An interesting baseball city, yes. A historic one, certainly. And great does apply to two decade-plus periods -- 1946-55 and 1986-97 -- when fans filled the ballparks and Texas League championships were won.
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| Shreveport Sports jersey, late 1930s/early 1940s |
Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees had their spring training in Shreveport in 1921 before the team had ever played in a World Series, and the Babe hit three home runs in one exhibition game.
Several teams trained in the city in the early 1900s, and spring exhibitions were a frequent treat for Shreveport fans for decades.
Dizzy Dean pitched in Shreveport (for Houston) and made many promotional appearances at the ballpark in his broadcasting days.
Bob Feller, Robin Roberts, Sal Maglie, Hoyt Wilhelm, Don Larsen and Gaylord Perry pitched here. Stan Musial, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Pee Wee Reese, Pete Rose, Johnny Bench and Reggie Jackson batted here. Honus Wagner and Joe DiMaggio made visits as coaches.
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| Shreveport Sports road jersey, 1960 (from Ebbets Field Flannels) |
Four Shreveport players -- Bill Terry, Dick Howser, Bob Brenly and Cito Gaston -- managed World Series-winning teams; another one, Dusty Baker, managed a runner-up.
One umpire from Bossier City -- Alaric Smith -- called in a World Series.
A good number of the game's prominent players were from Shreveport-Bossier and across northwest Louisiana.
And many, many players -- and some managers -- went from wearing a Shreveport uniform to action in the major leagues, some as legitimate stars, some as "cup of coffee" participants.
Still, consider these other facets ...
• With the exception of the two periods mentioned above, attendance at Shreveport games was among the worst in its league ... and in Double-A baseball.
• Although there were many competitive, contending Shreveport teams, league championships were rare -- a 23-year gap, then a 35-year gap). In all, nine Shreveport teams won titles in 86 seasons.
• Eight times in its history, Shreveport lost its franchise ... sometimes for only a year, such as 1958 because a Louisiana law against integrated games forced the team to leave town. That -- and lagging attendance -- was much the same reason for another abandonment after the 1961 season.• Shreveport has been out of "Organized Baseball" since 2002 and, after an independent-league era, altogether since 2011.
Chances for another minor-league affiliation are slim in the foreseeable future. Because, as of 2019, there is no viable, usable ballpark.
Shreveport baseball, at least in the "modern" era, also is the story of two ballparks -- Texas League Park/Braves Field/SPAR Stadium, which went from new (1938) to practically falling down (1985), and Fair Grounds Field, new in 1986 and old much too rapidly.
Still, what was great about Shreveport baseball was the pride many people took in rooting for those teams and those players, and the entertainment, the excitement, the fun they provided.
It is a legacy worth researching and exploring, and reliving. Enjoy the history.
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Table of contents
Introduction ...
Chapter 1: Ken Guettler
Chapter 2: Baseball Hall of Famers
Chapter 3: Major players
Chapter 4: Exhibitions/The Babe
Year-by-year chart
Chapter 5: The early years
Chapter 6: The managers, Part I (1895-1940)
Chapter 7: Homer Peel
Chapter 8: The Sports (1925-42)
Chapter 9: Mr. Pete
Chapter 10: Building a ballpark, Part I
Chapter 11: Salty Parker
Chapter 12: Mel McGaha
Chapter 13: The managers, Part II (1941-78)
Chapter 14: The Sports (1946-57)
Chapter 15: The Sports (1959-61)
Chapter 16: Segregation, integration
Chapter 17: The S-Braves (1968-70)
Chapter 18: Revolving door (1971-78)
Chapter 19: Life at the old ballpark
Chapter 20: The managers, Part III, Giants' era (1979-2002)
Chapter 21: Giant steps (1979-85), Part I
Chapter 22: Building a ballpark, Part II (1984-86)
Chapter 21: Giant steps (1979-85), Part I
Chapter 22: Building a ballpark, Part II (1984-86)
Chapter 23: Giant steps (1986-2002), Part II
Chapter 24: The final decade, independents (2003-11)
Chapter 25: They played and stayed
Chapter 26: The contributors
Chapter 27: Champions, near-misses
Chapter 28: The minor players
Chapter 29: Short subjects
Chapter 30: A personal journey
Acknowledgements
From Martha Warren Jones: I read your blog on Babe Ruth being in Shreveport. My daddy talked about that often and was at the baseball game and saw him play. Pretty special. Nice article.
ReplyDeleteFrom Pesky Hill: I look forward to reading every blog. Thanks for your time and effort.
ReplyDeleteFrom Glenn Theis: I’m really looking forward to reading about the Sports. I loved to go watch them (during the same years you did), and I loved many of the players.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, names are now escaping from my brain every few minutes, but your articles will bring back those memories. Ken Guettler and Lou Klimchock are the two I will never forget.
It was a great honor to have played some high school games and some Legion games on that field and to see that was the best field I ever played on.