Goshen and Giddings

1978

2010-11-08T19:36:00.000-08:00

For Visalia die-hards, "1978" still holds a certain mystique. It was the greatest team the city has seen, and the last to win the California League championship. It dominated the league in nearly every statistical category, and won the title on a thrillingly climactic final day of the season...when they had to win twice.

The '78 season had been a charmed ride for Visalia. Not only did the team crush its competition throughout the regular season, but the city and its ballclub was also featured in the June 5th, 1978 edition of Sports Illustrated:

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The City of Visalia had garnered national attention by buying and operating the club itself beginning in 1977, becoming the first city in the country to ever do so. The team more than justified the city's investment that next season, but only after fighting its way off the proverbial canvas at the end.

More on that final day later. First, however, it's time to turn the floor over to baseball historians Bill Weiss (who was the Cal League's official historian for many years) and Marshall Wright. They named the '78 Visalia Oaks one of the best Minor League teams of all time back in 2000. The following is an exerpt from their article, interspersed with a few pictures that were graciously donated to us by Jim Rumelhart, who was the team's 20-year-old trainer that year.

"The 1978 Visalia Oaks ran away with the first half Southern Division title, finishing 52-19 with a 9 ½ game bulge over Salinas. In the second half, the team cooled off somewhat (45-23) but still prevailed over Salinas by four games. In the playoffs, the Oaks bested Northern Division winner Lodi, three games to two, to win the laurels. The Oaks finished their season with a 97-42 record, leading the league in many offensive categories, including average (.301), home runs (130) and runs (1,007).

Visalia was managed by Roy McMillan, who by an odd coincidence also led the team in the first year of the Mets’ regime in 1968. McMillan was a 49-year-old veteran of 16 major league campaigns. From 1951 to 1966, McMillan plied his trade as a starting shortstop for the Reds, Braves and Mets. He finished his career with a .243 average and 1,639 hits. He led the National League in fielding four times and was named to two All-Star teams (1956-57) as part of Cincinnati’s “write in” campaign. In 1972 he managed Milwaukee for two games (1-1) between the firing of Dave Bristol and the hiring of Del Crandall. In 1975, he piloted the Mets for the last 53 games of the season (26-27) following the departure of Yogi Berra.

Roy McMillan before a game in Lodi in 1978. Photo by Jim Rumelhart.

Visalia’s most prominent player was “Super Joe” Charboneau, who led the league in batting (.350), finishing .0001 ahead of Reno 2B and current San Diego coach Tim Flannery. Charboneau was on loan from Philadelphia and in December, 1978, he was traded to Cleveland. In 1979, he led the Southern League in batting (.352) and in 1980 he burst upon the major league scene. Reams of copy were written about the off-the-field activities of this “free spirit.” Veteran Cleveland Plain Dealer writer Hal Lebovitz said “Ring Lardner in his most imaginative moment never dreamt up a baseball character who pulled his own tooth (with a pair of pliers), drinks beer through his nose, had a pet alligator or whose lifelong ambition is to open beer bottles with his eye socket.”

On the field, Super Joe put together a .289-23-87 season and was named 1980 American League Rookie of the Year by the Baseball Writers Association. From there it was all downhill. He injured his back in a headfirst slide during spring training in 1981, hit only .210-4-18 in the strike-shortened season and was in AAA by August. Between November, 1981 and November, 1982, he underwent two back surgeries and an operation on his wrist, and developed stomach ulcers. Cleveland released him in August, 1983, and he played his last pro game in 1984.

Outfielders Tack Wilson (.349-5-79) and Steve Douglas (.343-19-106) finished third and fourth in the league in batting. Douglas led the league in runs (142), hits (192), total bases (311) and triples (17). Wilson was second in stolen bases (63). He hit just five homers, but one was an inside-the-park grand-slam. Third baseman Scott Ullger (.320-20-108) led the league in doubles (36), while designated hitter Steve McManaman hit .293 and led the league in home runs (29) and RBI (120).

Joe Charboneau, Steve McManaman, and Scott Ullger. Photo by Jim Rumelhart.

From Douglas (who scored a league-high 142), to Gary Bozich and McManaman (who collected 104 each), no less than seven Visalia Oaks surpassed the century mark in runs. This achievement was made possible by the compact nature of the squad, which saw only 12 position players take the field during the season. All of the seven players participated in at least 125 games, more than enough time to cross the plate 100 times.

Visalia used only 23 players during all of that championship season and one of those was a pitcher who appeared in only one game. That was no accident. Throughout Visalia’s association with the Twins they regularly used fewer players than any other team. Minnesota farm director George Brophy planned it that way. He was an astute judge of talent and always tried to assemble at the start of the season a team that could compete in the California League. In addition, he tried to keep expenses down by not having to shuttle players back and forth across the country throughout the season.

On the mound, Gene Robinson (18-5) and Bob Veselic (18-8) tied for the league lead in wins. Veselic also led in innings pitched (215). Jeff Clark (13-1) had the best percentage (.929).

Douglas, Charboneau, McManaman and C Steve Herz all made the league All-Star Team. Douglas was named the league’s MVP and the Topps’ California League Player of the Year. Douglas and Charboneau were named to the National Association Class A All-Star Team...

The Visalia Oaks of 1978 were a hard-hitting club that was noteworthy for two accomplishments. First, they were among a scattered handful of professional clubs to have seven players score 100 each. And second, they were certainly alone in having 58% of their position players cross the plate 100 times - a feat unlikely to be duplicated for quite a while."

I should say so. And while Weiss and Marshall sum up the team's dominance beautifully, they gloss over its most dramatic achievement: winning the championship by sweeping a doubleheader.

Yes, the Oaks did beat the Lodi Dodgers in the Cal League finals, but they made things hard on themselves. They fell behind 2-1 in the best-of-5 series, and found themselves a loss away from having their legendary season become just another member of Visalia's unfortunately crowded pantheon of sad playoff stories.

Not only did the Oaks have their backs up against the wall, but so did the league. By Minor League rule, the season had to end on September 5th. But September 5th was only the date of Game 4 at Recreation Ballpark. So, the situation was simple: Visalia had to win a game, then win another that same night. And when Marv Garisson's 2-run single gave the Dodgers a 2-1 lead early in Game 4, it began to look like Visalia might come up short again. But in the bottom of the 4th, Gil Ramirez turned the tide.

Gil Ramirez gets off the Visalia bus during a 1978 road trip. Photo by Jim Rumelhart.

Ramirez was just 21 years old, and was in his second season of pro ball. The light-hitting backup catcher had appeared in only 45 games during the regular season and had batted just .218. But with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 4th inning, Ramirez stepped up and lined the first pitch he saw over the left field fence for a grand slam.

Joe Charboneau was first to meet Gil Ramirez after his momentum-shifting grand slam (Visalia Times-Delta)

The Oaks never looked back, as they raced to an 11-3 blowout win to even the series at 2-2. Then, they turned right around and played a decisive Game 5. It was Bob Vaselic's turn to pick up the hero baton, and he would seize it with both hands.

