That's the old ballgame Shreveport, chapter 21 -- Giants' era, part I (1979-85)

Chapter 21

Giant steps (1979-2002)

Shreveport moved into a new era in 1979 when the San Francisco Giants moved their Class AA affiliation to town ... for the next 25 years.

    The Shreveport tie-in with the Giants remained through 2002 until the city lost its Organized Baseball franchise, and that stability was unprecedented in Shreveport’s long professional baseball history.

    With it, eventually, came a new stadium and the best decade of success for Shreveport teams.

    That first season with the San Francisco tie-in included a visit to Shreveport by then-Giants owner Robert Lurie and general manager H.B. "Spec" Richardson.

    But as had been the case for most of the 1970s, SPAR Stadium was in decline and attendance annually was among the worst in the Texas League.

    Talk of a new ballpark existed for years, but plans by the City of Shreveport -- which operated SPAR Stadium -- only got past the talking stage once. A $750,000 bond issue for new stadium funds passed in 1976, but that amount was found to be far short of what was needed, finding a site proved difficult, and the ballclub remained locked in through the mid-1980s.

    And then, at long last, came the deal that led to the construction of Fair Grounds Field … and a new era began.

    The first decade at the new ballpark (1986-95) was another "golden era" for Shreveport baseball. Attendance immediately surged, to a high of 234,587 in the ballpark's third season, and interest remained steady -- with strong city/area corporate support -- plus 10 consecutive Captains teams made the Texas League playoffs.

    That included TL championship teams in 1990, 1991 and 1995, and a league runner-up in 1992, and a long string of players who went on to the major leagues, many of them beginning their MLB careers as San Francisco Giants stars and starters.     

Three Texas League championships (1990, 1991, 1995) meant lots of celebrating for the Shreveport Captains.
(The Shreveport Times photo)

Programs from funwhileitlasted.net (designed by Shreveport artist Ron Rice)

Top players from the era

    JOSE BARRIOS -- The first baseman from Miami was 22 in 1979 when he had a big season for the Captains. In 118 games, he had a .324 batting average with 18 doubles, four triples and 17 home runs -- including a team record five grand slams (by July 9), one short of the Texas League record -- and 84 RBI. He hit 109 minor-league home runs and he had three full seasons in Triple-A at Phoenix (48 homers, 283 RBI), but his only MLB stint was 10 games with the '82 Giants.

BOB BRENLY -- The Ohio
University grad from Coshocton, Ohio, was in his fourth minor-league season when he joined the Captains in 1979. He hit .295 in 64 games (nine homers, 30 RBI) and he was versatile; he was a catcher and third baseman and could play the outfield. He returned to Shreveport for only two games in 1980, spent two seasons in Triple-A and made the San Francisco roster in 1982. He stayed in the majors for eight seasons, starting for the Giants from '84 to '87 (totaled 73 home runs and 249 RBI in those years), helped them win a division title in '87 and batted as high as .291 one season. He became a coach, moving up to manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks for four years (2001-04), and his first season produced a World Series championship. He then went into broadcasting fulltime, primarily with the Cubs for eight years and since 2013 with the Diamondbacks' TV crew.

   

 
MARK CALVERT -- In 1979 and 1980, the right-hander from Oklahoma (University of Tulsa) was 8-9 for the Captains -- 2-2 in 1979 (eight starts) and 6-7 in 1980 (14 starts). He then spent either all of part of the next five seasons with Triple-A Phoenix, mixed with 28 games -- nine starts -- in the majors for San Francisco in 1983-84. With the Giants, he had a 3-8 record and 5.71 ERA. He was with Cleveland’s Triple-A team for his final pro season in 1985.

    ALAN HARGESHEIMER -- A right-hander from Chicago, he started 24 games for the 1979 Captains, with a 6-10 record and 4.53 ERA. He started 13 times for San Francisco the next season and had three more starts in 1981, with a combined record of 5-8. He was with the Cubs for five games in 1983 and the Royals for five in 1986, but the bulk of his career was eight seasons in Triple-A. He became a pro baseball scout and the 2018 season -- when he joined the Texas Rangers as a scout in the Pacific Rim -- was his 28th year; the previous nine seasons were with a Japanese big-league team.

BOB KEARNEY -- The catcher out of Jay High in San Antonio and the University of Texas hit .268 in 63 games for the 1979 Captains, then was promoted to Triple-A. A trade moved him to the Oakland system and after a couple of MLB stints, he made the Athletics' roster in 1983, then spent 1984-87 with Seattle. Primarily known for his defense, he played in 456 MLB games and hit .233 with 27 homers and 133 RBI.




