"Those are our boys" (The Story of the Manningham Mallards - OOTP)

[GoBlue2419]

Intro, Part 1

Baseball. The grand old game. First it captured our interest. Then it captured our hearts. Ultimately, it captured our devotion.

Baseball fans all across the country recall with pristine clarity the heroes of their youth. Those sultans of the swing. Masterful purveyors of the pitch. Names that ring with lore, names that take us back, recalling vividly their mighty feats, as if we had just witnessed them yesterday. Names that leave us longing for the “good ‘ole days” when this game was more innocent. Names like Oscar Riggs, Tom Wilton, Cub Stonestreet, Heinie Collins, and Martin San Juan. “No one today can hit like Wilton could.” “Do you remember how fast Stonestreet threw? He threw faster than the 20th Century Special Express."

The citizens of Manningham, in the great midwestern state of Westmoreland, know a thing or two of this love for our national pastime. Folks in this fine city have a special place in their hearts for their local heroes, a place seated right next to, or perhaps even in front of their own loved ones. This town (though it is by no means simply a town) reveres its beloved ball club. The Manningham Mallards are part of the very fiber of this great city. One can’t help but wonder if this city would still be Manningham if it were not for the Mallards. Certainly a city cannot owe its existence to a baseball team, but perhaps a part of its soul has been derived from its ball club.

The story you will find in the following pages is the story of a city and a ball club. It could be called the story of a ravenous love affair. A love affair between a city and its team. A love affair a million men, women, and children have with twenty-five young men. A love affair between a baseball team and the city it calls home. A love affair that began years ago, before the advent of high speed rail, zeppelin travel, airborne aircraft carriers, wrist radios, or wireless fax newspaper delivery. The Mallards made their plea years ago for the affections of the citizens of Manningham, the citizens of Manningham embraced those pleas, and the love they share endures to our very day here in 1947.

[GoBlue2419]

Intro, Part 2

The first professional baseball league was known as the National Base Ball Association. Eight "base ball clubs" came together in 1865, forming a loose union based on the premise of paying players in order to secure the pinnacle of talent. The league struggled for early favor in the public eye, many skeptical of those who would accept payment in order to play the beloved game of base ball, as it was known then (hereafter in this text we will call it baseball, as it is known today). Eventually the quality of play began to win over fans, and the league started to flourish. But then the very fear of baseball fans across the country was realized as the lure of even richer pay days grabbed hold of some players, and some games began to be determined not by which team played better on that day, but which team was more heavily "incenticized" to lose by the bookies. Fans became more and more disgusted by the dishonesty prevalent in the league, and stayed away in great numbers. The NBBA was founded on the principles of fair play, good honest competition, and a fevered nationwide passion for this still relatively new bat and ball game, but like so often with things that are good, unscrupulous parties saw an opportunity for an easy payday, and the NBBA was not set up in a way that could easily combat that. In September 1870, the NBBA quietly closed its doors.

But base ball fans would not be without a professional league for long. Nathaniel Wycombe, owner of the Wycombe Sporting Goods company based in Metro City, had already begun efforts to form another professional league by the time the NBBA started teetering on the brink of extinction. In 1871, just months after the NBBA closed its doors, his efforts came to fruition, and the Continental League began play. One of the teams beginning play in the Continental League was the Manningham Mallards. The Mallards were formed by Abe Jacoby, owner of the Jacoby Lumber Company in Manningham, after Jacoby had been approached by his good friend Wycombe about plans for the league.



The eight trailblazing teams of the new Continental League were:

• Bay City Seals
• Capital City Capitals
• Gateway City Terriers
• Metro City Metros
• Manningham Mallards
• Morley City Millers
• Riverdale Redbirds
• Tinseltown Aces

The CL experienced immediate success. Despite the heartbreak resulting from the failure of the NBBA, the appetites of baseball fans across the country had become almost insatiable. Fans flocked in droves to see old favorites from the NBBA and up-and-comers newly discovered.

Among the early heroes of Manningham youths in those days were 1B Monte Levesque (1896-1910), CF Jack Whitney (1891-1911), P Lorenzo Sanchez (1904-1920), and P Dummy Hawkins (1886-1899).

Meanwhile, some other forward-thinking gentlemen believed that enough room existed in the hearts of baseball fans across the country for multiple professional leagues and began putting the pieces in place for a new league to compete with the CL. In the summer of 1873, that vision became reality when the Federal League began play.

Eight teams had agreed to join that new burgeoning league, representing seven cities that did not have teams in the CL along with another team in Metro City. The teams coming together to form the Federal League were the:

• Metro City Mutuals
• Tremont Colonials
• Tottington Centennials
• Magnolia City Marshalls
• Sun Valley Copperheads
• Cascadia City Klondikes
• St. Charles Bears
• Coconut Bay Pelicans

Both leagues existed side-by-side for a few years, competing for a shared pool of players, each league attempting to prove it was the higher quality league. But because there was no direct play between the leagues, such attempts were nothing more than pure speculation, boasts of fans from each league, or grandiose proclamations by sportswriters. Nothing tangible could be used to back up those claims.