Vaselic, who pitched briefly in the Major Leagues with the Twins a couple years later, took the ball in the nightcap and never gave it up, throwing a complete game. The Oaks took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 2nd when Tack Wilson's clutch 2-out single brought home Gary Bozick. Lodi tied it in the top of the 3rd, but Visalia went back ahead in the bottom of the same inning on an unearned run. John Daynor led off with a single, went to second on a ball in the dirt and then to third on the same play when Lodi's catcher threw the ball into center field. He then scored on an error by the Dodgers' shortstop. And after a season of crushed homers and overpowering offense, that little gift run turned out to be Visalia's last, and most important, of the year.

Vaselic did the rest, making the slender 2-1 advantage stand up. He pitched out of jams in the 5th and 7th innings and threw a perfect 8th. Then, in the top of the 9th, with Rec Park rocking, he retired the first two Lodi batters, but walked future Major Leaguer Mark Bradley to put the tying run on base.

That brought up George Kaage, who had hit over .300 that season. But he never had the chance to steal the title. Bradley tried to swipe second, and Steve Herz, who was behind the plate for the Oaks in this final game, threw a laser to the second base bag. Gary Bozick, the shortstop, caught the throw and tagged the sliding Bradley out. And Visalia had done it.

The Visalia Times-Delta captured the championship moment perfectly

For Veselic, it was his 2nd league championship in 3 seasons; he had also won it with the Reno Silver Sox (yes, Reno used to be in the California League) in '76. After his brief stay in the Majors in the early '80s, he bounced around in the minors and independent leagues until 1990. He died at only 40 years old of cancer in 1995.

Joe Charboneau, as mentioned by Weiss and Marshall, became an overnight sensation in the Majors a couple years later, and then fell from that pedestal almost as quickly. Scott Ullger is still the Minnesota Twins' third base coach today. Tack Wilson made it to the big leagues in 1983 and again in '87.

And what of grand slam hero Gil Ramirez? He never played pro ball again. But he went out on top, just like the rest of the team. It's a feat that Visalia clubs have yet to duplicate since. It's what makes the 1978 Visalia Oaks' magical season an unforgettable one in city history.

Back in Black & White

2010-10-07T14:04:00.000-07:00

Clever titles are optional, and feel free to supply your own. But after an exciting season (Visalia was in the playoff race until the final day), we're back with more semi-regular updates. We've also added a second page to the blog (see "Trophy Case" across the top of the page) with everything Visalia has won since entering the California League in 1946. Sure, the club has managed to win the league only twice, but you might be surprised by how many other times they've been agonizingly close. Individual award-winners are also listed, and you might recognize some of the names.

Also, there's this:

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We believe this was taken in the early 50s at the same baseball clinic that this picture is from. Unfortunately, we can't be sure. But it's definitely Rec Park in the old Wooden Grandstand Era. The batter gets points for style and effort; no points, however, for failing to rotate his hips on the swing (or make contact, for that matter). Hey, for all we know, it was a filthy pitch.

Where'd We Go? Nowhere!

2010-05-06T15:20:00.000-07:00

If you're wondering why there've been no new blog posts in recent weeks, there's a very good reason...it's baseball season again! Since I have several dozen other things to attend to during the best time of the year, the blog naturally has to shift to the backburner over the Summer months.

Fear not, however; come late September, we'll be back with more Visalia baseball history...live, local, and, uh, early-breaking.

Until then, please tune in to KJUG AM 1270 for broadcasts of every Rawhide game in the Visalia area, or listen from anywhere in the world at RawhideBaseball.com.

The Sporting Life

2010-03-08T13:30:00.000-08:00

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This was one of many local amateur teams that sprung up in the early 1880s after the first baseball game in Visalia. It's a shame that modern teams don't still pose like these distinguished gentlemen did (especially the two guys in front). Also, we've got to find some excuse to bring the candycane hats back. And the high socks...well, they're just classy.

This photo (found in the 1982 team program) also proves the incredible heritage of the Simpson family in Visalia baseball lore. John Simpson (top row, far left) was the great-great grandfather of Stan Simpson, who owned the Visalia Oaks during the 1980s and has been a passionate supporter of local sports his entire life.

Random Gems: Buy Ticket, Win Car

2010-02-22T18:02:00.000-08:00

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You just can't buy $1 raffle tickets and win a car anymore. Those were the good old days, I guess.

I Love the 80s

2010-02-10T16:40:00.000-08:00

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Well, with posters like this, who wouldn't?

I highly recommend clicking on this brilliant image and enjoying it in full, large format. Make sure to take note of every little detail* (including the late-80s "Flying Acorn" logo, which is one of my favorite Visalia logos of all time).

Then, read how the two pitchers in this classic shot fared after the jump.

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The 1980s were quite good to Visalia; they challenged for the California League championship almost every year (although they went 0-5 in the championship series), enjoyed their most stable period of Major League affiliation (with the Minnesota Twins) before modern times, and saw a slew of quality prospects and future big leaguers come through town.

Two such quality prospects can be seen on this picture, taken in front of Visalia's historic Fox Theatre.

Willie Banks (left) was the Twins first pick in the 1987 draft; Johnny Ard (right) was their top pick in '88. Together, they were expected to form the backbone of the Twins staff for years to come. It didn't quite turn out that way.

Neither of them, however, disappointed in 1989 with Visalia. Banks' ERA was just 2.85, and he led the Cal League in both strikeouts (179) and wild pitches (22). His year in Visalia is best remembered, though, for the no-hitter he threw on May 24th against the Palm Springs Angels. A bat, which Banks autographed immediately after the game, currently rests in the new Hall of Fame Club at Recreation Ballpark.

Willie broke into the Majors in 1991, and was a bit player in the Twins' championship team (which is nothing to be ashamed of; most of us would sacrifice multiple limbs for a World Series ring). But although he managed to hang around with multiple clubs for the rest of the decade, he never became the big-time pitcher he was expected to be; after a brief comeback in 2002, he finished his career with a 33-39 record.

Johnny Ard also put together a solid 1989 season, with a 3.29 ERA. After continuing to impress at successive levels with a 93-mile-an-hour fastball and a slider-change combination, the Twins traded him to San Francisco at the '91 trade deadline for former Cy Young winner Steve Bedrosian. It was a classic young-top-prospect-for-established-get-us-over-the-hump-veteran move, and when Bedrosian made only six appearances for the Twins due to injuries, it looked like they may have gotten the short end of the deal. But Ard never made it to the Show at all; in 1993, while pitching for AAA Phoenix (yes, remember when Phoenix was a minor league city?), he came down with elbow trouble and didn't fully recover for three years. By that time, he was past his sell-by date. He pitched in independent ball for a season, but no Major League organization was interested anymore, and he retired after 1996.

All of that was in the future when Visalia's front office brilliantly conceived and executed this poster. Banks was "Big Daddy," Ard was "The Terminator," Lethal Weapon II was about to come out, it was still the 80s, and life was good. And thanks to this picture, it can stay that way.

*You get bonus points if you noticed the other movie on the Fox Theatre marquee. Again, this picture is just tremendous.

