Author's Blog

Here Comes Another

by scott longert on 01/22/17

I have been doing research the past month on the Cleveland Indians (what a shocker!) and the years leading up to the start of World War II. A lot of significant events happened took place in the late 1930's and through December of 1941.

Indians owner Alva Bradley lobbied for night baseball in Cleveland. It took him two years to get the votes needed to go ahead with a seven game night schedule. The first year the Indians averaged 30,000 per night game.

There were plenty of problems that occurred including Bob Feller's sore arm in 1937. The nation expected big things from Feller in his first full season but he did not pitch regularly until the latter part of the year.

Johnny Allen had a record season going in 1937 then was sidelined with appendicitis and an eventual operation. He won fifteen games and lost only one.

The Indians traded for catcher Rollie Hemsley them found out why his nickname was "Rollicking Rollie." He had a severe drinking problem that led to fines and suspensions and a near exit from the game. Hemsley would be one of the first members of Alcoholics Anonymous and save his baseball career.

Those are just some of the stories being put together for another possible book. Stay tuned for more..........

Comments (0)

Enough Outfielders?

by scott longert on 01/15/17

Just looking at the Indians roster I wonder if there are enough outfielders to go round. There are four guys back from last year not including Michael Brantley. In right field there is Lonnie Chisenhall and Brandon Guyer. In center is Tyler Naquin and Abraham Almonte. Left field is dependent on Brantley being healthy and able to play 130 or 140 games. If he is not able to go, that leaves room for sombody like Brad Zimmer or even Yandy Diaz. Of the two the most intriguing is Diaz who has a minimum of experience but hits wherever he goes.

Diaz may be one of those guys who can quickly adjust to Major League pitching and hit .300 as a rookie. Zimmer has all the talent but has not put up big numbers like expected. It will be fun to see if either of these two gets a chance to win a roster spot and see significant time on the field.

The best scenario is for Brantley to make a complete recovery and claim his left field spot. We probably won't know how he is until late in spring training. Here's hoping he's okay.

Comments (0)

What A Move

by scott longert on 12/24/16

I was going to wait until January to resume blogging, but the signing of Edwin Encarnacion was too good not to comment on. The Tribe now has the classic power hitting first baseman in Encarnacion, a hitter that can produce 35-50 home runs and around 120 to 130 RBI's. The Dolans really went all out to give the Indians a chance for another World Series run.

Now the hope is Michael Brantley can make it back from the shoulder injury and catcher Yan Gomes can regain his old form. If that happens I believe Cleveland will be the team to beat in the American League.

Thinking about Encarnacion, I go back to the history of slugging first baseman

that wore a Cleveland uniform. Jim Thome is the most recent, however we can go back to the 1950's and remember big Luke Easter, who could really blast the ball deep into the seats at Municipal Stadium. Back in the 1930's it was Hal Trosky who launched balls over the right field wall at League Park. By the way it would not hurt to have a player like Earl Averill, Trosky's teammate who did it all in center field either. And last let's not forget Charlie "Piano Legs" Hickman, a burly guy who could slam the dead ball of the early 1900's. I can't wait to see Encarnacion take his place as one Cleveland's great first baseman.

Comments (0)

Still Waiting

by scott longert on 12/15/16

The Indians continue to be in a holding pattern since the winter meetings. Talk of Edwin Encarnacion has quieted down. It may be until the start of spring training before any real activity takes place.

I noticed odds were released on the 2017 World Series. The Indians were listed at 10-1 which is pretty good. I'd be willing to bet (clever, huh?) they have not had odds like that in quite some time.

This is always a tough time for me to blog when Baseball talk is at a minimum. With that in mind I have a brief story to tell.

A couple of years ago I was doing a book talk when a gentleman came to see me after the presentation. He told me about a relative at the turn of the 20th century that worked at Hough Bakery near League Park. For those of you not familiar, Hough Bakery was an institution in the Cleveland area for several generations.

Anyways Napoleon Lajoie liked to stop in the store and flirt with a teenage girl behind the counter.

I liked the anecdote and put it in the No Money, No Beer, No Pennants. A short time ago at a book signing a man approached me about Lajoie and the girl. It turned out she was the man's grandmother and he showed me a picture of the quite pretty girl who Lajoie took a shine to. Even though the story goes back well over a hundred years ago, I was able to meet two different people who could vouch for it. That is a writer's dream really.

Comments (0)

Will They or Won't They

by scott longert on 12/07/16

There have been a lot of big moves at the winter meetings, but the huge question remains if the Indians can sign first baseman Edwin Encarnacion. He wants a huge multi-year contract approximately 20 million per year. This is usually out of the Indians price range, however after a near miss at game seven of the World Series they may be thinking about taking the plunge. Encarnacion brings power like the Tribe has not seen since Jim Thome or Travis Hafner in his prime. The former Blue Jay is thirty-three but shows no signs of declining. Let's stay tuned and see how this plays out.

Michael Brantley will be doing some hitting later this month to test his repaired shoulder. If he is able to do it and continue to progress the Indians will once again have that everyday outfielder who can hit for an average and extra bases. His presence on the field makes the lineup even more formidable. Just think about a batting order that has Kipnis, Lindor, Encarnacion (maybe), Brantley (hopefully) and Ramirez. Looks great on paper!

The Boston Red Sox have done extremely well at the meetings. Trading for Chris Sale gives them a tremendous pitching staff and helps offset the loss of David Ortiz. I'd say right now the Sox look awfully good.

Comments (0)