Minot Mallards Baseball

ManDak League

1950 - 1957

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News Archives - January 2006  through June 2006

 

June 2006

Morden, Manitoba

I'm off to Morden, Manitoba for the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame banquet on June 3. ManDak historian and author Barry Swanton and former Mallard pitcher Dirk Gibbons are among the inductees that I hope to see there. Afterwards, I'll head to Minot for a few days. See you at the ball park.

     

Bowman Family

Matt Bowman, Son of Mallard second baseman Ed Bowman, contacted me in May. He was planning a visit with Ed and Uncle Duke. When they get together, the family usually enjoys a visit to this website . Matt thanked me for the memories.

       

Northern League Mallards

I've added a team photo and scorebook photos of the 1960 team. You can find these at the 1960 Season Page.

Mallard Player Cards

A Ted Strong player card was completed and added to the Mallard player card set on Images 1A.

Ted Strong – South Bend, Indiana

Played for the Minot Merchants in 1949 and batted .351. He poled one of  the longest home run ever seen in Municipal Park against the Fargo-Moorhead Twins on Sept 9, 1950. The drive sailed 60 feet over the right field wall. One of the all-time basketball greats with the original Harlem Globetrotters. Played for the Chicago American Giants in 1935 and 1938 then joined the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League and played for them for a decade except for two years in the Army. His 43 home runs with the 1941 Monarchs topped the League. Five time Negro League All-star. Played third base for the Mallards in 1950 until July 10 when he jumped the club. Appeared in 23 games and batted .236 with 7 RBI’s.

May 2006

Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame (added May 6,2006)

The annual Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame banquet will be held on June 3 at 5:00 PM in Morden, Manitoba. Morden is 80 miles southwest of Winnipeg. Among the 2006 Inductees are former Mallard pitcher Dirk Gibbons and ManDak League author and historian Barry Swanton. Gibbons and Swanton are both attending. I am looking forward to seeing them there. For details go to:  www.mbbaseball.ca/2005%20Baseball%20Hall%20of%20Fame%20Press%20Release.doc. Be patient; this site is slow to load.

Yogi Giammarco

I spoke with Mallard all-star right fielder Yogi Giammarco , two days before his 84th birthday on April 28. A family friend of Yogi's contacted me in early April for a copy of Yogi's player card. I sent him several copies and then was surprised received an autographed copy by mail a few days later along with a note suggesting that I call him. Yogi said he came to the Mallards in 1952 after he was contacted by Joe Probst with a very good offer to leave Richmond. His friend, catcher Joe Massaro also received an offer and  they joined the team together from Richmond. Yogi talked about his baseball career which included stints with several AAA teams. He played outfield with Richie Ashburn and Hank Thompson. He said that the Mallards were very good teams and he remembered many of the players.

 

 

 

Northern League Mallards

This month the 1959 Season team page was added. This page includes a team photo and score book photos of 18 Mallards. I also added the 1958 team photo to 1958 Season.

Barry Swanton's Book

Barry's new book The ManDak League: Haven for Former Negro League Players has been released.  Here is a summary taken from the back cover of Barry's book. See below for more information including the front cover (March 2006).

April 2006

Northern League Mallards

Some information on the Northern League Mallards was added for this month. The Mallards joined the Class C Northern League for the 1958 season after the ManDak League folded at the end of the 1957 season. They joined teams from Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Duluth, Minnesota; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Fargo, North Dakota; St. Cloud, Minnesota; Aberdeen, South Dakota; and Grand Forks, North Dakota.

The Mallards played the 1958, 1959 and 1960 seasons as a Cleveland Indians "farm team" and then sat out the 1961 season before re-joining the league for the 1962 season as a Kansas City Athletics farm team.

So far I have added two new pages for these Northern League teams. The Northern League page includes a list of players that made it to the major leagues and the 1958 Season has some old photos of players from that season.

More information will be added for the May update.

Mallard Player Cards

See below ......... I have only four sets left; so April may be your last chance to get the 30 card set shown on Images 1 and Images 1A.

Barry Swanton

Barry Swanton is headed for the Manitoba Baseball Hall Of Fame. His induction will be held June 3 in Morden, Manitoba. I made the player card for him and Barry tells me he is getting requests for copies. And yes, that is young Barry on the card. Also Barry's new book The ManDak League: Haven for Former Negro League Players will be out any day now. See below for more information.

  

 

March 2006

Willard Brown, who played outfield for the Mallards in 1957, was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in a special election. Results of the election were announced on February  27, 2006 in Tampa and by video conference at the Hall of Fame museum in Cooperstown.   A committee of 12 Negro and pre-Negro leagues baseball historians elected 17 candidates, featuring 12 players and five executives. Included was Effa Manley, the first woman elected to the Hall of Fame.

Electees:

Ray Brown, Willard Brown, Andy Cooper, Frank Grant, Pete Hill , Biz Mackey, Effa Manley, José Méndez, Alex Pompez, Cum Posey, Louis Santop, Mule Suttles, Ben Taylor, Cristobal Torriente, Sol White, J.L. Wilkinson and Jud Wilson.