Programs from the Past: 1951

2010-02-04T14:12:00.000-08:00

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This was the cover of the Visalia Cubs' 1951 official program. It's interesting to contemplate the fact that baseball was already celebrating 75th anniversaries in the early 1950s. While it may be initially unclear why they chose 1876 as the beginning of baseball (the sport had been evolving since a few decades prior), it's likely that they were referencing the formation of the National League, which was indeed founded in 1876 after the old National Association had folded. Major League Baseball still considers 1876 to be its founding year (even though the American League wouldn't join forces to create the familiar two-league system until 1901).

Full contents of the '51 program are viewable after the jump.

As always, you can click each page to view a larger version of it.

Page 1

Pete Shepherd wasn't just the club president; he was also one of the driving forces in bringing professional baseball to Visalia after World War II.

Also, Pioneer Jewelers submits a strong entry into the "How many taglines and slogans can we possibly fit into one ad space?" sweepstakes.

Page 2

Don't miss the complete concessions menu at the top left, featuring "Western" beer for 30 cents, and premium "Eastern" beer for 35. In fact, since it's so good, here's an isolated, blown-up version of the menu:

I can't imagine the 10-cent cigars being of a very high quality, even in 1951.

Page 3

Here's the top half of the scorecard itself (which was hand-stamped into each program every day; the Cubs were playing the Ventura Braves when this program was sold). And when scoring became thirsty work, you could always reach for a Hires Root Beer "for that refreshing flavor of real root juices"!

Page 4

Another example of bygone times: how many stores can still (legally) claim to feature "Nationally Known Brands of Tobacco and Candy"?

Page 5

The ticket prices on page 5 are definitely worth noting.

Page 6

Back Cover

A Selma Frankfurter in a Holsum Bun with a cold bottle of 7-Up: six decades later, it still doesn't sound too bad.

Vada Pinson and the Big Redleg Machine

2010-01-27T19:17:00.000-08:00

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The 1957 Visalia Redlegs were, by most objective measures, one of the best teams ever to grace Recreation Park. They featured two future Major Leaguers, one big league vet on his way down, and, arguably, the 2nd-greatest player to ever wear a Visalia uniform.

After several years of cutting ties, the Chicago Cubs had left town permanently following the '56 season, and the Cincinnati Reds stepped in to become Visalia's new Major League affiliate. They went by a different nickname in the mid-50s, however; the Communist Scare was in full swing, and calling your team "The Reds" was not the most politically correct (or business-savvy) thing to do. So, from 1953-58, Cincinnati changed their name to "The Redlegs," and Visalia took the name of their affiliate.

The '57 squad went 84-51, finishing 6 games ahead of Reno and giving Visalia its first regular-season pennant. The Redlegs outscored their opponents by 206 total runs, hit 110 homers, posted a remarkable on-base percentage of .386, and fell just a few points shy of batting .300 as a team.

On the mound, the Redlegs were led by Pete Hernandez, who wracked up a 25-6 record and a stingy 2.69
ERA. Hernandez is, most likely, the winningest pitcher in club history; he pitched in parts of five seasons in Visalia, and was credited with 77 total victories during those years. He was at the tail end of his career in 1957; he retired a couple years later, and never reached the Major Leagues.

Three players from this team did, however. Or, more precisely, two of them did, and one of them already had.

Bruce Edwards (bottom row, far right) was the club's elder statesman at 33 years old, and had enjoyed a 10-year career in the Majors. Signed by Brooklyn in 1946, he'd played on the great Dodger teams of the late 40s and was the starting catcher for their 1947 pennant-winning squad. Edwards hit .295 and played excellent defense behind the plate, finishing 4th in league MVP voting and looking like a budding star. But after losing the World Series to the Yankees, Edwards' fortunes took a dramatic double-turn for the worse that offseason. First, he hurt his arm in an exhibition game against inmates at Folsom Prison (yes, it was a different era). Second, the Dodgers promoted another young, promising catcher to their big league squad; his name was Roy Campenella.

Edwards' stock was never quite the same, but he did go on to spend another nine seasons at the highest level of baseball, mostly as a utility backup. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs, then the Washington Senators, and finally to Cincinnati in 1956, where he played in exactly 7 games before being sent down to the minors for good.

Edwards, then, was a grouchy, grizzled veteran in 1957; he'd gone from playing in two World Series at Ebbets Field and Yankee Stadium to playing on the hard-scrabble surface of Recreation Park. Not surprisingly, he took out his frustrations on young opposing pitchers, hitting .309 as a part-time player for the Redlegs and clubbing 14 home runs.

Meanwhile, Joe Gaines' career (front row, far left) was just beginning. Merely 20 years old, he was in his first full season of professional baseball, and he announced his arrival by terrorizing the California League. Playing in all 135 of Visalia's games, he batted .359, slugged .524, and collected 261 total bases. Gaines made it to the Show in 1960, playing 7 seasons with Cincinnati, Baltimore, and Houston.

But despite his terrific numbers in Visalia, Gaines was still overshadowed by a much bigger future star: Vada Pinson. Pinson (top row, 2nd from right) was a fresh-faced 18-year-old outfielder from Memphis. Like Gaines, Vada was in his first full professional season, and anything Big Joe did, Vada did even better. His numbers are simply eye-popping, especially in an era long before our modern offensive explosion: a .367 average, a .613 slugging percentage, 209 hits, 40 doubles, 20 triples, 20 home runs, 349 total bases, 165 runs scored...and like Gaines, he never took a single game off all season.

If you talk to old-time Visalians who saw Vada play at Rec Park that summer, you'll still hear tall tales of his legendary exploits. Feats of tremendous footspeed, incredible armstrength, and impossible home run distance are still claimed (one fan told us that he personally witnessed Vada hit a home run onto Center Street, which is approximately 400 feet behind the center field wall). While the stories often stretch the limits of belief, the impact that Vada had on all who watched him is unmistakably clear.

Pinson was promoted to the Major Leagues the next year, and spent 15 seasons in the Show. He finished his career with over 2,700 hits and almost 500 doubles, and fell just short of Hall of Fame numbers. He remained great friends with Visalia's Taylor Family (the founders and owners of Taylor's Hot Dogs), and returned to visit them multiple times over the subsequent decades before his death in 1995.

Despite all of the Redlegs' individual and collective regular season dominance, however, things quickly fell apart in the '57 postseason. The playoffs, as Billy Beane famously said, are a statistical crapshoot; all the numbers and advantages that have been slowly accumulated over a plodding, months-long season are suddenly thrown out of the proverbial window, and everything is reduced to a couple of 9-inning showdowns. That metaphorical toss-up becomes even more random when postseason series are a best-of-3 format, as they were in the California League that year.

The top 4 teams in the 8-team league made the playoffs, and as the top seed, the Redlegs were paired in the semifinals with the 4th-place Salinas Packers. The Packers had finished just above .500 at 68-67 and had barely squeaked into the playoffs, edging out San Jose for the final spot by a single game.

But once the series began, none of that mattered. Salinas upset the Redlegs in Game 1. They upset the Redlegs again in Game 2. And suddenly, it was all over. The best team throughout the season had been swept. The magical Summer of '57 had come to a crashing, premature end.