GORMAN HEIMUELLER -- The 6-foot-4 left-hander was mostly a reliever for Shreveport, posting a 3-2 record and 3.28 ERA in 27 games in 1979, and then 7-8, 4.75 in 32 games (11 starts) in 1980. He reached the majors with Oakland in 1983-84, made 14 starts in 1983, and had a combined 3-6 record and 4.67 ERA in 98⅓ innings.

    TOM RUNNELLS -- A shortstop from Greeley, Colo., and Northern Colorado University, he hit .234 in 128 games for the 1979 Captains and .194 in 73 games in 1980. But his glovework kept him moving up and after five Triple-A seasons, he got the majors with Cincinnati for 28 games in 1985 and 12 in '86 (batted only .174). He then became a manager, and around minor-league stints, led the Montreal Expos in 1991-'92 and (interim) the Colorado Rockies in 2015. He managed seven years in Triple-A, six in Double-A (including Tulsa in the Texas League).

 BOB TUFTS -- A 6-foot-5 left-hander from Massachusetts, the Princeton University graduate was the Captains' pitching ace in 1979 with his 14 victories a Texas League-best. He had a 14-10 record, 2.45 ERA, 176 innings, and 12 complete games in 26 starts, then reached the majors with San Francisco in 1981. He pitched for Kansas City in 1982-83, strictly as a reliever in 27 games, with two saves in '82. After baseball, he earned an MBA degree from Columbia University, dealt with cancer (remission), been a writer/columnist, and living in Forest Hills, N.Y., he has taught business development, sports marketing and elements of entrepreneurship at New York University, Yeshiva University and Manhattanville College.

    CRAIG LANDIS -- The son of late 1950s/early 1960s Gold Glove major-league outfielder Jim Landis, he was San Francisco's first-round draft pick (10th overall) in 1977 and, as an outstanding high school athlete in Napa, Calif., chose a pro baseball career over a football/baseball scholarship at UCLA. He was with the Captains in 1979, playing 126 games and batting .282, with 132 hits, 24 doubles, nine home runs and 59 RBI -- and 16 outfield assists. He played three more years of minor-league ball (in Class AA and AAA), then went to play football at Stanford (strong safety). He became a prominent sports agent; his primary client: Mike Trout.

     MAX VENABLE -- A smallish left-handed hitting outfielder, he was with the Captains for only 18 games (.232 average) in 1979. But he was in the majors the next season for 64 games with the Giants, the first of 12 MLB seasons (727 games) that included four full seasons -- 1983 Giants, '86 Reds, '90-91 Angels. He then played in Japan for two seasons, batting .241 with 18 homers and 128 RBI.

  

    STEVE CLINE -- The right-handed pitcher was a reliever in 16 games for the 1979 Captains, with a 7-3 record, 2.54 ERA and one save, and he pitched in the San Francisco system for seven years through 1982, then became a pitching coach in the organization -- and in that role returned to Shreveport for seven more seasons (1984-85, '88-'89 and '92-'94), making him one of the most popular figures in the Captains' Giants era. He has remained in the game as a pitching coach; the past three seasons at the Class A and rookie-league levels in the Milwaukee Brewers' system.

    SCOTT BUDNER -- A left-handed pitcher for the Captains in 1979 and 1980, he had records of 8-12 and 4-11, working in 53 regular-season games (35 starts) and 162 innings. In 1979, he tied for the Texas League lead in strikeouts in '79 with 110 and pitched 11 complete games. He played only one more season, then began a career as a pitching coach that covers more than two decades, with four years as the Seattle Mariners' lefty batting-practice pitcher (2012-15), two seasons (2016-17) with New Orleans' Triple-A team in the Miami Marlins' system, and in 2018 as a manager in Taiwan.

    CHILI DAVIS -- He was one of two future MLB outfield stars -- Dan Gladden was the other -- on the 1980 Captains team that was 32 games below .500 (52-84). Davis batted .294 with 130 hits in 129 games, including 30 doubles, four triples and 12 homers, and had 67 RBI and 19 stolen bases. Two years later he was in the majors to stay for 18 seasons, mostly notably with San Francisco (1987 NLCS), Minnesota (1991 World Series champs) and the 1998-99 Series champion New York Yankees. His career totals: .274, 350 homers, 1,372 RBI. That included 10 seasons with at least 20 home runs (plus two with 19, including his final year), 13 seasons with at least 70 RBI, and three All-Star Games. Then he became a longtime batting coach in the majors, lately for three years (2015-17) with the Red Sox, 2018 with the Cubs, and in 2019 with the New York Mets.