Jane Forbes Clark, Chairman of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum,  and Fay Vincent, Major League Baseball Commissioner made the announcement at 2:00 PM EST from Tampa. The video conference at the Hall of Fame Museum was attended by employees and visitors to the museum. I attended the video conference in Cooperstown and thought that possibly all thirty-nine candidates, pared down from a screening list of 94 candidates, would be elected. Many were surprised that Buck O'Neil and Minnie Minoso were not elected.

The 17 electees will be honored in Cooperstown on July 30, along with  Bruce Sutter, the lone electee this year from the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

For more details see February 2006 News below and go to  www.baseballhalloffame.org.

Othello Renfro in Photo with Elite Group of Major League Players

 

I came across this remarkable photo in the book "Negro League Baseball, Photos by Ernest C. Withers". I was shocked when I spotted Othello Renfroe wearing his Minot Mallard uniform. The photo was taken by Ernest C. Withers. This book contains many (I would guess at least 100) photos of Negro League baseball and the photos are very high quality. The book was published in 2004 by Harry N. Abrams, Inc (www.abramsbooks.com). I highly recommend the book for Negro League enthusiasts.

 

Othello Renfroe was one of the most entertaining, popular, and best remembered Mallards. Roy Campanella, Larry Doby and Don Newcombe are Hall of Fame players. Most of the players are in their Major League uniforms. The photo was probably taken after the 1954 season and the team was likely an exhibition team. Dr. J. B. Martin was one of four brothers that owned the Memphis Redsox.

 

 Standing: Bill Bruton, Junior Gilliam, Roy Campanella, Dr. J. B. Martin, Suitcase Simpson, Jim Pendleton, George Crowe, Don Newcombe, Joe Black, Connie Johnson. Kneeling: Larry Doby, Dave Hoskins, Bob Boyd, Othello Renfroe, unidentified, unidentified.

 

     

 

 

Mallard Player Cards

 

 

   

I  have a very limited number of sets that were professionally printed. They are available for purchase.  Please contact me by email at bguenthner@comcast.net if you are interested in buying a set. The cost is $18 (including postage and packaging) for the 30 card set. The thirty cards are shown on Images 1  and  Images 1A.

 

 

 

 

Barry Swanton's Book "The ManDak League"

 

A late March release date is anticipated

Barry Swanton's book can now be ordered from several places including Walmart, Amazon or directly from the publisher at www.mcfarlandpub.com/index.html . It  is a history of the ManDak League, which was launched in January 1950 during the Golden Age of Baseball.. Stadiums, officials, lineups, managers and other elements are detailed to set the stage. Included are season highlights from 1950 through 1957. The book concludes with the debate over how the league would be classified by today’s standards.

I'm anxious to get my copy of this book. Barry has shared with me, a ton of information and photographs of Mallard and other ManDak players. I have covered very little about players from the other ManDak League teams but have learned a lot from Barry's material. So I highly recommend this book for people interested in the Mallards or other ManDak League teams.

 

 

 

 

 

Mallard Autographs

 

Thanks to Jim Stadick for sending a copy of his Minot Mallard autographs. Jim and his Brother Mike are grownup Minot kids and Knot Hole Gang members. These are extremely rare Mallard memorabilia. They are from the 1953 Season and were a birthday present from Jim's father. Niel Lettau joined the team on August 1. So the autographs were made after that. Also,  if you checkout the 1953 Team photo on Images 4 you will see the same group of  thirteen players as the autographs. Even Zoonie McLean is missing on both the autographs and the team photo.

 

 

    

 

Mallard Score Books - Northen League Teams

 

Charlie Herrmann – Minot, eBay seller came up with eight Northern League Minot Mallard scorebooks. I purchased four from him and will add some of the photos in next months update.

 

    

                                                                      Max Alvis - 1960 Third Baseman

 

Contacts this Month

 

 

 

February 2006

Willard Brown, who played outfield for the Mallards in 1957,  has been selected by a five-member screening committee as a candidate for a special election into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

This Hall of Fame announcement was made last month :

A five-member screening committee of Negro league baseball historians, appointed by the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors, has selected a slate of Negro leagues and pre-Negro leagues candidates for consideration for election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. A 12-member voting committee will meet in Tampa on February 27, 2006, to vote on the 39 candidacies, with any electees to emerge to be enshrined in Cooperstown, July 30, 2006, as part of the annual Hall of Fame Weekend ceremonies

For more details go to  www.baseballhalloffame.org

Here is an updated biography for Brown who played outfield for the Mallards in July and August 1957:

Willard “Sonny” Brown -  Shreveport, Louisiana

Former major leaguer with sixteen years experience in the Negro Leagues.  One of the premier players and most prolific hitters of the Negro Leagues. Appeared in eight East/West Negro League All Star games. Brown’s tremendous home runs included over 500 home runs for the Kansas City Monarchs, 95 in the minor leagues after integration and 101 in Puerto Rico. From 1935 to 1950 he played for the Kansas City Monarchs and led the Negro American League in home runs seven seasons. Roomed with former Mallard Ted Strong for 10 years while with the Monarchs. In 1947, he was the fourth Negro league player selected to play in the Major Leagues when he was signed by the St. Louis Browns. He hit the first home run by a Negro player in the American League on August 13, 1947. Brown played four months for the St. Louis Browns. He won the Puerto Rico Triple Crown in 1948 when he hit 27 home runs and was later inducted into the Puerto Rico Baseball Hall of Fame. Played for Houston and Dallas in 1953 – 1955. In 1955 he batted .301 with 19 home runs and 104 RBI’s. Joined the Mallards in July 1957 as a right handed throwing and batting outfielder. Minot records list his lifetime batting average of .344 at the time he joined the team. Brown’s Mallard statistics for 1957 included a .307 average with 9 home runs and 29 RBI’s. In December 2005 Brown was selected to a slate of Negro League players for consideration for election to the National Baseball Hall Of Fame. A voting committee will meet in Tampa on February 27, 2006. Any electees will be enshrined in Cooperstown, July 30, 2006 as part of the annual Hall of Fame Weekend ceremonies.

(The above photograph appeared in the 1957 Mallard Scorebook)

Mallard Player Cards

   

 

  See March News above for information on these cards!

 

 

 

 

Contacts this Month

Minot Businesses Supported the Mallards

Here are three favorite Minot Businesses that supported the Mallards (from Mallard scoreboooks):

         

Other Ads can be seen on Images 6

January 2006

The year 2005 was great for my Minot Mallards hobby. I sold out the remaining Mallard books and repackaged the contents into this website. I enjoy the website more. First I can correct mistakes and keep everything updated as I get new information. Secondly,  I can use color and that led to the creation of the Mallard Player cards.  I had fun getting the software (FrontPage and Adobe PhotoShop) and learning to use it. I've made contact with some interesting people, including a couple of  Mallard players.  During the year I  received new information and photographs. I hope 2006 brings more of the same. I'm looking forward to some things in 2006 that I will be reporting on in future website updates:

Here is my wish list for 2006:

Mallard Player Cards

All twenty Mallard Player Cards (Images 1) have been included in Warren Pilon’s Catalog of Negro League player cards. The first version of the catalog was issued last month. Although, not all of the Mallard players were from the Negro Leagues, Pilon included the set and all 20 players because “the Minot Mallards have a connection (in fact, a very strong connection) to Negro League baseball. To me, the Minot Mallards represent one of the crossover points where the two separate, but equal worlds of baseball were joined as one.”

 The catalog includes 1,129 cards from 42 sets. The Mallard set is described as:

 "A set of baseball cards depicting star players from the 1950’s Minot Mallards baseball team. Designed and produced by Bill Guenthner. Originally 18 cards, the set now has 20 cards, and more will be added in the future. These cards, as well as information about the Mallards, can be found at www.minotmallards.com, a website created and maintained by Bill Guenthner.

 In addition to the Mallards, the catalog includes cards of many ManDak League players from the other teams.

Several people contacted me this month about obtaining copies of the Mallard Player Cards. I am working with a printer to determine the costs involved with printing the cards. Please contact me if you are interested in buying a set of the cards. I expect the cost to be in the range of $15 - $20 for 30 cards. Twenty cards are shown on Images 1. Five newer cards are added this month on Images 1A. Also included in the set are five cards that will be added to the website in the February update.

 

Minot Businesses Supported the Mallards

I went through a copy of a 1955 Mallard Scorebook looking at the advertising. I show 14 of the 111 advertisements on the Images 6 page. These 14 business are still serving Minot. I'll add some of my other favorites in next month's update. Inside the scorebook there is a list of "firms and individuals who through their generous financial contribution made it possible to field the Minot Mallards" . There are 204 entries in this list. This shows the strong and wide spread support the Mallards received from the Minot business community.

The following  businesses, still serving Minot 50 years later, are included on Images 6:

 

Negro League Historians announce slate of candidates for Hall Of Fame

A five-member screening committee of Negro league baseball historians, appointed by the Hall of Fame's Board of Directors, has selected a slate of Negro leagues and pre-Negro leagues candidates for consideration for election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. A 12-member voting committee will meet in Tampa on February 27, 2006, to vote on the 39 candidacies, with any electees to emerge to be enshrined in Cooperstown, July 30, 2006, as part of the annual Hall of Fame Weekend ceremonies. One of the Minot Mallards is on this slate of 39 players. I'll report more on this next month.

 

Contacts this Month

Wayne Stivers, a retired sports memorabilia collector/dealer and Negro League historian. Wayne did an enormous amount of research as part of the group that chose the slate of Negro League players for voting into the Hall of Fame. Wayne, who is familiar with many of the Mallard players visited this website and made some very complimentary comments about the contents.

Jack Kelly baseball card collector from Ashland, Ohio.

Richard Halvorson, childhood friend and classmate, contacted me from Minot.

David Fadley, Negro League baseball enthusiast and baseball card collector from Wharton, Ohio. David has made friends with several former Negro Leaguers including Ira McNight. McNight played with and remembered Mallard pitcher Sugar Cain.

Stanton Henderson of Minot also contacted me about the player cards.

Additions this month:

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