Salinas went on to edge Reno in the championship series and claim an improbable league title. But despite the postseason disappointment, Visalia had enjoyed an incredibly memorable season.

Vada Pinson was, unsurprisingly, voted the league's Most Valuable Player, and began his Major League exploits the next year. The mark he left, both in the record books and in the minds of Visalia fans, was indelible.

Poppa's Got An Old-School Drag

2010-01-20T14:41:00.000-08:00

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We don't exactly know the date of this picture. This much is clear: It's definitely Rec Park (see the distinctive light tower in the background?) and it's definitely sometime after the early 60s (see the chain-link fencing around the perimeter? No more sign-boards.) We'd guess it's from the late 60s or early 70s, but if there are any tractor connoisseurs in our audience who can pinpoint the year of this fine model, please speak up.

The bottom line is, in a land before convenient Gators and ATVs, you had to use any vehicle that was handy to help drag the infield.

Update: reader Kacey tells us that she showed the picture to a "tractor buff" friend, and he said the following: "I think it's a 'Farmall Cub' which was manufactured by International Harvester. My grandad's neighbor used to have one. Not sure about the year though, it's pretty hard to pinpoint the exact years of tractor just by looking at 'em, cause they rarely make big changes to the designs. If I had to guess though, I'd say the tractor was from the 50s or 60s."

Also, Tom points out that the picture makes it appear that the ENTIRE infield was dirt at this time. It's very hard to tell for sure; the difference between grass and dirt in a black-and-white photo, especially in the background, is difficult to distinguish. But if that's true, it could place the picture in the mid-60s, when Visalia didn't have a team for several years (1964-67) and the park doesn't appear to have been particularly well-maintained. The tractor may have been dragging the field for a high school game.

Random Gems: Baseball Camp at Rec Park, 1950

2010-01-15T16:57:00.000-08:00

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This terrific shot was taken during the Summer of '50, and features a small flotilla of Visalia kids being instructed on the finer points of pitching by Dom Conteras, who pitched two seasons for the Visalia Cubs. The young southpaw on the far left is Art Browning, who has remained a lifelong fan of Visalia baseball and still lives in the area.

You get a good view of Rec Park's old wooden grandstands in the background, along with another group of kids taking infield instruction on the dirt.

Everything about this picture (Conteras' baggy pants, the kids' rolled-up jeans and Converses, the floppy pancake-mitt gloves) is just gold.

We're Famous! Sort Of. Oh, and Happy Holidays.

2009-12-22T12:58:00.000-08:00

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Before we sign off for 2009, a couple of blogs have linked to us over the last couple days. The boys at Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness gave us a shout-out at the bottom of their latest post, as did the L.A. Times' Jon Weisman on his Dodger Thoughts blog. A big thanks to both of them, and be sure to check out their excellent stuff (even if you're not a Dodger fan). And if you're wondering about the "Tragic Illness" tag...you're obviously not a Simpsons nerd.

And with that, it's time to do as the Visalia Cubs did for their season ticket holders in 1950, and wish all of you a tremendous holiday season and new year. We'll talk to you in 2010...which, if you hadn't noticed, is not far off at all.

Hawk Harrelson and the 1961 Visalia Athletics

2009-12-18T13:56:00.000-08:00

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Editor's Note: We've been going a bit chronologically with some of our initial posts, but I want to make sure we don't get locked into that as an obligation. So, after talking about the 1949 team, we're going to skip ahead today to 1961. Don't worry; we'll come back to the 40s and 50s later. But like the writers of Lost, we reserve the right to skip forward and backward in time as we see fit.

Ken "Hawk" Harrelson is arguably the most polarizing non-national sports broadcaster in the country. His ultra-homerish call of Chicago White Sox games have become famous around the baseball world, as he refers to the Sox as "the good guys," yells "Hell yes!" whenever something exciting goes their way, and punctuates their home runs with "You can put it on the booaarrrrrd...Yes!" He's spawned reams of internet analysis, both favorable and, well, not so much.

One thing that can't be debated, however, is that his path to fame went through Visalia.

By 1961, Visalia's team was no longer known as the Cubs; Chicago had skipped town after the '56 season, and Visalia went through a few different affiliations over the next six years. In '61, they were a Kansas City Athletics affiliate (remember, the A's hadn't moved west to Oakland yet). The above picture features Ken Harrelson (2nd from right) with Tom Videtich, John Wojcik, and Andy Rivera. The "Athletics" script across the front of the jerseys was red; the caps were black with a red "V".

The '61 team didn't fare well in the standings; they went 60-79 and finished 4th in the Cal League. Scoring runs wasn't a problem; the A's scored 773 of them, averaging over 5 and a half per game. The problem was, they allowed 844. You can view the team's full statistics here.

Harrelson, who was just 19 in this picture but already featured the formidable nose that earned him his nickname, had a stellar season. He hit .301, socked 25 homers, drove in 114 runs, and was named the team's Most Valuable Player. He would be called up to the big leagues two years later, and played nine seasons at the highest level. His best Major League season was in 1968, when he hit 35 homers for the Red Sox and finished 3rd in the American League MVP voting.

A broken leg effectively ended his career during Spring Training in 1970; he attempted a brief comeback, but retired for good after '71. But he had used his popularity as a player to host a local television show entitled "The Hawk's Nest," and after attempting to make it as a professional golfer, he returned to broadcasting in 1975, when he partnered with Dick Stockton to call Red Sox games.

Never afraid to speak his mind, Harrelson was fired by Boston after criticising management in the early 80s. He landed with the other Sox in Chicago the next year, and was their play-by-play man for four seasons before, surprisingly, becoming General Manager in 1986. His reign was short-lived and somewhat disastrous; he fired manager Tony LaRussa (who went to Oakland and promptly won 3 straight pennants and a World Series), and traded future 6-time all-star Bobby Bonilla. He returned to the broadcast booth the next year, and has been there ever since. He's won five Emmy Awards, been named Illinois Sportscaster of the Year twice, and been nominated for the prestigious Ford C. Frick Award.

The Hawk is clearly one of most famous alumni to play for Visalia; he continues to generate headlines and dissenting opinions, and still isn't afraid to stoke the fires of controversy. "I was blessed to know Howard Cosell and Curt Gowdy," he told the Chicago Sun-Times in 2008. "They both told me the same thing -- don't ever try to please everybody. And I don't. My detractors? I've been around too long to let it bother me."

Love him or hate him, he's a larger-than-life character, and in the Summer of '61, he called Recreation Park home.

Team Photos: 1949 Visalia Cubs

2009-12-16T17:18:00.000-08:00

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The 1949 Visalia Cubs won few beauty contests and even fewer ballgames; they lost 98 out of 140 contests, finishing last in the California League. But if you can look at this team photo without smiling, you're either having an especially bad day, or you're a robot.

The '49 squad was initially managed by Leon "Red" Treadway (first row, 3rd from right). Treadway was a player-manager who had enjoyed a 2-year stint with the New York Giants during World War II before embarking on an extended tour of the Minor Leagues. Poor defense and an inability to hit with runners on base doomed his career in the bigtime, and poor pitching would be his demise in Visalia.

