Boys score early in rout of ACGC, 8-1

The Willmar newspaper continues to refer to our athletic programs as "MCA" or "Morris/Chokio-Alberta." It's my understanding that we go by "MACA" or "Morris Area Chokio Alberta." Don't worry about those hyphens and slashes. Actually I have long felt we should go back to being "Morris High School." It's understood that we serve a wide area. The names of these little towns don't mean as much as they used to. It's just a geographical convenience now.

Anyway, the West Central Tribune reported that "MCA" or "Morris/Chokio-Alberta" prevailed on the baseball diamond Tuesday (5/17). It was an 8-1 score over Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City.
The game's outcome appeared sealed early: all eight of our runs came home in the first three innings. Our line score was eight runs, eight hits and one error. The ACGC numbers were 1-6-1. ACGC's lone run came home in the seventh, spoiling the shutout bid of Tiger hurler Sean Amundson. Amundson's stats looked impressive anyway. He put a smile on coach Mark Torgerson's face, striking out seven batters, walking one and allowing six hits.
ACGC had three pitchers work: Kobe Holtz (the loser), David Kingery and Michael Dallmann.
The MACA (not MCA) offense had Mitchell Torgerson go two-for-two. Amundson impressed at bat as well as on the mound, and in the former category he had a hit and three RBIs. Ryan Dietz had a hit and an RBI. Phillip Messner had a hit in his only at-bat. So did Trent Marty. Toby Sayles socked a double and drove in a run, and Philip Anderson went one-for-three.
These players each had one hit for the Falcons: Jaren Kaddatz, Kingery, Colton Minnick, Jeremy Nelson, Dallmann and Payton Kinzler.
 

Softball: Tigers 12, Minnewaska 5

The Tuesday chapter of play also had a resounding win by the MACA (not MCA) girls on the softball diamond. Playing at the Minnewaska Area field, coach Mary Holmberg's girls really poured it on in the later innings, downing the Lakers 12-5. We outhit the Lakers 12-10.
Errors were a tale of woe for the Lakers as they booted the ball eight times. The Tigers by contrast committed just one error.
Brooke Gillespie was a cog in the winning effort, both with the bat and on the pitching rubber. Her power bat showed itself again. Brooke homered and doubled in her two-for-four performance. She drove in two runs. She pitched 6 1/3 innings to get the win, scattering ten hits. An oddity: she had no walks or strikeouts. Ashley Solvie finished up the pitching work.
The losing pitcher was Rachel Erickson. Ashley Bakko also pitched for Minnewaska.
Piper Gibson was a major offensive force for Morris Area Chokio Alberta. Piper homered and doubled while going three-for-five. Her RBI total was a robust five. Lexi Mahoney's bat resonated with a double and an RBI. Bailey Marty went two-for-three.
Nicole Solvie went two-for-four. Lindsey Dierks contributed a hit and an RBI, and Becca Holland added a hit to the mix.
Erin Edmunds socked a homer for the Lakers. Mason Schlief went three-for-four including a double, and drove in a run. Kaitlyn Lang had two hits in three at-bats. Carly Stewart had a hit in her only at-bat, and drove in a run. Emily Edmunds doubled. Abby VerSteeg had a hit and an RBI. Bailey Stewart added a hit to the mix.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Softball Tigers thump Montevideo 10-3

Tigers 10, Monte 3
MACA softball gained its tenth conference win Monday (5/16). The score was 10-3 as coach Mary Holmberg's Tigers turned back the Thunder Hawks. Our conference record now: 10-1. We're a game up on the BOLD Warriors. A big showdown with the Warriors - a doubleheader no less - is slated for Thursday, here. The Eagles complex will be a packed place, for sure.
The Tigers jumped to a 2-0 lead in the second inning of the Monte game. We really took charge in the third inning when six more runs streamed in. The Tigers cruised the rest of the way, supported by the pitching of Brooke Gillespie. Gillespie pitched the whole seven innings, striking out four batters and walking two while giving up six hits.
The losing pitcher was Breanna Welling. Welling was sharp at times as she struck out seven batters. But she gave up the eleven Tiger hits.
Let's look at that hitting attack. Madison Wevley was assertive with the bat, going three-for-four with four RBIs. Lexi Mahoney socked a double. Bailey Marty had a hot bat with her three-for-four boxscore line. Piper Gibson, Nicole Solvie and Lindsey Dierks all went one-for-four, while Gillespie went one-for-three.
For the host T-Hawks, Taylor Haugen had a double as part of going two-for-two. Ashley McKee doubled. Welling, Abby Olson and Kaylee Glomstad also hit safely for the T-Hawks.
 

