That's the old ballgame Shreveport, chapter 18 -- the 1970s

    Chapter 18

Revolving door (1971-78)

    Just when it appeared Shreveport would be without pro baseball in 1971, Ray Johnston came to the rescue.

    The Dallas businessman, who already owned the Iowa team in the Class AAA American Association, bought the El Paso franchise in the Texas League and moved it to Shreveport before the '71 season.

    The stadium -- Braves Field from 1968 to 1970 -- again became known as SPAR Stadium, as it had been from 1959 to 1967. And it kept that name and housed the Shreveport teams through the mid-1980s. Then a new stadium was built a few miles away.

    A local contest was staged to find a new team nickname; "Captains" was selected and remained the name through 2000. But through the 1970s there was little stability for the team’s working agreements with major-league teams.

    In nine years, there were four “parent” organizations.

    The first Captains were the Class AA franchise of the California Angels for two years (1971-72). A two-year tie-in with the Milwaukee Brewers followed -- including spring training for Brewers’ minor-league players in Shreveport in 1974 -- and then the Pittsburgh Pirates became the parent club for two two-year partnerships (1975-78).

    In the mid-1970s, Johnston began selling his interests in the Shreveport team to local investors. Unable to reach agreement with the City of Shreveport to have a new ballpark built to replace a fading -- and sometimes crumbling -- facility, he searched to move the franchise.

    In January 1976, an apparent deal with Birmingham (which had left the Southern League) fell through. The ballclub stayed in Shreveport.

    Also in 1976, local ownership began operating the club, with Taylor Moore as the managing general partner. The ownership included Moore and brother Loy Moore, Douglas Attaway Jr., John D. Caruthers Jr. and Charlie Webb, and that group remained intact through much of the next two decades.

    No question that the most high-profile Captains player of the 1970s was Denny McLain, superstar pitcher of the 1968 and '69 Detroit Tigers turned minor leaguer in the twilight of his baseball career.

   Top players from the era

         Angels (1971-72)

RUDY MEOLI -- The Captains' shortstop in 1971, in his third pro season, he hit a solid .287 in 139 games, with 22 doubles, six triples, seven home runs and 44 RBI, and 19 stolen bases. At the end of the season, he was in seven games for the Angels, going 0-for-3. A fourth-round pick by California in 1969 out of Covina, Calif., he made the majors for the full 1973 season, with his high mark for games (120) and the only two home runs of his six years MLB seasons (only two full years). In 310 MLB games, he batted .212 and was at times an erratic fielder (30 errors in his Captains season).

DAVE CHALK -- He came out of Dallas and the University of Texas as the Angels' first-round draft pick in 1972 and started his pro career in Shreveport, batting .253 in 76 games. He reached the majors the next year, then was an Angels' starter, either at third base or shortstop, for the next five seasons. He was a .252 hitter over nine MLB seasons.

 

  SID MONGE -- A Mexican native who grew up in California, the left-hander made 20 starts for the '72 Captains, with a 5-10 record and 3.47 ERA for 135 innings. Beginning in 1975, he stayed in the majors as a reliever for 10 seasons (five teams), with a 49-40 record.

   LARRY MILBOURNE -- He wasn't a star for the '72 Captains, batting .264 in 122 games. A switch-hitter and sound middle infielder, he broke into the majors two years later with Houston and played in 989 games over 11 seasons, plus the 1981 playoffs (World Series) with the Yankees.

NOTE: Shreveport residents Ron Botica and Robert Boddie, who pitched for the Captains in 1971-72, are listed in a chapter for North Louisiana pro players.

Brewers (1973-74)

    SIXTO LEZCANO -- The center fielder from Puerto Rico was the best player for the 1973 Captains, at age 19 (135 games, .293 average, 35 doubles, seven triples, 18 home runs, 90 RBI). He first played for the Brewers at the end of the '74 season, then was a major leaguer for the next 11 years, a starter most of that time. His first six years were with Milwaukee, including an outstanding season in 1979 (.321, 28 homers, 101 RBI).



    CHARLIE MOORE -- His offensive numbers for the '73 Captains were so-so (.255, 45 RBI), but his defensive ability was evident. He got a call-up to the Brewers at the end of that season, then was in the majors for the next 15 years -- all but the last one with Milwaukee. He was a .300 and .301 hitter in '79 and '81, then started all seven World Series games for the Brewers in 1982.


