year to Union Hill
It was a beautiful night for baseball as the Brewers hosted Union Hill. Both teams entered the night undefeated this season. In anticipation for a excellent ballgame the fans packed the Mini Met. The two teams did not disappoint as it went into the bottom of the 9th inning before a bases loaded strikeout gave Union Hill a 2-1 victory. Jacob Wolf got the start for the Brewers and pitched five very good innings giving up only two runs. He was however out done by Matt Sticha of Union Hill. Sticha took a no-hitter into the 5th inning before a Jesse Larca broke it up with a single to right. Sticha pitched seven great innings giving the Brewers only one run. The story of the game was the Brewers inability to knock in runs as they left 10 runners in scoring position. It was the first loss of the year for the Brewers. If we look at the positive it was to a very good Union Hill team that will probably end up in the Class "C" state tournament again.
Jordan slams Winthrop 9-2
The Brewers hosted Winthrop Sunday on a day that most thought would be miserable. It turn out to be a nice evening and a very nice outcome for Jordan. Jordan got nice starting pitching from Scott Hollingsworth. He pitched five innings of one hit ball and recieved his first win of the season. The offense was not to be out done this time as they tallied ten hits and drew eight walks. Leading the way for the Brewers on offense was Cullen Bahn who hit a monsterous grand slam to left field. Bahn ended up with two hits and five RBI. Trent Bohnsack and Jeremy Negen also added solo home runs to help bring the Brewer total to nine runs. The score was 9-2 but it was a lot more lopsided then that. Next up for the Brew Crew is Union Hill at the Mini Met on Friday May 11th. Union Hill finished 2nd in the class "C" state tournament last year, so this should be a very good test for the local nine.
Brewers coast in season opener 10-1
The Jordan Brewers started the post Larca era off with a 10-1 drubbing of Brownton. The local nine got good pitching from all four pitchers that entered the game. Jacob Wolf got the start and picks up his first victory of the season. Jacob pitched 4 innings giving up only one run. Tanner Bohnsack, Mike Beckius, and Trent Bohnsack finished up the final five innings. Hitting was a little bit different as the Brewers only collected six hits the entire game. Even though the bats were a little slow we were able to draw 15 walks as every hitter was very patient up at the plate. Jeremy Heitkamp collected three hits and stole two bases as he led the Brewers attack. Dustin Campbell also added two hits in his first game in two years. This was the first career victory for new Brewer mananger Jason Chalupsky.
"Mini Met" gets National Recognition!
ESPN.com mentions Jordan: Writer marks Brewers games among his fondest Minnesota memories
By Mathias Baden,Editor
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
One of the many prides of Jordan appeared in a feature on the ESPN.com Web site last month.
Between coverage of everything Olympics and the death of Kirby Puckett, former St. Paul Pioneer Press reporter Jim Caple penned a travel piece that pointed out what he called "the ultimate baseball experience."
Of course, watching your favorite team win the seventh game of the World Series tops Caple's top-10 list. But after "an afternoon at Wrigley Field" and "the College World Series" and before "the Caribbean World Series," "a Hiroshima Carp game," and "an evening at Fenway Park" is a mention of Jordan's famous ballpark.
Townball in Minnesota ranked No. 5 on the list of don't-miss baseball experiences, but Caple, a senior writer and columnist for ESPN.com, returned a phone call from the Jordan Independent last week to say that "it should've been up higher."
Caple visited Jordan four or five times. The town gave him some of his fondest memories of his 11 years in Minnesota, he said.
"I love the town. We just kept coming back – we liked it so much."
Two baseball seasons ago, Caple pitched a story that would've brought him to Jordan for the state tournament the Brewers eventually won, he said. He had proposed a story about "the last great, pure sport – no one is paid," Caple said. "It would've been a great story."
The story was never written.
But for his top-10 list that was published on the Web site in early March, Caple wrote that Minnesota town baseball is more like the Field of Dreams than the Field of Dreams itself.
"There are no ghost players walking in from the cornfields," Caple wrote, "just real people proudly representing the local towns."
In the phone interview with the JI, Caple said, "Everybody loves ‘Field of Dreams' – people coming out of the corn. People there can experience it for real."
One of his favorite townball fields belongs to Jordan, which he wrote is "30 miles and a world away from Minneapolis. Such a sublime bit of Americana, the only thing missing is Garrison Keillor doing the play-by-play."
Jordan's Mini-Met – named after the Minnesota Twins' former home, Metropolitan Stadium – is the revered site of many tournaments and home to Jordan's amateur but beloved baseball team, the Brewers.
Baseball has been played on the parkland that houses the ballpark since as early as 1888, according to the Brewers' Web site.
The Brewers season starts April 30.
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