Baseball: Melrose 3, Tigers 1

The recent skein of success by the MACA Tigers came to an end Monday. Melrose had special incentive to win, knowing they could seize first place in the West Central Conference. They succeeded at the Morris field, holding the Tigers to just four hits. Those four hits were by Sean Amundson, Jared Anderson, Toby Sayles and Philip Anderson. Jared scored a run and Philip drove in a run.
MACA pitcher Brady Jergenson could have used a little more offensive support. He was effective, striking out seven batters and walking just one. He did allow nine hits. One of the runs he allowed was unearned.
The winning pitcher was Tyler Braegelmann. Braegelmann struck out five batters, walked two and allowed four hits in his route-going performance.
The Dutchmen had a 2-1 lead after two innings. Melrose scored its third run in the fifth while MACA was contained by Braegelmann. We were outhit 9-4. Fielding worked against us, as we had three errors compared to Melrose's one.
Tyler Moscho went two-for-two with a run scored for Melrose. Colton Meyer went two-for-three with a double, and drove in a run. Mitchell Waldvogel had two hits in four at-bats.
 

UMM school year concludes

Saturday was graduation day at our U of M-Morris. Our family decided not to attend, based on the crush of people we were likely to encounter at the P.E. Center. We'd have to try to get the attention of those golf cart drivers. We have actually had good luck with that in the past. Thanks.
Did the UMM choir perform the "UMM Hymn?" I think if it had, someone would have told me. If they do, I will direct my annual financial contribution to the music department. Otherwise I will direct it to the Division of Social Sciences, like I did last year. I have much more in common with the social sciences people than the music people. Academic music people intimidate me. Still, they would probably accept my money.
I doubt that the current disruption in UMM administration was alluded to during the commencement, but maybe it was. We have had the bizarre situation of a newly-named chancellor suddenly withdrawing, for reasons that continue to seem vague and inadequate.
Eric Kaler said Rodney Hanley withdrew "after considerable thought and reflection." The logical response is: Why couldn't he have engaged in this considerable thought and reflection before accepting the appointment, or before even applying?
Kaler's statement is harmful, rather a slap in the face to us, because it implies that the Hanleys decided they didn't want to live in such a small town in such a remote place. You didn't assume that? Well, what then did you assume? We could push these assumptions aside if we could just get a better explanation.
I heard someone say Hanley will now be blackballed as an aspiring administrator.
Maybe, though, he has "his side of the story," and maybe he suddenly discovered, or was tipped off to, some bit of unpleasantness he'd have to deal with here. Look how Jacqueline Johnson and Sandy Olson-Loy were humiliated in that "NorthStar" publication. Maybe Hanley has a sense of decorum that wouldn't be at all compatible with that kind of treatment. I'm just speculating, of course. That is what we are forced to do when we are given inadequate information.
Did Hanley find out about the "gay devil worshipers" or "queer Satan worshipers" or whatever they are? Maybe this was just too distasteful for him. IMHO we need an administrator who can come in and tamp down all that ridiculous stuff. The young people at UMM come here to mature, don't they?
I wrote a post on the Hanley withdrawal Saturday for my companion website, "Morris of Course." Click on the permalink below to read, and thanks for reading:
http://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2016/05/rodney-hanley-we-hardly-knew-ye.html
 

Obviously I have communicated with some friends trying to ferret out the truth on the Hanley matter. Here's an email I received:
 

Regarding your question as to what me and other townspeople thought about the chancellor withdrawal situation, I missed the opportunity to use a great line I heard on a TV show recently. In answer to a similar but rhetorical question, Detective Bullock on the TV series "Gotham" replied: "That's above my pay grade and below my sense of wonder."

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

MACA baseball thunders to 19-5 triumph

Tigers 19, Monte 5

It was the MACA bats making thunder in Thunder Hawk country of  Montevideo Thursday (5/12). The Tigers scored regularly in building a commanding lead. MACA bats made noise to the tune of 22 hits! We beat the Thunder Hawks 19-5. We scored six runs each in the sixth and seventh innings.

The offense was truly at centerstage, so let's get into the details of the MACA attack. Sean Amundson's bat was sizzling. This Tiger pounded six hits in six at-bats including a double. He drove in two runs and scored two. Brady Jergenson's bat made noise to the tune of a five-for-six performance. He socked a double and drove in two runs.

Ryan Dietz socked a home run. This Tiger went two-for-three while driving in three runs and scoring three. Jared Anderson doubled as part of a two-for-two showing and scored two runs. Philip Messner's bat resonated with two doubles. Philip went three-for-four, drove in three runs and scored two.

Philip Anderson went two-for-three with both his hits doubles. Philip drove in two runs and scored two. William Hoslien went one-for-one with an RBI and run scored. Chase Metzger had a hit, an RBI and run scored. Mitchell Dufault drove in a run. Denner Dougherty scored a run.