    DAN GLADDEN -- In 1980, hit batted .295 with nine homers, 35 RBI and 22 steals in 74 games for Shreveport, then returned for a full year in 1981 when he batted .314 with 148 hits in 124 games, plus 52 stolen bases. He was in the majors with San Francisco for 18 games in 1983, then batted .351 in 86 games the next year. The best of his 10 full MLB seasons were with the 1987 and 1991 World Series champion Minnesota Twins. His biggest moment: A leadoff double in the bottom of the 10th in a scoreless Game 7 of the '91 Series with Atlanta; he then scored the Series-winning run. His MLB totals: .270 average, 307 extra-base hits (74 homers), 446 RBI, 663 runs, 1,215 hits, 222 stolen bases (averaged almost 26 in his first eight seasons).

    SCOTT GARRELTS -- P, 1981 and 1992, listed in chapter 25: "They played and stayed."

    
MARK DEMPSEY -- A big right-hander (6-6, 220) from Ohio State, he had a big season for the 1981 Captains with a 15-7 record -- tying for the Texas League lead in wins -- and 3.76 ERA in 26 starts (165 innings, seven complete games). But his only stint in the majors was three 1982 appearances for San Francisco.

     ALAN FOWLKES -- A right-hander from Imperial, Calif., and Cal Poly, he was the Texas League "Pitcher of the Year" in 1981 with a 14-10 record, 2.79 ERA, league-best 152 strikeouts and 203 innings (including 13 complete games in 25 starts). The next season he made 15 starts for San Francisco, going 4-2 with a 5.19 ERA. But his only other MLB time was two games for California in 1985. He stayed in the minors through 1989.

   
 RANDY KUTCHER -- He was the Captains' shortstop for 77 games in 1981 (.285, with 22 stolen bases) and for 97 games in 1982 (.237). A versatile player from Palmdale, Calif., he also played third base and the outfield and got to the majors for 71 games with the 1986 Giants. His only full major-league season was in 1989 with Boston (77 games). He was in 63 Red Sox games in 1988 and 1990. MLB batting average: .228.

    TOM O'MALLEY -- A left-handed hitting third baseman from Montoursville, Pa., he hit a solid .289 with 23 doubles, six triples and six homers and 53 RBI for the 1981 Captains. The next year he was in the majors for 92 games with San Francisco and the starter at third in 1983. But that was his only major-league year as a starter. The next seven years he was in and out of the majors -- much of the time in Triple-A -- with six different organizations. He then played in Japan for six years (1991-96) as a power hitter, batting over .300 each year with a total of 103 homers and 488 RBI.

   

    
JOHN RABB -- A solid catcher for the 1981 Captains (102 games, .276 average, 16 doubles, 16 home runs, 58 RBI), he was Bob Brenly's backup for part of the '83 San Francisco Giants, then for a full season in '84. He had brief stays with Atlanta in 1985 and Seattle in '88.

     CHRIS BROWN -- A third baseman out of Crenshaw High in Los Angeles, where he was a teammate of Darryl Strawberry, he was a second-round draft pick by San Francisco in 1979 and at age 20, he hit .265 in 58 games for the 1982 Captains, then .273 in 102 games (with 10 homers, 58 RBI and 19 stolen bases) the next year. By 1985, he was the starter in San Francisco with 16 homers and 61 RBI, then a National League All-Star choice in 1986 when he hit .317. He was talented, but enigmatic (and that's being kind), a player known as "The Tin Man" -- lack of heart -- who became known for missing games for all sorts of inexplicable reasons. Traded by the Giants in 1987, his career quickly faded and he was out of the big leagues by 1989. He died in a suspicious Houston-area house fire on Dec. 26, 2006, at age 45.

     ROB DEER -- A well-built outfielder from Anaheim, Calif., he became known for two factors: (1) tons of power and (2) tons of strikeouts. Drafted in 1978, he spent two seasons in Shreveport and his some of the most prodigious home runs in SPAR Stadium history. He totaled 62 homers for the Captains (27 in '82, a league-best 35 in '83), drove in 73 runs the first year and 99 the next -- and struck out 177 times, then 185, and batted only .207 and .217. By 1985, he was in the majors for good for nine full seasons (and parts of two others) and his numbers were similar: 230 homers, 600 RBI, 1,409 strikeouts, .220 average. But for Milwaukee and Detroit from 1985 to '92, he averaged 27.7 home runs, 73.3 RBI and 161.1 strikeouts per season.