DENNY MCLAIN -- Perhaps the biggest modern-era celebrity to play for Shreveport, he was 29 and near the end of the line when he pitched for the Captains in 1973. A year after his last major-league appearances (for Oakland and Atlanta), he began '73 with the Triple-A Iowa team -- also owned by then-Captains owner Ray Johnston -- and with a 1-4 record for eight starts, he agreed to come to Shreveport. He made 12 starts for the Captains, with six complete games (one shutout) and a 6-4 record and 3.43 ERA. And he was well accepted by his younger teammates. It was five years after one of the most charmed pitching seasons in MLB history -- his 31-6 record for Detroit made him the majors' first 30-game winner since Dizzy Dean in 1934. With it, he had a 1.96 ERA, 41 starts and 28 complete games. In the World Series, he had a 1-2 record for the champion Tigers. His record in 1969 was 24-9, but then came multiple suspensions and much drama, and '73 (and Shreveport) ended his baseball career.

    DAN THOMAS -- In Shreveport, he was a promising talent in the Brewers' organization in 1973 and '74, a first-round draft pick (sixth overall) in '72 out of Southern Illinois. A third baseman-outfielder, he hit .266 in 132 games with a team-high 75 runs, and 60 RBI in '73, then fell off to .255 in 59 games the next year. He was suspended for half of the next season for striking an umpire, then  reached the Brewers in 1976 and '77, but became known as the "Sundown Kid" after a religion conversion in which he refused to play on the Sabbath. Soon he was out of the game and, after being jailed on a rape charge of a 12-year-old, he hung himself while in jail on June 12, 1980, in Mobile, Ala. He was 29.

  SAM MEJIAS -- The Dominican was the Captains' center fielder in 1974 and had a solid season (134 games, 75 runs, 25 doubles, 7 triples, 12 home runs, 60 RBI, .263 batting average). Traded by Milwaukee to the St. Louis organization in 1976, his first big-league stop was with the Cardinals for 18 games that year after he was back in the Texas League with Tulsa most of the season. He was in the majors for full seasons, mostly as an outfield reserve, with Montreal (1977-78) and Cincinnati (1980-81). His MLB totals: 334 games, .247 average, four homers, 31 RBI. After his playing career ended in Mexico in 1982, he was a major-league coach.

    TOM HAUSMAN -- One of the two best starters for the 1973 Captains, he was 12-9 in 162 innings over 25 games (all but one as a starter), although his ERA was a so-so 4.44. Two years later he broke into the big leagues with Milwaukee, which had made him a 10th-round draft pick in 1971 out of LaVerne, Calif. He was in the majors in seven seasons, including three full years (‘75 Brewers, 1980-81 New York Mets). In 1977, he was the Mets’ first free-agent signing, and in 1980, he had MLB career highs for games (55) and innings (122). MLB totals: 15-23 record, 160 games (33 starts), 441 innings, 3.80 ERA. Died Jan. 16, 2019, in Las Vegas, age 65.  

    
TOM STEDMAN -- "T-Bone" was a steady second baseman/third baseman for the Captains in 1973 (.271 average in 131 games) and 1974 (.311 in 119 games). He began working at the new Louisiana Downs racetrack in the off-season and, after one more season in the Texas League (Lafayette, '75), became a permanent resident of Shreveport-Bossier and a fulltime LaDowns front-office employee.

NOTE: Shreveport residents Fred McGaha and Larry Frazier, who played for the Captains in 1974, are listed in a chapter for North Louisiana pro players.

    Pirates (1975-78)

    
MITCHELL PAGE -- The Captains' left fielder in 1975, he shared the Texas League home run title (23) and led the league in RBI (90), both career highs in 11 years as a pro. Two years later, he made the big leagues with Oakland and was with the A's for seven seasons. In the first four, he hit 64 homers and drove in 238 runs, but he declined after that. He was batting coach of the 2004 National League champion St. Louis Cardinals. He died March 12, 2011, in Glendale, Ariz., age 59.