These T-Hawks hit safely: Derek Killbarda, Connor Kontz, Christian Kanten, Jacob Mundt and Jack Tweeter.

Amundson and Ryan Bowman pitched for MACA with Amundson getting the win. Amundson struck out four batters and Bowman fanned two. The less said about Monte's pitching the better. It's back to the drawing board for them.

Congrats to coach Mark Torgerson and his Tigers on such an impressive win. We outhit Monte 22-5.

 

Softball: Tigers 5, Melrose 4

Ashley Solvie pitched the whole way in the Tigers' 5-4 win over Melrose on Thursday, here. Melrose scored one run in the top of the seventh but was then stopped. Each team had eight hits. The Tigers committed just one error.

Solvie struck out two batters, walked two and gave up eight hits and four runs (three earned). She out-dueled Sandra Sprenger who struck out two batters, walked six and gave up eight hits. Just two of the five runs she allowed were earned.

The Tigers led 2-1 after one inning. Each team plated a run in the third. MACA went on to post single runs in the fourth and sixth. This was a West Central Conference triumph for the orange and black.

Courtney Storck socked a triple. Nicole Solvie tripled as part of going two-for-four. Kalley Hottovy had a hit in her only at-bat. Becca Holland's bat was smoking in a three-for-four performance. Lindsey Dierks added a hit to the mix.

The top Melrose batters were Abby Hinnenkamp and Sprenger, each with two hits. Hinnenkamp scored three runs. MACA had two errors and Melrose one.

 

Softball: Tigers 10, ACGC 8

Tuesday WCC action had a thrilling note for the Tigers of Morris Area Chokio Alberta. Brooke Gillespie continued with her productive ways at bat, as she drove in three runs. Piper Gibson drove two runs across, homering in the process, as coach Mary Holmberg's Tigers chalked up this 10-8 win.

On the losing side were the Falcons of Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City. Those Falcons actually outhit our Tigers 15-9, but they had a problem with stranding baserunners, nine in all.

MACA made a statement right away, assuming a 4-1 lead in the first inning. We surged forward with three more runs in the second, then we scored one each in the fifth, sixth and seventh. We overcame five errors. ACGC had two fielding miscues. I remember a Sun Tribune editor who was disturbed and confused about the term "fielding miscues." It's common jargon. When that editor made a mistake, it wasn't a small one, it was an enormous one. She didn't understand "snakebit" either.

Let's look at the whole MACA offensive story. Courtney Storck went two-for-three with an RBI. Becca Holland had two hits in four at-bats. Gillespie had a double as part of her two-for-three boxscore line, and this Tiger drove in three runs. Gibson homered and doubled and drove in two runs. Bailey Marty added a double to the mix.

Riley Wilner stood out with her bat for ACGC, going three-for-three with a double and two RBIs.

Gillespie and Ashley Solvie divided the pitching duties with Solvie getting the win. Gillespie wasn't in the pitching groove on this day as she got roughed up: eleven hits in 3 1/3 innings. Solvie got the win with her stint of 3 2/3 innings. She struck out two batters, walked one and gave up four hits. One of the runs she allowed was unearned. The losing pitcher was Taryn Reinke.

- Brian Williams - morris mn Minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Gaylord Perry pitched for 1958 St. Cloud Rox

Gaylord Perry seemed to have a glowering nature. It may have been misleading. There was an intensity to his deportment that maybe could be explained just by the fact he had to win baseball games.