In two seasons (1982-83), Rob Deer hit 62 home runs for the Shreveport
Captains, including some mammoth shots at SPAR Stadium.
(The Shreveport Times photo)

     KELVIN TORVE -- A left-handed hitting first baseman drafted by San Francisco in the second round in 1981 out of Oral Roberts University, he had a strong 1982 season in Shreveport (.305 in 127 games, 29 doubles, seven triples, 15 home runs and 84 RBI). After a year in Triple-A, he was back with the Captains in 1984 (.114 games, .297, 16 homers, 62 RBI). The Giants then traded him to Baltimore, and he made the majors in 1988 for 12 games with Minnesota and 30 games with the New York Mets in 1990-91. His MLB totals: .226, one homer, four RBI. He played the 1992-93 seasons in Japan, and returned to his hometown, Rapid City, S.D., where in 2018, he began coaching the Post 22 American Legion team for which he played and helped to the Legion World Series in 1977.

    FRANK WILLIAMS -- A right-handed pitcher with Native American roots, he came from a tough background -- as an orphan -- to star at Lewis-Clark College and was one of the Captains' best pitchers in 1982 (26 starts, eight complete games) and for the first half of the '83 season (mostly in relief), with records of 11-9 and 7-2, ERAs of 3.93 and 1.71. He was in the big leagues for six seasons with the Giants starting in 1984 when he had a 9-4 record and 3.55 ERA, and pitched a shutout in his only MLB start. His totals: 333 games (471⅔  innings), 24-14 record, 3.00 ERA, and eight saves. Severe injuries in a car crash led to the end of his baseball career. He sadly ended up as a street person in Victoria, BC, Canada, and died Jan. 9, 2009 (heart attack, coma), at age 50.

     MARK GRANT -- The right-handed pitcher from Joliet, Ill., was San Francisco's top draft pick in 1981, the 10th pick overall, and only 19 when he started 26 games for Shreveport in 1983. His 10-8 record, 3.66 ERA, included seven complete games and two shutouts, 159 strikeouts in 186⅔ innings. The next season he went from Triple-A to 10 starts for the Giants. But he did not meet expectations, and although he had a career-high 163⅓ innings in 1987, he was traded that season and wound up pitching for eight MLB organizations, totaling 233 games (58 starts), 638⅔ innings, with a 22-32 record and 4.31 ERA. Then he went into broadcasting and was the San Diego Padres' longtime color commentator on TV.

     DAVE WILHELMI -- For one Shreveport Captains' game, he was untouchable. On May 4, 1983, he pitched a perfect game on the road against the Arkansas Travelers -- the Texas League's first perfect game since Galveston's Ed Cole in 1935. A right-hander from Joliet, Ill. (Catholic High) -- same hometown as Mark Grant -- and a third-round draft pick by San Francisco in 1979, Wilhelmi made 26 starts for Shreveport in 1983 and '84, but -- except for that one game -- he was mediocre, a 14-19 record and 5.06 ERA. He never pitched above Class AA, and was out of the game after 1985.

   MATT NOKES -- The left-handed hitting catcher from San Diego was a 20th-round draft choice by San Francisco in 1981, and the Captains' starter for two seasons. He hit .289 in 1984 and .294 in 1985, totaling 43 doubles, 25 home runs and 117 RBI in 202 games. His defensive skills were mediocre but his bat got him to the big leagues, first for 19 games with the Giants in 1985. Traded to Detroit, he spent nine years in the majors with a sensational rookie year in 1987 (.289 average, 32 home runs -- a rookie record for a catcher -- and 87 RBI, the All-Star Game and a Silver Slugger award). He was with the Tigers through 1990, then traded to the Yankees, including a strong 1991 season (20 doubles, 24 home runs, 77 RBI, .268 average). He stayed in the majors through 1995, then returned to the San Diego area where he has an instructional baseball hitting practice and is involved in software equipment companies.

    


RANDY BOCKUS -- A right-hander from Canton, Ohio, and Kent State University, he was a Captains' starting pitcher in 1984 and 1985. The first year he had an 8-5 record, 2.81 ERA, 18 starts, four complete games and three shutouts; he was better in '85 when he led the Texas League in wins (14) and ERA (2.73) and his workhorse 201 innings included 15 complete games in 27 starts. He pitched in 39 major-league games from 1986 to '89, including 20 games for the Giants in 1988. He was with Detroit in 1989. Total MLB record: 2-1, 4.23 ERA, 61⅔  innings.