    

TIM JONES -- A tall (6-foot-5) right-hander, his 16-6 record in 1975 -- 23 starts, 14 complete games, 172 innings, 3.03 ERA -- was the best season for a Shreveport pitcher in a 20-year period, and his .727 win percentage was a Texas League best. He pitched only three games in the majors, for the 1977 Pirates.

Rick Langford, right, with
'75 Captains manager Tim Murtaugh

RICK LANGFORD -- He was only a parttime starter for the '75 Captains -- 16 games, five starts, 5-2 record -- before a promotion to Triple-A. In 1977, after a trade, he began a 10-year stay with Oakland and started 195 times for the A's. He was an "iron man" in a remarkable 1980 season for manager Billy Martin -- a 19-12 record, an American League-best 28 complete games (including a record 22 in a row) and 290 innings. He again led the AL in complete games (18) the following season.


JIMMY SEXTON -- A shortstop from Alabama, he hit .274 and led the Texas League with 48 stolen bases in 103 games for the Captains in 1975. He began the '76 season in Shreveport and after 67 hits and 43 runs in 59 games and a .324 average moved up to Triple-A. He was in the majors for six seasons with four teams, a semi-regular for two years in which he stole 16 bases each season.

   RON MITCHELL -- He was the Captains' starting first baseman in 1975 and 1976, batting .260 and .251 and totaling 53 doubles, 21 homers and 132 RBI, and after a year in Triple-A, returned in 1978 for 11 games. But he never reached the majors.

MIKE EDWARDS -- The second baseman was the Captains' top player as they surged to the Texas League's best record in 1975, with a .304 average, 27 stolen bases and a team-high 26 doubles. His call-up to Triple-A was followed by the Captains' fade. He returned to Shreveport for 53 games in 1976, and had 67 hits and a .321 average before another promotion. He played four years in the majors, two as a starter for Oakland, with a .273 average and 27 steals in 1978.

STEVE NICOSIA -- He was an all-star catcher for Shreveport in 1975, batting .268 in 110 games. After three seasons in Triple-A, he reached the majors in 1979 and alternated with Ed Ott on the World Series champion Pittsburgh Pirates (Nicosia played in four Series games). He stayed in the big leagues as a reserve for eight years, the first four full seasons with the Pirates.

   PAUL DJAKONOW -- From Detroit, one of the more popular Captains players of his time, he was in Shreveport for three full seasons (1975-77), primarily as a third baseman but also played some shortstop and second base. In 344 Captains games, he batted .244 with 57 doubles, 10 triples, 42 home runs and 151 RBI. He advanced to Triple-A for a half season, but played most of four more years in Double-A. He died in 2008 in Detroit at age 57.

RANDY SEALY -- The right-hander from Clute, Texas, pitched -- and won --  one of the most exciting games in early Captains' history -- the division-winning clincher in the final regular-season game of 1976. In a one-game elimination situation, he went the distance with a five-hitter and beat Arkansas 7-2. He was 10-5 for Shreveport in 1975, but finished 15-16 in two full seasons (1975-76) and a short stay in '78, and never made the majors.

  
  SILVIO MARTINEZ -- He was the best pitcher on the 1976 Captains ... while he was there. In 16 starts and 104 innings, he had eight complete games and seven shutouts, an 8-4 record and 2.42 ERA -- and then he was promoted to Triple-A. After two trades, he pitched four complete seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals, with records of 9-8 in 1978 and 15-8 in '79.

ROD SCURRY -- Lanky and loose, the left-hander from Reno, Nev. -- the 11th pick of the 1974 MLB draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates -- showed promise as a 24-game starter for Shreveport in 1976. He had an 8-8 record and 3.88 ERA in 123 innings. When he got to the big leagues with the Pirates in 1980, he became primarily a reliever (only seven starts in 332 appearances over eight seasons). But, unfortunately, he is most known as one of the principals in the MLB's 1985 drug scandals/trials, with Pirates' players among the biggest offenders. Traded to the Yankees late in '85, he was done in baseball by 1988, and died four years later of a cocaine-induced overdose/heart attack at age 36.