He had a reputation as a rule-breaker. A good portion of that might have been stereotype. He may not have doctored the ball nearly as much as legend suggests. The mere image may in fact have helped him. He may have intimidated batters with the image. He psyched them out just by getting them to think he was bending the rules with the ball.
The secret to success in pitching is not in throwing the ball hard - lots of high school senior pitchers across the USA build a reputation that way. The secret to success in the bigs is to deceive. For Perry to have had such a long and storied career in the bigs, he must certainly have employed all the psychological tools. Sheer longevity was the prime way he made his mark.
I was three years old when Perry had an important development step. He is among the most sterling alumni of the old St. Cloud "Rox." The Rox were a wondrous chapter in the history of the Central Minnesota community - the "granite city."
The parking lot around that old ball field was full of the kind of cars that today would have classic car collectors wide-eyed. Those fabulous Chevys of that era! Rock 'n' roll was climbing to the forefront of American culture. Elvis Presley was making his ascent. A youth-driven popular culture was developing. And in St. Cloud MN, a young Gaylord Perry played in the Class A Northern League. Fans of the Rox watched as this star of the future fashioned a 9-5 record with a 2.39 ERA. The year was 1958.
"Rock 'n' roll is here to stay, and it would never die!"
Minnesota was a contrast from where this sturdy righthander grew up. He's a native of Williamston, North Carolina. He was named after a close friend of his father, a man who sadly passed away while having his teeth pulled. Gaylord attended Campbell University in North Carolina. Today, "Gaylord the Camel" is the mascot for that institution.
Perry moved on from St. Cloud after that '58 campaign with the Rox, and his next step was at Corpus Christi. He was in the San Francisco Giants organization. He joined the Tacoma Giants of AAA ball in 1961. He excelled, leading the Pacific Coast League in wins and innings pitched, so obviously we'd see this young man in the majors soon.
He got a taste of the majors in 1962. He got roughed up a little, so he got some more seasoning with Tacoma. The Tacoma team of that time was distinguished by having some quite high-tier talent, as noted by Bill James in his writing.
The '63 season saw Perry plod forward in an undistinguished way, but in '64 his talent was recognized in such a way that he joined the S.F. Giants starting rotation. He held his own, going 12-11 with an impressive 2.75 ERA. He was complementing Juan Marichal nicely - he of the high leg kick, remember?
Stardom still hadn't arrived for the Rox alum. He kept paying some dues in '65, going 8-12. The Giants kept the faith. Finally in 1966, Perry climbed to the forefront. He was red hot up until August. He owned 20 wins before August even arrived. He and Marichal were becoming the equal of Koufax and Drysdale with the Dodgers. Perry lost his momentum after August. Still, his 21-8 record for '66 firmly established him as a player to watch.
Marichal was held back by injury in 1967. Perry responded with a fine ERA but he was below .500 in won-lost.
The '68 season became famous for showcasing pitchers all over baseball. In that "year of the pitcher," which baseball had to correct after '68, Perry had a super 2.45 ERA but struggled again with won-lost, going 16-15. He threw a no-hitter on September 17. That gem came against Bob Gibson at Candlestick Park, San Francisco. Perry won 1-0 with the sole run coming from an unlikely "slugger," Ron Hunt. I remember Hunt as the first real star of the New York Mets.
Perry was a workhorse in 1969, the first season of the divisional format. The Giants were a snakebit team. They finished second for the fifth straight season. Ouch!
In 1970, Perry fashioned 23 wins and pitched 328 innings. In 1971 the Giants won the division as Perry impressed with a 2.76 ERA. Perry left the Giants after 1971 and became somewhat of a journeyman, but his caliber remained high. He was super with Cleveland in 1972 with a 24-16 record and 1.92 ERA. Didn't the Giants miss that? He had been traded for Sam McDowell, well-remembered as a tall, hard-throwing pitcher, then just 29 years old. After the trade, Perry won 180 more games in his career. McDowell? He won just 24.
Perry fashioned a 70-57 record in his Cleveland tenure. He was staff ace until 1975. Sadly his team could not mirror that kind of success. I well remember the feud he had with manager Frank Robinson. Robinson was pioneering as an African-American manager. Perry was Clevelend's last 20-game winner until 2008 when Cliff Lee did it.
The next stop in Perry's Odyssey was Texas, the Rangers. Again Perry would greatly surpass the players who he was traded for, in his case Jim Bibby, Jackie Brown and Rick Waits. Perry was solid, but as with Cleveland, the team had trouble reflecting that. Perry was now up in years. At 37 he assumed the mantle of staff ace for Texas. The Rangers climbed to second place in 1977, at the height of the "disco years" in the U.S.
Perry should have been in the twilight of his career. But in 1978 with his new team, the San Diego Padres, the graybeard won 21 games and the Cy Young distinction. He was 39 years old! Amazing. He had been traded for Dave Tomlin, who made no mark at all subsequent to the trade.
In '79 Perry requested a trade back to Texas. He got his wish. But he was on the move again to the New York Yankees where he went 4-4. The memories of the St. Cloud Rox days were quite distant when the ol' fossil Perry pitched for Atlanta in 1981. The oldest player in big league ball started 23 games and went 8-9. He was released after the season.
So, he's done? Oh, not at all! He was three innings short of the magical 300 plateau. He had to wait a while but he finally got a call from the Seattle Mariners, for whom he finally got his 300th win on May 6, 1982. On August 23 he was ejected from a game for doctoring a ball. This was the first time this had ever happened. Did he really have a long track record of doing this? The legend exists.
On to 1983: Perry started 3-10. Is he done? Well no, he moved on to the Kansas City Royals. August saw him reach 3,500 strikeouts for his career. He began experimenting with a submarine delivery. On August 19 he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning against first place Baltimore.
Perry finally retired on September 23, 1983. In all he had pitched for eight teams. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1991. I hope he remembers that summer of 1958 in a fond way. The summer in Central Minnesota with the old St. Cloud Rox. Fans were privileged to see him there.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Jergenson's bat helps turn back NL-Spicer

Tigers 10, NL-Spicer 7

Brady Jergenson set the pace offensively for MACA baseball in its 10-7 win over New London-Spicer Friday (5/6). Jergenson had three hits in four at-bats, scored a run and drove in three, as the Tigers turned back the Wildcats 10-7.