Cubs pitchers posted awful numbers in 1949; while we don't have complete statistics, we do have ERAs and WHIPs for 11 Visalia pitchers, and they're not pretty. Dominic Contreras (top row, 3rd from right) pitched in 30 games that year and had an ERA of almost 6 and a half. Ray Peet (middle row, 2nd from left) had a respectable ERA of 4.66, but his WHIP (Walks plus Hits allowed divided by Innings Pitched) was almost 1.8, which isn't good at all. Other pitchers who joined the team later in the year and aren't pictured included Norm Fitzgerald (6.60 ERA in 15 appearances) and Walter Koehler, who managed to go 0-7 with a bloated 8.72 ERA over 18 outings. If you're a masochist, you can visit Baseball Reference's page on the '49 team for more numbers.

There were a couple bright spots for the '49 Cubs; Tommy Perez (top row, first from left) led the team in hitting with a .311 average and 24 home runs. He went on to play eight more seasons of pro ball in seven different cities before ending his career in Albuquerque in 1957. Despite posting solid numbers everywhere he went, he never got his shot at the Majors.

One man on this squad who did, however, was Ed Winceniak (bottom row, 3rd from left). Ed was just 20 years old when this picture was taken, and it would take him seven more years of toil to briefly reach the Show. In 1956, he appeared in 15 games with the Chicago Cubs. He collected 2 hits in 17 at-bats. The next year, he made 17 appearances for Chicago, and went 12 for 50. That was it. And yet, it was more than the vast majority of ballplayers ever experience. To people who only follow the Major Leagues, he was a failure; for those who understand the incredible effort it takes just to get there, he was the exception.

Red Treadway, meanwhile, wouldn't last the year as Cubs manager; he was replaced midway through the season. He managed another seven years in professional baseball before retiring to an unknown life of relative anonymity. All we know about him after 1956 is that he eventually died on May 26, 1994 in Atlanta.

1949 was a season to forget in Visalia. But if the Chicago Cubs are perpetually seen as lovable losers, the '49 Visalia Cubs are almost as lovable, especially after six decades. The losses and bad statistics fade; the smiles, the throwback gloves, and the unfortunate noses are timeless.

Programs from the Past: 1950

2009-12-11T14:41:00.000-08:00

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The cover of the 1950 yearbook is a dramatic shift in style from previous editions, and while it may seem a little boring at first, it's actually an impressive piece of modernist art that was well ahead of its time.

First, the pitcher's mechanics are nearly dead-on, which is rare in a baseball illustration (you could argue that the seams of the ball wouldn't really spin that way, but you're forgetting about the knuckleball). Second, the textured blue background is tastefully done. And third, the concept of having the ball flying at the viewer is quite innovative. No camera in the world could have captured this kind of real-life image in 1950; shutter speeds simply weren't fast enough. The artist, then (whom we know nothing about other than the "Shepard" tag at the bottom right corner of the drawing) was working entirely from his or her imagination, and not from an actual still-shot.

Whoever "Shepard" was, we raise a toast to her/him/it, and encourage you to click the link for the rest of the 1950 program.

As always, you can click each image to view a larger version.

Page 1

Page 1 features half of the scorecard and an ad for Main Drug Store (for all your "noonday luncheon" needs). It also informs us that gambling is strictly prohibited and that all violators will be ejected. Multiple fans have told us, however, that this rule was seldom (if ever) enforced.

Page 2

Personally, I'd vote for Sandy Robinson based on the picture alone.

Page 3

Page 4

I'm intrigued by Lash's Butcher Shop's "scientifically-aged" steaks. Also, if you're wondering, the "DH" next to some Cubs home games stands for "Double-Header." Remember when they used to deliberately schedule those? If you read carefully, you'll notice that Cubs doubleheaders in 1950 began at 6:30 PM. That's a long, late night of baseball.

Page 5

To our knowledge, Hires Root Beer is no longer around. We might suggest that their tagline, "For Real Root Juices," may have had something to do with that. But we shouldn't judge.

The "Cubs in the Hall of Fame" list, meanwhile, reminds us that despite their reputation as a perpetually losing franchise, Chicago had a number of true greats during the late 19th and early 20th Century. Anson, Spalding, Tinker, Evers, Chance, Hornsby, Waddell, Alexander...that's an impressive list of early baseball legends.

Finally, one thing that always intrigues me about mid-20th-Century ad copy is the insistence on placing "quotation marks" around seemingly random "words." The Mi Place ad on this page is a prime example. Does anyone care to explain why the word "Try" needed quotes around it? Does anyone else care to tell me that I'm a massive, massive nerd who needs to find much better things to worry about? Right. Moving on.

Page 6

Back Cover

The program's back cover features an eye-catching ad with an eye-catching promotion. Ironically, by featuring a television ad on their program, the Visalia Cubs were promoting an invention that would soon take a huge bite out of their own attendance and popularity. It's no coincidence that the rise of television paralleled the falling of gates at Visalia home games over the next decade. The attendance record of 1947 would stand all the way until 2009, due largely to the fact that television gave Visalia citizens something else to do on a Summer night besides going to the game, and allowed them to watch baseball that wasn't played at Recreation Park.

Visalia's Original Field of Dreams

2009-11-24T15:39:00.000-08:00

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This is not Recreation Ballpark; it's Athletic Park, and it was Visalia's first enclosed baseball diamond.

This picture is not precisely dated, but it appears to be from the early 1920s. If you click the image and look at the enlarged version, you'll see a rich example of early 20th Century small-town America in detail. Notice the cars parked on either side of the grandstands (any classic car enthusiasts out there? Can you give us an exact year on these models?), and the absolutely jam-packed crowd overflowing out of the stands and spilling down either foul line.

While we don't have a firm date on the picture, we do know that the diamond was built in a two-week span in June of 1899, and it is believed to have stood near the modern intersection of Willis Street and Mineral King Avenue (an area that was, at the time, referred to as "the northern end of the city"). Volunteer baseball enthusiasts helped build the fences (look closely at the backstop), while the grandstands were subcontracted out to local construction firms.

Three more random observations: first, you really did have to keep your head up as a spectator in those days. There didn't appear to be any netting or chickenwire to shield fans from foul balls, and those stands are almost as close to home plate as modern Rec Park's grandstand. Second, this lefthanded hitter must have been known to hit the other way, because that's certainly how the middle infielders were playing him. And third, the right fielder proves that outfielder's demeanors haven't really changed in a century.

My thanks to Visalia historian extaordinaire Terry Ommen for unearthing this picture and the newspaper clippings that explain it.

Recreation Park and the The Lavatory of Doom

2009-11-04T18:25:00.000-08:00

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Ladies: it's time to play an exciting round of "Would You Use This Restroom?"

This was the ladies' room at Recreation Park in 1962. As far as we know, there was no award for having the fortitude to survive it. Visalia women have always been fearless, after all.