    ALBERTO LOIS -- A center fielder from the Dominican Republic, he was 20 in 1976 -- known then as Alberto Louis -- when he was one of the brightest stars to come through Shreveport in the Pirates’ era. In 65 games for the Captains, he hit .323 with 85 hits -- including nine doubles, 12 triples and four home runs -- drove in 32 runs and stole 24 bases. That earned him a midseason promotion to Triple-A. But his career stalled and his only major-league time (with Pittsburgh) was brief -- three games in 1978 (1-for-4) and no at-bats in a short 1979 stay when he pinch-ran (scored six runs) and played defense. In January 1980, a traffic accident (six killed) in which he was thrown from a vehicle and unconscious for six days caused a career-ending severe right eye injury.

FRED BREINING -- A tall, thin, bespectacled right-hander, he pitched for the Captains in three seasons, spanning two organizations -- Pirates (1977-78), Giants (1979). Featuring an often wicked forkball, he appeared in 62 games, starting 28, had a 10-12 record and after five complete games in '79, he was on his way to the majors. He pitched three full seasons (1981-83) for San Francisco, appearing in 131 games (42 starts) with a 27-20 record. His career declined after that.

AL HOLLAND -- A stocky, hard-throwing left-
handed pitcher out of North Carolina A&T University, he had a 4-1 record, 1.25 ERA and six saves in 24 games for the Captains in 1977 and was promoted in midseason to Triple-A. He made the majors in 1980 and stayed for seven-plus seasons, a bullpen stalwart for the Giants for three years and then the Phillies (25 saves in '83, plus one in the World Series, and 29 in '84.

   RICK HONEYCUTT -- Few former Shreveport players have had a longer baseball career. An All-American first baseman at the University of Tennessee and SEC batting champ (.404 average), he also was a left-handed pitcher, and that was his future. He was the Captains' best pitcher in 1977 (10-6 record, a Texas-League best 2.47 ERA, six complete games), and was a part of a trade from Pittsburgh to Seattle near season's end. He made his MLB debut for the Mariners that year, then pitched in the majors for the next 20 years (109-143 record, 3.72 ERA, 797 games, 268 starts, 47 complete games, two-time All-Star choice). He had 12 saves for the 1989 World Series champion Oakland A's. In 2017, he completed his 12th year as the Los Angeles Dodgers' pitching coach, the last two with National League championship teams (lost in World Series).

LARRY LITTLETON -- He was the Captains' center fielder in 1977-78, a good defensive player who totaled 37 home runs and 128 RBI in those seasons. But his only major-league shot was a brief September callup with Cleveland in 1981; he went 0-for-23.

    NELSON NORMAN -- The epitome of a great-fielding, light-hitting shortstop, he hit .251 in 94 games for Shreveport in 1977 but showed exceptional defensive range. One of the many Dominican Republic shortstops, he got to the Texas Rangers for 23 games the next season, then was their starter in 1979, but hit only .222 in 147 games, with almost no power. He had bits of four other MLB seasons, but spent almost all of the next 10 years in the minors.

    DON ROBINSON -- A big (6-4, 225) right-hander from West Virginia, he was a third-round draft pick by Pittsburgh in 1975, then as a 20-year-old, had a 7-6 record, 4.06 ERA, for Shreveport in '77. The next year he was in the starting rotation for the Pirates, and he spent 15 years in the majors (109-106 record, 57 saves, 3.79 ERA, 524 games, 229 starts). He helped the '79 Pirates win the World Series (one NLCS victory and one in the Series), then 10 years later he was 12-11 for the National League champion San Francisco Giants, won a playoff game and lost Game 4 (last game of the earthquake-delayed World Series).

      TONY PENA -- Easily the most successful player on a woeful 1978 Captains team (55-81 record), he showed obviously promise as a defensive catcher. At age 21, he batted only .230 in 104 games, but three years later he made it to the big leagues for good with Pittsburgh. He was in the majors for 17 seasons, 12 as a starter and he was in 138-to-151 games for nine of those years. He was a five-time All-Star catcher, a four-time Gold Glove winner -- known for his unusual left leg-extended squat behind the plate, and he developed into a good hitter, with two 15-home run seasons and a .301 average in 1983 (.260 for his career). He played in two World Series and in three League Championship Series. began managing in the minors in 1998, managed New Orleans for three seasons (1999-2001) and was manager of the Kansas City Royals from 2002 to '05, including American League "Manager of the Year " in 2003. He was a coach with the New York Yankees from 2006 to 2017.