Jergenson offset a New London-Spicer standout who had quite the boxscore line. John Perkins of the Wildcats went three-for-three with five RBIs and a run scored.

Click on the permalink below to read about the following: the MACA softball team's 13-1 win over Minnewaska, the baseball team's 1-0 loss to 'Waska, and the softball team's 11-10 loss to New London-Spicer. This post is on my companion website, "Morris of Course." Thanks for reading. - B.W.

http://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2016/05/gillespie-wevley-both-go-three-for.html

 

MACA had a line score of ten runs, ten hits and two errors. The NL-Spicer numbers were 7-11-1. We had to hold off a late Wildcat surge. We led 10-2 going into the bottom of the sixth. The Wildcats scored three runs in the sixth and two in the seventh. We had a good enough cushion.

Mitchell Torgerson had a hit in his only at-bat, and drove in a run. Philip Messner had a hit and an RBI. Ryan Dietz added a hit to the mix. Seth Staples scored a run. Jergenson packed the main wallop.

What gives? I only get six hits when adding up the individuals, from the Willmar paper, but the line score in that paper has us with ten hits. This type of thing has been happening a lot lately. The paper is rapidly losing credibility. It shouldn't even bother covering this stuff if it can't get the details right, or close to being right.

Toby Sayles was the winning pitcher. He fanned five batters in his five innings. He dealt with some wildness as he issued five walks, and he gave up three hits. He allowed two runs but neither were earned. Ryan Bowman pitched two innings and got roughed up, allowing eight hits. He had zeroes for walks and strikeouts.

Evan Haugen was the losing pitcher for the Wildcats. Landon Tanner and Will Roguske also pitched for the losing cause. Wildcat Nick Reiter had two hits in three at-bats, and crossed home plate three times. Eli Dorry went two-for-two with a run scored. Josh Soine drove in two runs.

 

Softball: Montevideo 9, Tigers 5

The winning habit of the Morris Area Chokio Alberta softball team was broken Thursday (5/5). Montevideo made a statement early-on that its caliber of play would be high. Thunder Hawk Alex Tongen connected for a two-run homer in the first inning.

The Tigers pushed across a run in the bottom of the first, but the Thunder Hawks erupted with a six-run rally in the third, en route to their 9-5 win over our Tigers. It was a West Central Conference game played on a pleasant day for the diamond sports in Morris. I see where a lot of trees have their blossoms in bloom, like in front of the public library. Now if I can just get my riding lawn mover serviced.

Breanna Walling pitched the whole way for the victor. She set down four Tiger batters on strikes while walking just one. All five of the MACA runs were earned, and Walling gave up eight hits. Our line score was five runs, eight hits and three errors. The Monte numbers were 9-8-2.

Brooke Gillespie was the trooper on the pitching rubber for MACA on this humbling day.

We rallied for three runs in the bottom of the sixth but just couldn't overcome Monte's lead. Grace Sulflow had two hits in a balanced Monte hitting attack. Other T-Hawks hitting safely were Ashley McKee, Breanna Welling, Abby Olson, Tongen, Sydni Streich and Cali Christianson.

Piper Gibson was a bright spot with her bat for MACA. Gibson socked a home run. Lindsey Dierks made noise at bat too, going three-for-four. Other Tigers hitting safely were Becca Holland, Gillespie, Lexi Mahoney and Callie Hottovy.

 

Baseball: Marshall 8, Tigers 0

Oh my, no hits by the Morris Area Chokio Alberta Tigers! Yes, it was a no-hitter by the visiting Marshall Tigers, Thursday. However, one pitcher does not get credit. Would you believe Marshall deployed four total pitchers to accomplish this gem? Sharing in this distinction were Andrew Hmielewski, Logan Tomasek, Mason Penske (the winner) and Ryan VanMoer.

In the majors, a pitcher can be denied a no-hitter these days because of the "pitch count." Of course the pitch count is a great blessing for pro pitchers. When I was a kid many promising young pitchers sadly threw their arms out. I think the saddest example was Mark "The Bird" Fidrych. He was overworked. Billy Martin for a time in his managerial career notoriously overworked his pitchers (with Oakland). "Billy Ball" could be troubling.