MIKE ALDRETE -- A first baseman-outfielder out of Stanford University, a left-handed hitter and fielder was a hitting star for the 1985 Captains (.333 average, 147 hits in 127 games, 32 doubles, 15 homers, 77 RBI, 16 stolen bases). He was in the majors the next season with the Giants and a starter in 1987 when he hit .325 with 50 runs, 116 hits, 51 RBI and 18 doubles (all career highs). He stayed in the majors for the next 10 years, ending with the 1996 World Series champion Yankees. His career totals were a .263 average, 41 homers and 271 RBI. He then became a longtime MLB coach, and was first-base coach with Oakland in 2017, then assistant hitting coach in 2018-19.

    ALAN COCKRELL -- A legendary athlete in Joplin, Mo., he went to star in football (starting quarterback) and baseball at the University of Tennessee, and opted for a pro baseball career as the ninth pick in the 1984 MLB draft. The next year he was a Captains outfielder, hitting .253 with 25 doubles, 11 homers and 68 RBI in 126 games. But he lingered in the minor leagues for 13 seasons, 10 in Triple-A, and finally got to the majors at age 33 in 1996, going 2-for-8 for the Colorado Rockies. He stayed in the game as a coach, was the batting coach for the Rockies' 2007 National League champions and, most recently, was batting coach for the New York Yankees in 2016-17. He was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in January 2019.

    ROBBY THOMPSON -- A first-round draft pick by San Francisco in the 1983 MLB draft out of the University of Florida (West Palm Beach was his hometown), he was an All-Star second baseman for Shreveport in 1985 when he hit .261 with 20 doubles, seven triples and nine home runs, 40 RBI and 28 stolen bases in 121 games. The next season he was the Giants' starting second baseman and he stayed in the majors through 1996, steadily improving as a hitter. He helped the '89 Giants reach the World Series, had his best year in 1993 (.312, 30 doubles, 19 homers, 65 RBI) and twice was chosen for the All-Star Game (but missed playing because of injuries). And injuries cut his career effectiveness. Still, he hit .257 with 119 homers and 458 RBI. He then became a coach with the Giants, and moved to the Cleveland organization. In 2018, he was a special assistant for infield instruction with the Indians.

    ERIC KING -- A strong right-handed pitcher from Moorpark, Calif., he was only 21 with the 1985 Captains (5-3 record, 2.32 ERA, 15 starts, 104.2 innings) until a promotion to Triple-A. Traded by San Francisco to Detroit along with catcher Matt Nokes after the 1985 season, he made the majors the next year and, with Nokes, helped the 1987 Tigers reach the American League Championship Series. In seven MLB seasons (three teams, including Detroit again in '92), he made 113 starts, had a 52-45 record (best years of 11-4 and 12-4) with 16 saves and a 3.97 ERA.

    TERRY MULHOLLAND -- A lanky lefthander from Pennsylvania and Marietta (Ohio) College, he showed promise with the 1985 Captains (9-8 record, 2.90 ERA, 26 starts, eight complete games, 176⅔  innings). The next year he was with San Francisco -- the start of an MLB career that lasted for 21 years (through 11 organizations). That included 14 seasons as a starting pitcher, then he became a valuable lefty reliever. He pitched a no-hitter for Philadelphia in 1990 and his best year was 1993 for the Phillies when he started the All-Star Game and two World Series games (winning one). He was in the Series again with the 1999 Atlanta Braves, and pitched in five postseasons. His MLB totals: 124-142 record, 4.41 ERA, 685 games (332 starts), 46 complete games (12 in 1992), 2,575⅔ innings.

    JEFF BRANTLEY -- Three times in 1986, he came close to pitching no-hitters for the Captains. A right-hander from Hoover, Ala., his 45 wins at Mississippi State set an SEC record and he was one of the stars of a College World Series team with  future MLB All-Stars Rafael Palmeiro and Will Clark. He had an 8-10 record and 3.48 ERA with 125 strikeouts for Shreveport in 1986 and returned for two games in 1987, then reached the majors in 1989 and stayed for 13 full seasons (including five with the Giants and four with the Reds). In 1989, when the Giants won the National League, he had a 7-1 record as a reliever and in pitched in three games of both the NLCS and the World Series. He was an NL All-Star the next year. He made 18 starts (12 for the '93 Giants). His MLB totals: 43-46 record, 3.39 ERA, 172 saves (he led the NL with 44 for the '96 Reds). Since the 2007 season, he has been part of the Reds' broadcast team.