Researching baseball is ... history

     The subject is the history of professional baseball in Shreveport-Bossier, and after 21 months of research, here is where we are:

     Finished (for now). Might need to do more. But ready to move on.

     Of course, over the years I had done plenty of research, and had much material on pro baseball in Shreveport. Have a backlog of columns and stories, and have done several blogs.

     Always have loved researching athletics history, especially pertaining to Shreveport-Bossier, North Louisiana and Louisiana in general, and especially high school sports and pro baseball. 

     Spent so many late-night or off-day hours looking at microfilm over the years that -- oh, my eyes -- it meant wearing glasses fulltime much sooner than it should have and it was time spent when I should have been studying good/great writing, and trying to improve my craft.
      It was a hobby, almost an obsession, fun for me, and often useful for background info in stories and columns.

The history of pro baseball in Shreveport should begin
with the 1956 season, and Ken Guettler's
 62 home runs, the Texas League record.

     Anyway, when someone in Shreveport, in December 2016, suggested a book on the subject (actually I was the second choice), I did not feel like I had enough material to do that and be satisfied.

     So, more research and another "project" for my list. Trying to stay busy, and it is not difficult.  

     Well, it took a while because (1) I expanded the area to include North and Northwest Louisiana, with all the talent from there that went into pro baseball and (2) there were a lot of breaks in the research time.

     Like, maybe 21 breaks -- to match the months -- or maybe it was 211 breaks. Contrary to what some people believe, we do have a life other than athletics, research and writing.

     So here we are with a great backlog of material -- on the early days (from 1895) and then the Gassers, Sports,  Captains, and, yes, Swamp Dragons (yuk!).

     Does that mean a book is in the works?

     Maybe. Working on it. Might not happen, but let's see.
     Know it will have a limited and regional audience, but that's fine. It is a project that suits me.

     The original idea came from a link to a publishing company that has done a substantial series of books on baseball (and other sports). In baseball, those include selected cities -- Memphis and Birmingham are examples -- and their histories in the game.

     We have been in contact with that company, have provided a proposal/outline. But we are just starting; we are a long, long way from a deal. Do not hold your breath waiting.

     Might have too much material, too many facets. Could be cost-prohibitive. The intention is, well, for the company and the writer to generate enough book sales to make it worthwhile.

     But making the effort is worthwhile. And if the book does not develop, this will become a series of blog pieces -- for my friends, for Shreveport-Bossier (and North Louisiana) resources that might want them.

     We have begun doing preliminary pages on Google "Docs" as examples of the material we have.     

     Not saying this is a complete history of pro baseball in Shreveport-Bossier and North Louisiana, but there is a lot of depth there. We could give you details, but that would spoil the fun.

     Much of the research came from books on the Texas League, and files on the Internet, and the greatest amount of info came from the microfilm files of The Shreveport Times -- especially the writing of Jack Fiser and Bill McIntyre, sports editors/columnists/writers over a five-decade span. Fun reading their words.

     Later writers included Scott Ferrell and John James Marshall, and many others. Appreciate their help.

     So stay tuned.

---

     One example of how research goes, how a funny twist develops ...

     Lou Fitzgerald was the Shreveport Braves' manager for the 1969 season and the first 12 games of 1970. He was a veteran baseball man, a minor-league player dating to 1942, a manager for 20 years (beginning in 1951 and ending ... in 1970 in Shreveport).

     Yes, we were his last managing stop -- with the Atlanta Braves' Double-A farm team.  

     OK, looking for background info on Mr. Lou, I found this photo on this Internet astroland.net page. He is wearing a Shreveport Sports uniform.

     What the heck? Why?

     Knew he had never played for Shreveport. Knew his 1969-70 uniform had "Braves" on the front.

     Could not figure it out. Called Taylor Moore, the Captains' team president/part owner for 25 years and a longtime fan of Shreveport teams. He also was puzzled. 

      We thought maybe that Fitzgerald had played for Marshall, Texarkana and Longview -- all East Texas teams -- from 1947 to 1952, and some of those teams were "farm" teams for the Sports, that might be the answer.

      But not likely. We were not sure.

      Three months later, the answer came almost by accident.

      Happened to do a "Lou Fitzgerald" search on  newspapers.com, and deep in the results was a file from the   April 20, 1957, sports pages of the Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser. 

      And here was the photo, that same photo as we'd seen, with the man wearing the "Sports" uniform. Read the photo caption ... and there is the answer.

      (Connection: Montgomery's team was in the same league -- the Alabama-Florida League -- as Pensacola.)

     Just to confirm it, we then came across another file, this one from a more familiar source: The Shreveport Times, dated March 14, 1957. 

     The story was on the annual baseball school and tryout camp -- for area players -- that the Sports held at our familiar stadium (then called Texas League Park). Included in the story: "Instruction will be provided by manager Lou Fitzgerald of Pensacola, with whom the Sports have a working agreement."

     And just an educated guess: When Lou took the field, he was wearing a Shreveport Sports uniform. 

     So there. Thought you would like to know.