Sean Amundson took the pitching loss for MACA in this 8-0 defeat. Ryan Bowman also pitched. Penske was quite in the groove with his hitting for Marshall at our Chizek Field. Penske went three-for-three with four RBIs. Andrew Hmielewski went two-for-three, scored two runs and drove in one. Dylan Criquet-Danielson homered as part of going two-for-four with three RBIs.

Marshall plated two runs in the first inning and three each in the third and fourth. The Marshall Tigers got to the two MACA pitchers for ten hits. The visitor truly owned the day, as the Marshall error total was zero. MACA had just two baserunners. The loss was our third straight after a sizzling 6-0 start.

Today (Friday) feels totally midsummer with the heat! I need to take a bike ride out along the river trail. Mowing can wait.

- Brian Williams - morris mn Minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Clearbrook native Wes Westrum made splash

Wes Westrum is the catcher.

We in Morris beamed with pride over having Jerry Koosman associated with our community. Years before Koosman with his powerful left arm came along, a young man from a small northwestern Minnesota town ascended to baseball's highest level. Wes Westrum was that athlete. He played catcher.

In high school he was an overall natural athlete, with football seeming to be his strongest sport. He played fullback on the gridiron. The winter months saw him play basketball. Perhaps he got lured to baseball because of an early pro opportunity. The year 1940 saw the Clearbrook MN native sign with Crookston, the Pirates of Class 'D' ball. Crookston played in the old Northern League. Westrum was just a junior at Clearbrook-Gonvick High School.
I got out the atlas and found that these towns are quite remote. They are northwest of Bemidji and to the south of Lower and Upper Red Lake. I'm sure Dave Holman of our town is familiar with the towns.
Westrum's pro exposure did not eliminate his high school eligibility to play. These youth got a break because of the scarcity of summer jobs. Westrum got a break when the player-manager of Crookston got a foot injury. Such are the vagaries in pro sports. Westrum got well established on the diamond before he, too, got hurt in an off-the-field incident: a cut right wrist in the team bus. Weird.
Catchers have quite the resilient bodies, though. Westrum would in fact become rather injury-prone. Playing catcher invites this - think of all the foul tips, sometimes taken in the head. Today there would be a concussion protocol. Oh, but not in that bygone age when Westrum had his heyday. He batted .275 with Crookston. Pro ball in Crookston! It was quite the humble beginning but an important step, as destiny was going to be kind to this young man from the desolate environment west of Bemidji. America affords opportunity to all, indeed.
Destiny would have Westrum playing eleven seasons as a catcher in the major leagues. He is firmly associated with the old heyday of baseball in New York City. By "old heyday" I mean the days when the Giants, Dodgers and Yankees entertained the fans there.
As a kid I heard references to the old Giants and Dodgers, teams that had moved to California. I heard about Bobby Thomson's home run for the Giants. It seemed strange to me that these two teams would simply move out of New York with no immediate replacement. The Yankees had a monopoly for a time. It was in that stretch of Yankee primacy that Roger Maris hit 61 home runs in 1961.

Finally in 1962, the National League came back to the Big Apple in the form of the New York Mets, a team that Westrum would eventually manage. It's strange that the major leagues forced the new Mets in 1962 to have to pay such painstaking dues, as if the city was being punished in some way. Many fans just came to see the National League stars again, stars like former New York Giant Willie Mays.
The old New York Giants played at the Polo Grounds. That's where the Mets took up residence in '62. The Dodgers played at Ebbets Field. I have a friend here in Morris who saw a Dodgers game at Ebbets Field when he was in the service. His description of the place was rather unflattering, so I don't think he'd want his name typed here. He said that stadium was a "dump."
The romance surrounding many of the old ballparks covers up their very real deficiencies. Teams could get by with those liabilities when they played in the East Coast media power corridor. Fenway Park with its oddities is accepted. But when Minnesota built a stadium, the old Met Stadium, well, it had better be really good so as to impress the likes of Roger Angell of The New Yorker. Angell described our Met Stadium as an "airy cyclotron." Writers in the East Coast power corridor can get by with that.
When Met Stadium first opened for the Twins, a major league official proclaimed it was "as good as any (stadium) and better than most." I'm sure that was true.
Wes Westrum played catcher for the New York Giants from 1947 to 1957. He was known as a superb defensive catcher. Such a player is a real asset. Certainly he was an asset when the Giants made their run at the Dodgers, coming from 13 games back on August 12, 1951. My, Westrum and his mates won 16 games in a row, sort of like the heroic team in the movie "Moneyball."
Westrum hit 20 home runs and drove in 70 runs that summer. He led National League catchers in baserunners caught stealing. The Giants and Dodgers played in the 1951 N.L. tiebreaker series. The stage was set for Bobby Thomson's "shot heard 'round the world," a three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth for a 5-4 win in the third and last game. The Giants went on to lose to the Yankees in the World Series.