Programs from the Past: 1949

2009-11-02T16:56:00.000-08:00

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The cover of the 1949 Visalia Cubs program features a baseball with an aerial shot of Visalia superimposed on it, which is fairly impressive. The Mouse-Bear has apparently been phased out and replaced with a much tougher-looking cub, albeit one who swings way too hard, doesn't watch the ball, doesn't rotate his hips, and jumps in the air while doing it. It's quite possible that the '49 Visalia team was taking hitting lessons from the cartoon cub, since they finished dead last in the California League with an abysmal 42-98 record.

This edition was also unique in that it doubled as a program and a "civic magazine." Now that's creative branding.

You can view all six (6!) glorious pages of this voluminous "civic magazine" after the jump.

As always, click any image for a larger version.

Page 1

Page 1 features a 1949 Cubs home schedule and a vintage Foster's Freeze ad.

Page 2

Don't miss the Admission Prices listed on the bottom of Page 2.

Page 3

Page 4

The Visalia Ice Company ad reminds us not to take our refrigerators for granted.

Page 5

The "No talking to players" rule is an interesting one, since no rule like it exists any more. We can only speculate as to why it was adopted; the nebulous "This rule was adopted to foster better baseball spirit on the field and to help make baseball a better game to watch" explanation offered here is obviously a smokescreen for something deeper. It was, in all likelihood, an attempt to keep players from being solicited by gamblers to throw or influence games. Gambling in the stands was theoretically illegal but widely practiced and winked at, and most baseball players were poorly paid even at the Major League level; bribes, then, could be very tempting, and baseball was still only 30 years removed from the Black Sox scandal at this point.

Page 6

Page 6 gives us a fascinating (if highly condensed) "History of Visalia" through the first half of the 20th Century, and boasts of Visalia's 11,000 residents and the 51,000 people in the greater surrounding area. It's a reminder that the city has always been one of the smallest markets in professional sports, and even more so in the franchise's early history.

Back Cover

The back cover of the '49 program features the full Opening Day Cubs roster. You'll notice that it includes players from Tulare, Exeter, and Dinuba, so there was some definite local flavor on the squad.

If you're wondering about the acronyms and significance of the "Class" category, "Rookie" is fairly self-explanatory; "LS" stood for "Limited Service," meaning the player has spent five years or less in professional baseball; a "Veteran" was anyone with six years or more of pro time. Many leagues placed minimum quotas on how many Rookies a club needed to have on their roster, and maximum quotas on how many veterans they could employ.

Random Gems: Ski Lessons

2009-10-28T17:12:00.000-07:00

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This 1957 picture shows ski lessons taking place behind the left field wall of Recreation Park. The snowpack was a little light, apparently, but these ladies still seemed to be having a good time.

Programs from the Past: 1948

2009-10-26T16:38:00.000-07:00

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This was the program for the 1948 Visalia Cubs, and it presents a great array of old-time ads.

The dreaded mini-Mouse-Bear makes its return, and is joined by an unnamed radio guy who apparently worked for KTKC. Willys Jeeps and Farm Tools was also a prime sponsor (and that's "Willys," not "Willy's, by the way).

You can look through the complete '48 Yearbook after the jump.

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Page 2

Page 2 contains some small gems, from old 7-UP and GE ads to a blurb for the Valley Typewriter Company (RIP) to the promotion of "mortarless interlocking concrete blocks."

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Page 4

We assume "Sunlght's" was supposed to have an "i" in it. And from the department of Taglines That Would Never Work Today, who can resist "The All Butter and Whole Milk bread"?

Page 5

This was the first half of the actual scorecard, which was crammed into as small a space as possible to leave maximum room for more ads around it. Notice the promo for the old Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League (who were also a Cubs affiliate at the time).

Page 6

The Visalia Drive-In ad makes you hungry just reading it. Steaks? Fried Chicken? Sandwiches? Sundaes? Cool Drinks? What else do you really need?

Page 7

Page 8

Don't you miss the days when music stores carried air conditioners, refrigerators, washers, and ironers?

Page 9

Does anyone still keep score using the system given on this page? We've never seen this method, and we've never seen anybody else use it.

Page 10

The final page of the program provides both a brief "history" of baseball, and also provides a classic example of writing becoming dated over time. It repeats the popular urban legend (since debunked) that Abner Doubleday invented baseball, and mentions Babe Ruth's salary of $85,000 per year ("more than any other player has ever earned!"), along with his record 60-homer season in 1927. Just another reminder to always write with humility; people might read you sixty years later and chuckle.

Back Cover

Kids, take notes: the young man on the Reeder's Cow Pasture Lumber Co. ad is demonstrating very poor form. Generally, it is not recommended to jump up in the air while attempting to field a ground ball.

Random Gems: Wild Goose Chase

2009-10-23T15:18:00.000-07:00

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We're not sure exactly what year this picture was taken. It appears to be from the 1950s, and it's certainly no later than 1962 (the last year of the old wooden grandstands seen in the background). But it's definitely Recreation Park, and those are definitely children chasing geese with approving spectators in the background. Make of this what you will.

Featured Photo: Intlekofer, Bryson, and Safety Pins

2009-10-20T17:09:00.000-07:00

There's a degree of irony in this 1947 picture, but it takes a little research to uncover it. We'll get to that in due time. Meanwhile, do you notice anything strange in the photo? Go ahead, click on it to see the enlarged version. We'll wait.

If you said "safety pins," you're either highly observant, or you just took a hint from the title. Either way, we salute your astuteness. The Visalia Cubs' jerseys were hand-me-downs from the Major League club, and they often were not in the best shape after being worn at Wrigley Field the previous year and then shipped cross-country.

This picture was taken on Opening Day of the 1947 season. John Intlekofer, the Visalia manager, is on the left, and big Jack Bryson, with his uniform held together by a couple makeshift devices, is the man on the right.

Bryson, like many players in that era, had his early career interrupted by World War II. He had been signed by the Washington Senators in 1941, and had begun his professional days in Orlando, Florida, at the tender age of 18. But he was drafted the next year, and found himself occupied with more important things until after the war.

The '47 season was his first in the Cubs organization, and his first full season back in pro ball. He was now 24 years old. Unfortunately, the years he'd lost had prohibited him from developing the raw talent that the Senators had seen in him six years earlier.

Bryson had a statistically solid season, as he went 16-13 in 1947, with a 3.94 ERA. His control, however, haunted him, as he walked 131 batters. He returned to Visalia in '48, and while the walks remained a constant feature of his game, his ability to pitch around them did not. He slumped to a 3-15 record with an ERA of over 6, and the Cubs released him. He remained in the area, playing for nearby Porterville in the Sunset League, but he didn't have much more luck there, and he retired from baseball after 1949. We haven't been able to determine what happened to him after his playing days.

John Intlekofer, meanwhile, helped lead the team to a dramatic turnaround from their inaugural season, when they won only 39 games. Intlekofer's club went 79-61, a full 40 games better than in '46, and they finished in second place. Only Stockton, who ripped off 26 consecutive victories at one point, compiled a better record than the Cubs.

Intlekofer didn't just manage from the bench; he was a pitcher-manager, although he threw only 56 innings in what would be his last playing season. He was 35 years old that year, and he'd been playing professionally since he was 19. His minor league career had taken him through Portland, Macon, Waterloo, Omaha, Little Rock, Cedar Rapids, Decatur, and two stops in the glamorous Pacific Coast League with the Los Angeles Angels and the Hollywood Stars. Already well past the point of Major League potential, he was transitioning into a managerial role, and his first go-around would be a highly successful one.