Footnote regarding that season: The revelation came forward years later that the Giants cheated with sign-stealing. So much for "the good old days."
Westrum was parked behind the plate in the 1954 World Series when the Giants' foe was the Cleveland Indians. Injuries were taking a toll on Westrum along the way.
In 1958 when the Giants left Gotham for San Francisco, Westrum was offered a choice of third string catcher or a coach. At age 34, Westrum opted for coaching. He played a total of 919 games in his career and pounded out 503 hits in 2,322 at-bats. His home run total was 96. His fielding percentage was .985. He committed just one error in 139 games in 1950. His fielding percentage that year, of .999, stood as a record for N.L. catchers until 1997.
Westrum was on the All-Star team in 1952 and '53. He threw out 47 percent of would-be base-stealers in his career. Here's a memorable note: Westrum was in the cover photo of the first-ever Sports Illustrated magazine. Eddie Mathews of Milwaukee was the batter in the photo. The magazine sold for 25 cents.
Westrum joined the Mets as coach in 1964. He became pitching coach in July of '65 after the release of Warren Spahn. So a catcher, of all people, replaces Warren Spahn as pitching coach? The Mets struggled until 1969 when, with our Jerry Koosman, they rocketed to No. 1. It was probably the biggest thrill of my childhood!
Westrum became Mets manager in August of 1965, due to Casey Stengel getting hurt. Alas, the Mets made no immediate turnaround under Westrum. But in 1966 there was a flicker of hope as Westrum's Mets finished in ninth rather than tenth. It was the first time the Mets escaped the basement.
The young pitchers in the Mets system were not developing fast enough to help Westrum. The '67 season brought a return to the cellar. Westrum resigned.
Westrum went back to the Giants, where he got another managing shot in 1974. His San Francisco Giants finished one game under .500 in 1975, good for third place in the division. This was Westrum's last year as manager, and subsequently he scouted for the Atlanta Braves for a long time.
Westrum was back in his peaceful, beloved Clearbrook MN when he died on May 28, 2002. Truly his career was an exhibit for how anything is possible in the USA: coming from a place that many people would describe as "backwater" and ending up on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Wes Westrum, RIP.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Movie "Spotlight" (2015) shames Catholic Church

Life in America can strain credulity. Belonging to the Catholic Church can expose your child to severe, unreasonable risk. Why do adults choose to belong to such a church?

The movie "Spotlight" is instructive on how serious the problem got. There must have been whispers out and about back in the day. Given the knowledge of risk, how could adults of sound mind allow their kids anywhere near Catholic clergy? Watch the movie "Spotlight" and answer this question for me.
Belonging to the Catholic Church is not compulsory for anyone. Belonging to any church is not compulsory. One can easily live life without church at all. The children of atheists are safer than the children of Catholics, one readily concludes after watching "Spotlight."
We assume progress has been made since the Boston Globe's investigative series. The movie "Spotlight" is all about the gallant journalists who had to painstakingly break down doors to get revelations. Why the heck are the media required for this? Maybe I should ask: Why are the "old media" needed for this? We see the Boston Globe operating just like the Washington Post did for Watergate. Media people are in an exclusive circle, crusading with the strength of a major commercial media outlet behind them.
We all know the commercial media have been pummeled or at least transformed in the digital age. Today "the media" are harder to define. Most experts think we're in a better world because of it. Non-professionals are empowered. The Internet is a meritocracy where the truth tends to win out - oh yes it does. The early days of the Internet were more like a swamp.
Remember the days when we'd hear those buzzwords "you can't trust the Internet?" It's sounding rather quaint. Of course there is suspicious stuff online. But the Internet seems set up to guide us to the truth, and people have become sophisticated enough to ferret out the truth. It has taken time.
In the past we had the "gatekeepers" of the likes of the Boston Globe and Washington Post. A sage commentator on cable news said recently the new system is better.
The movie "Spotlight," made in 2015, takes us back to the time of 9/11. A scene in the movie shows Globe staff watching the unfolding events of 9/11 on TVs. "That wasn't a prop plane," one person says. I remember that morning as we all do. I remember going to the "Excite" home page and seeing a thumbnail photo of smoke coming from the twin towers, but this photo was - can you believe it? - No. 2 as a priority at the time. The Excite page had as its No. 1 story, Elizabeth Dole announcing her candidacy for president. The 9/11 story was just breaking, I realize.
I had a hand-me-down computer at the Morris Sun Tribune shop. Yes, I was part of that old, some say "legacy," newspaper system. The newspaper world was still clutching to its old primacy. We did sense some crumbling of our world, as did characters in "Spotlight." They are anticipating layoffs. A new editor in chief, played superbly by Liev Schreiber, won't rule out layoffs.
Schreiber has such a calm and focused way of dealing with his challenges in the investigation. His character is Jewish and an outsider, two qualities that apparently were much-needed in a city with the clannish qualities of Boston.
The movie would not make you proud to be associated with Boston. How can people stay Catholic after all these revelations? How can they accept clergy who are purportedly "celibate?" What kind of people do you think you'll attract?
                                     
Ruffling feathers right here
I remember we at the Sun Tribune published a syndicated editorial cartoon focused on Cardinal Bernard Law. Revelations about the church's systemic negligence were pouring out. BTW I had no hand in publishing the cartoon. I heard the local priest came to our office and was incensed. Our publisher reacted, as he told me later, by emphasizing to this priest that we weren't commenting on the Catholic church in Morris MN. The cartoon wasn't meant to reflect on our local church, it was argued.
I think it's rather specious because all Catholics have to answer for the misguided conduct with its church. They contribute money to it. So, our company line at the paper was that while we published a cartoon about the Bernard Law situation, well my goodness, we certainly were convinced that no sexual type of misbehavior could ever happen in Morris, not out here in the peaceful prairie of West Central Minnesota. That sordid strife happened in places like Boston.
Ugh. Well, we learned years later that Morris wasn't off the grid for this kind of stuff at all. A local priest, last name of Caskey, had to be hauled off because of a child pornography interest and because of writing a letter, the letter being what incriminated him and led to the legal probe, as I recall. Ever wonder what makes newspaper people so cynical? The veneer of propriety is violated so often out in the world we observe.
It was like pulling teeth to investigate the Nixon administration. The daily Washington D.C. headlines coincided with my senior year in high school and the beginning of college. My generation didn't need that, and certainly did not need the hell hole of Viet Nam. Ever wonder why my generation got cynical?
My generation got skeptical about church as an institution. Maybe we saw too much of Billy Graham kissing up to Nixon. The captains of industry built up Graham because they saw he could nurture a docile workforce.
Why is it that when the Pope visits the U.S., it dominates each day's news cycle? Catholicism is not synonymous with Christianity. Why do our media suggest otherwise? After watching the movie "Spotlight," we nearly wonder if the Catholic Church should be outlawed.
Maybe the thing to be outlawed is celibacy? What a weird and outdated custom. It led to the abuse of an untold number of children, abuse that seriously scarred lives. And if it seems like I'm offending the church, fine, I'll accept that. You could switch and become a Lutheran, and your spiritual needs would be filled just as well. Knock off all this tribalism. It's inconsistent with our new digital age. Be reasonable.
"Spotlight" suggested that going after the church in Boston, as the reporters did, came across as an affront to community values. On the micro level, our perfectly reasonable cartoon directed at Cardinal Law got the same reaction from the priest. Were we really treading rough water, publishing a cartoon that simply tried to affirm what the Globe's journalists were telling us? Sometimes we can't see the forest for the trees.
The idea was to protect children from the worst kind of abuse. And we see this idea run up against well-entrenched parochial interests. If this is what religion is about, I want nothing to do with it.
We see the so-called "evangelicals" behaving in a regressive way too, aligning themselves way too much with extreme right wing political people. We see such interests supporting the North Carolina "bathroom law," for example. You can guess all the other interests they are aligned with. I thought the idea was to prioritize the kind of love that Jesus Christ embodied.

 
Rise of the "nones"
We hear about the growing portion of the population identified as "nones." They check the "none" box when asked about religious affiliation. A presenter on C-Span said that people who make their living in religion know all about this problem. The problem is of young people equating organized Christian religion with right wing politics. It's a profound turn-off for many.
Between the Catholics and the evangelicals, we'll be seeing a downward arc in the devotion of Americans to any Christian denomination at all. At least our children will be protected.
The movie "Spotlight" makes all of us thankful who are not Catholic.
The movie "Concussion," which I haven't yet seen, makes all of us thankful who have never played football. Football like the Catholic Church is a huge institution promoting itself in America, even in public schools where tax dollars are at work. Talk about straining credulity. Concussions aren't even the extent of the problem - it's all the "sub-concussive" hits, cumulatively, that end up hurting these young men, with effects maybe not seen for years.
"Spotlight" and "Concussion" are movies that may be seen years from now as opening our eyes to Neanderthal approaches to life. To heck with the Catholic Church which isn't even nice enough to allow Lutherans to take communion at a Catholic funeral. To heck with all our leaders who promote football.
Let's push aside these rugged old institutions. There is plenty of fulfillment to be found without them.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com