After the 1947 season, Intlekofer managed for a couple more years before leaving the game. It seems logical that he had made contacts within the movie industry during his playing days in Hollywood, because in his post-baseball days, he became a successful wardrober and costumer for 20th Century Fox. He worked on films such as Planet of the Apes and Mash, and also outfitted Elvis Presley in several of his movies. Intlekofer passed away in 1999 in Woodland Hills, California at the age of 88.

A picture of John and Elvis, personalized with a thank-you note and autograph by The King himself, recently sold for over $4,500 on auction, along with a brown cowboy hat that Intlekofer picked out for Presley for his first film Love Me Tender.

All of that was still ahead of Intlekofer when he posed with Jack Bryson in April of 1947. The irony of it, of course, is that a man who went on to become a wardrober to the stars was managing a team that couldn't even afford buttons for their ragged hand-me-down jerseys.

Programs from the Past: 1947

2009-10-16T14:35:00.000-07:00

This was the front cover of the 1947 Visalia Cubs gameday program. We're not sure who designed the creature that served as the team's mascot for its first few years; it sure was cute, though. Sort of like Mickey Mouse with bear claws. Admit it: you're intimidated.

Full contents of the '47 program are available for your perusal after the jump.

Here's the rest of the program. As always, you can click the images to see a larger version of any page.

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Page 7

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Page 9

Page 10

Back Cover

Team Photos: 1947 Visalia Cubs

2009-10-15T14:01:00.000-07:00

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Question: Of all the people in this picture of the 1947 Visalia Cubs, which went on to have the longest Major League career? Hint: it wasn't any of the players.

This was the second season of Visalia's minor league franchise, and the '47 team was a vast improvement over the 1946 expansion edition, which finished dead last in the California League. These Cubs finished in 2nd place before losing in the league playoffs.

The club featured several high-caliber players who were unlucky to be playing in the pre-expansion, pre-Free Agency era, when there was very little player movement either at the Major or Minor League level, and far fewer Major League jobs were available. While many fans bemoan the lack of player continuity in modern teams, the "old days" had a downside of their own: hundreds of gifted ballplayers (who would likely have been Big Leaguers if they played fifty years later) rotted away in the lower levels due to the stagnancy of player movement, and never had their moment in the spotlight.

Chuck Abernathy (top row, 4th from left) led the '47 team in batting with a .335 average and clubbed 16 homers. He was considered a top prospect, but he never made it to the Majors despite spending eight seasons in the Cubs' farm system. He died in Chowchilla in 2001.

Bob Talbot (middle row, far left) did make it to the big club in 1953. He played two seasons in Wrigley Field and became a fan favorite with the Bleacher Bums before injuries cut his career short. He moved back to Visalia after his playing days, and still lives here today. We'll feature him in a much longer piece soon.

Don Alfano (bottom row, far left) hit one point under .300 that year. He stalled at the AAA level a few years later, never making the big breakthrough. He would return to Visalia in 1951 and '53 before retiring and settling down in the city.

Bob Moniz (bottome row, 2nd from right) has most likely appeared in more games for Visalia than any other player. Records from this time are sketchy, so we can't know for certain. But we do know that he played in parts of 6 different seasons at Recreation Park with a few other stops in-between, starting in '47 and ending in 1955. He also decided to make the town his permanent home after meeting his future wife at a Visalia swimming pool.

But of all the men in this picture, it was John Holland, a non-player (top row, far right) who arguably had the most well-known career. As Visalia's Business Manager, he ran the team's day-to-day operations, and he rose steadily through the Cubs system over the next decade before Philip K. Wrigley named him General Manager of the Major League club in 1956. He would remain Chicago's most powerful executive for almost 20 years, finally retiring after the 1975 season. He is still the longest-serving GM in Cubs history.

Visalia fans loved the 1947 team, as evidenced by the fact that over 104,000 of them turned out during the season (at a time when the population of the city was around 10,000 people). It was a franchise record that would stand until 2009.

Irish Eyes, the Wild West, and Two Orphans: How Baseball in Visalia Began

2009-10-13T15:57:00.000-07:00

Two unidentified members of the Empire Baseball Club of Visalia pose for an 1879 photograph (Click picture for larger version)

It might be a stretch to say that baseball in Visalia has its roots in Northern Ireland. But not much.

When Thomas Fowler was born on March 17, 1829 just outside Belfast, Ireland, his parents couldn't have known that their son would eventually become the patron saint of baseball in a small California rancher town over 5,000 miles away. In fact, they would not have had the slightest idea of what "baseball" was. But Thomas was destined to be first a traveler, then a wanderer, and then a restlessly enthusiastic picture of American frontier success.

The first sign that young Thomas was not going to be an ordinary man was when he left Ireland at age 18. Nobody knows why. Maybe he didn't either. But he arrived in New York in 1847, and found work as an apprentice at a machine shop, breathing poisonous iron dust all day long.

As a young immigrant with a dangerous, exhausting, low-paying job, Fowler could have become one of the faceless thousands of Irish who were swallowed alive by the 19th Century New York slums. In fairness, his family was very wealthy, and he may have come to the country with more resources than the average immigrant. But that, in itself, was part of what made Fowler so fascinating: he was the family's only son, and stood to inherit a fortune from his parents if he had just stayed in Ireland. But he chose to risk it all to come to America, where, in the days before wireless money transfers and interconnected world banking systems, his family's wealth was largely useless.

When he was tired of the machine shop job, he didn't sail back to Irish safety, either. Instead, he wandered down through the American South to New Orleans, and then migrated through the plains to Texas, and then found his way from Texas to California, where, in the early 1850s, he settled in the newly incorporated region of Tulare County.

Fowler was originally drawn to California by the Gold Rush, which had begun a few years earlier. California was rumored to be a land where precious ore was everywhere and quick riches were easily found. In reality, gold was very difficult and arduous to mine, and required a large amount of luck to find. Fowler quickly realized that the people who were getting rich weren't the miners themselves; they were the merchants who sold food and goods to the miners. Fowler deftly adjusted his plans, and instead of spending his money on mining equipment, he started buying, breeding, and slaughtering beef cattle to supply food to the mining communities.

Over the following years, his business boomed and expanded, until he dominated the meat markets in Central California and in silver-rich Nevada. He acquired a 40,000 acre ranch, and his cattle, with their distinctive "76" brand, were said to be in the "tens of thousands."

Fowler became one of California's wealthiest and well-liked citizens, and he used that popularity to win election to the State Senate in 1869. He would be re-elected multiple times. "Honest Tom" had reached the pinnacle of his influence and success. He married, had five children, and seemed to be set for life.

But he was still the same restless man who had left a fortune in Ireland and wandered across North America, and he needed a new challenge. He had always dreamed of being a succesful miner; it was, after all, what had driven him to the state in the first place. Pragmatism had made him a cattle rancher, but prospecting was what he really wanted to do. So when the opportunity presented itself, he purchased the rights to the Empire Mine in Mineral King, raised millions of dollars in investment, and went to work on his new venture.

As a side project, he also founded a general store in Visalia and named it after his mine. The Empire Store was born, and became a major sponsorship force in the area.

With his considerable money and clout, Fowler could fund any cause or venture he liked. One of those causes, it turned out, was baseball. It's not exactly known how Fowler became a fan of the new craze that was sweeping the country. Some speculate that he picked it up while making frequent visits to San Francisco and Sacramento, but that's just an educated guess.

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Regardless of where he found the sport, Fowler seemed to enjoy any kind of competitive action. He was known for his boisterous, stereotypical Scotch-Irish temperament; the California Senate Guide of 1878 described him as "a fearless man, a little apt to get excited." The guide warned that "It is dangerous to tread on Senator Fowler's toes, for he is as quick to resent as to forgive an injury...He is a hard man to fight against, for the reason that he has acres, cattle...and a pluck that will surmount any difficulty."

That Fowler had this kind of personality isn't surprising, not necessarily because of his heritage, but because of the tremendous forcefulness it took to establish oneself as a giant in the tough mid-19th Century California landscape. Laws were not always evenly enforced, bandits and robbers were still rampant, and justice was something that individuals often took into their own hands.

Once, according to popular legend, Fowler and a friend (another Irish immigrant) got into a heated argument by the shores of what is now Bravo Lake in Woodlake, California. They supposedly squared off and boxed for the rest of the day, and attracted a crowd of native Yokut tribesmen, who yelled "Bravo!" every time either of them landed a punch, thus giving the lake its name. Whether the story was true or not, the fact that people widely believed it suggests that Fowler's nature was intensely competitive, making him an ideal patron for sports.

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And so, in April of 1879, a new baseball team was formed. They were known as the Empire Club of Visalia, officially sponsored by Fowler's Empire Store. It was the first organized team in Visalia's rough and once-lawless history. Fifty years after Thomas had been born across the Atlantic Ocean, he and his self-financed club were about to make history. But it wouldn't be pretty.

Their first opponents were the Two Orphans club of Bakersfield. Bakersfield had a head start on Visalia in population and baseball, and already boasted a few established teams. The Weekly Visalia Delta described the Two Orphans as "an old club," and relatively speaking, it probably was.

Two Orphans had agreed to come to Visalia via train to play against the Empires, who had not even held a formal practice since being founded less than a week earlier. The game was played on a Sunday in front of "a large number of people," who saw the experienced Two Orphans take advantage of the green Empires in a 31-6 pasting. But the event was still a rousing success, as the crowd was enthused about the new sport, and Bakersfield players "expressed themselves as well satisfied with the reception they received in Visalia" and agreed to host a return contest a few months later.

Later that summer, Visalia traveled to Bakersfield for the rematch. “They will also take with them their guns and glass ball traps, and have a pigeon and glass ball shooting match,” reported the Weekly Delta. “The Bakersfield boys may win the base-ball match, but they will find it difficult to beat our boys at shooting.”

The Empires traveled to Bakersfield on July 13th, 1879. The Visalia team, along with “60 of Visalia’s encouraging and enterprising citizens together with a number of ladies and the Visalia Silver Cornet Band” left at 1 AM on Sunday. They arrived in Bakersfield at 5 AM and were “met by a delegation from the Two Orphans and the Bakersfield band in a most cordial manner.” After resting briefly at the Arlington House and French Hotel, they were greeted by the locals. “The citizens, many of them old Visalians, called during the morning and spoke their welcome,” reported the Delta. After listening to several “soul-stirring airs” from both the Visalia and Bakersfield bands, the crowd moved to the sporting grounds for the shooting contest and ballgame.

As it turned out, the Weekly Delta was half-correct in their prediction: Bakersfield won the baseball game and the shooting contest. This time, the Empires managed to score 21 runs, more than tripling their output from three months prior. Unfortunately, Bakersfield scored 44.

The final inning-by-inning line score, reprinted in the Delta, was not pretty:

Empire (Visalia) 0 0 0 0 4 2 6 5 4 - 21
Two Orphans (Bakersfield) 4 3 3 5 6 9 5 5 4 - 44

Obviously, the rule of skipping the bottom of the ninth inning when the home team had already won was not in place yet.

After the games, the Visalians were escorted back to their hotel, where “a sumptuous supper was given by the Two Orphans.” The Visalia delegation used the Weekly Delta to convey their gratitude to the citizens of Bakersfield for their hospitality, and wrote that they hoped “to be able at no very distant day to return the compliment.”

Within the next few years, multiple teams had been sponsored and founded in Visalia, and they were regularly competing with and beating Bakersfield teams. By 1887, Visalia had a seven-team city league. By the 1890s, a San Joaquin League was in place. Baseball was firmly entrenched in Tulare County, and was there to stay.

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Unfortunately, Thomas Fowler wouldn't see much more of it. His mining venture proved disastrous, and he lost almost all of his once-considerable fortune. In 1884, while returning from a trip to San Francisco to act as a witness in a land lawsuit, he tried to step off of a still-moving train as it came to the Goshen stop, stumbled, and fell heavily. At first, he didn't appear to be seriously injured, and he continued on to Visalia the next day. But he died that night. Doctors suspected that he had ruptured an artery in his fall, but no autopsy was conducted, and his exact cause of death was never officially established. He was 55 years old.

Fowler left behind little money but a large reputation. The city of Fowler, just outside Fresno, was named after him over twenty years after his death. But his biggest legacy may have been the team of ragtag, inexperienced ballplayers he sponsored in 1879.

Minor League baseball wouldn't permanently come to Tulare County until after World War II, but the groundwork had been laid 67 years earlier by a man who lived a uniquely American life. Thomas Fowler was born in war-torn Northern Ireland, made his fortune in the Wild West, and died in baseball-crazed Visalia.

A Call to Arms: Welcome to Goshen & Giddings

2009-10-13T10:07:00.000-07:00

Baseball has been a part of Visalia's heritage since 1879. Professional, affiliated baseball has been here since 1946. But no one has really taken the time to compile a collection of Visalia baseball history in one place...until now.

Over the coming months and years, we hope to gradually accumulate more and more pictures, stories, and recollections of baseball's rich past in Tulare County. Through research and some generous donations, we have already collected a fair amount of artifacts. We know, however, that there are more of them out there.

If you have old pictures or memorabilia, we'd like to know about it! Contact us at (559) 732-4433 ext. 18, or email Donny@RawhideBaseball.com. You don't have to permanently donate items; most of the pictures and artifacts you'll see on this site were temporarily loaned. We'll work with you. Just don't keep your treasure a secret!

Additionally, if you're an ex-player or a veteran fan with stories to tell, we want to hear from you too. Do you remember watching Vada Pinson or Kirby Puckett play at Recreation Park? Did you attend a memorable, crazy game back in the 19xx's? Oral history is just as important to this project as pictures and memorabilia, and it doesn't matter if your memories are from the 1940s or the 1990s. So contact us, and we'll talk!

Many people don't realize how deep baseball's roots are in the Visalia and Tulare County area. It's time that changed. And it starts here.