All that changed though in 1878, when the leagues agreed to a series between the champions of each league. The new series would determine on the field which league was truly better, at least for that particular year. The Championship Series would occur following the completion of each league's seasons, and the two champions would play for a newly created trophy known as the Barnesworth Cup.



The two major leagues continued to operate separately, but in 1893 talks began occurring between representatives from both leagues about joining ranks. In the fall of 1894, an agreement was reached, and in 1895 the Monumental League was formed, with all members of the Continental League and Federal League joining. The two leagues would continue to play primarily within their own ranks, though the teams would cross league lines for a home and away series against each team in the other league once each season. At the end of each season the winner of each league continued to play each other for the Barnesworth Cup.

The sixteen teams that came together to form the Monumental League are the same sixteen teams still battling for the Barnesworth Cup today.

Dynasty Background/Setup
This dynasty is fictional, alternate-history focused, but that alternate history is broader than baseball. We pick up the story of the Monumental League in 1947, but it is not the 1947 we know in OTL (our timeline). The USA is not the same as OTL USA. Some of the cities we know do not exist in this timeline. The Great War occurred from 1914 - 1918, and the technology progression resulting from it, along with the absence of The Great Depression, have led to a world that has some similarities to ours, but some differences as well. You might say this is a bit of a Utopian perspective. It may feel a bit like OTL sporting world today in a 1947 time period. A deeper look at the world as it exists here will be included in the scope of the dynasty. We'll take a look at other sports in this world, as well as aspects of the non-sports world.

One other important note - from a progression standpoint, in a sense the dynasty will occur in real time. One day in this dynasty equals one day in OTL.

[GoBlue2419]

Manningham Mallards Trophy Room

Barnesworth Cups: None
Continental League Pennants: None

Record Book
Career G: Jermiah Rogers, 2899
Career AB: Jermiah Rogers, 11,315
Career BA (minimum 3000 PA): John Wilton, .412
Career Hits: Jermiah Rogers, 3360
Career 2B: Jermiah Armstrong, 549
Career 3B: Abe Love, 78
Career HR: Jermiah Armstrong, 377
Career RBI: Jermiah Armstrong, 1536
Career R: Jermiah Rogers, 1528
Career SB: Ed Becton, 400
Career BB: Jermiah Rogers, 934

Career W: Jocko Soto, 206
Career L: Jocko Soto, 262
Career ERA: Pat Murphy, 2.70
Career IP: Jocko Soto, 4421.2
Career GS: Jocko Soto, 564
Career CG: Jocko Soto, 199
Career SO: Jocko Soto, 37
Career K: Jocko Soto, 3402
Career Saves: Jim Johns, 285

Mallards in the Hall of Fame
Jermiah Rogers (elected in 1938)
Jocko Soto (elected in 1945)

Award Winners (CL Outstanding Hitter)
Jermiah Armstrong, 1913 (.331/.394/.556, 30 HR, 119 RBI)
Jermiah Rogers, 1918 (.328/.406/.487, 21 HR, 95 RBI)
Cristian Nicoli, 1935 (.330/.413/.547, 28 HR, 86 RBI)
Al Lone, 1944 (.334/.417/.541, 27 HR, 106 RBI)
Al Lone, 1945 (.321/.386/.491, 25 HR, 92 RBI)

Kid Goebel Award Winners (CL Outstanding Pitcher)
Dick Dwyer, 1923 (22-7, 1.88 ERA, 306 IP, 264 K)

CL Rookie of the Year Winners
Santiago Badillo, 1904
Bug Hopkins, 1922
Al Lone, 1938
Tom Jillson, 1940
Packy Babcock, 1944

[GoBlue2419]

Recap of the 1946 Season

The 1946 season saw the Manningham Mallards come up just short once again in the Continental League race. The Mallards finished with a record of 80-74, 5 games back of the pennant-winning, and bitter rivals, Morley City Millers.

1B Al Lone led the league in HR and RBI, with 28 and 100 respectively. He also led the league in hits with 176. Lone played in his 7th All-Star Game, and followed up his 1945 CL Most Outstanding Hitter Award winning season with a 3rd place finish in the voting in 1946.


On the mound, Tom Field finished 3rd in the CL with 18 wins, compiling a record of 18-11 with a 3.49 ERA. Tom Jillson, won 17 games against 11 losses and a 3rd place finish in the Kid Goebel Award voting. Willis Raymon chipped in with a record of 16-12 and a 3.48 ERA.

The Barnesworth Cup Championship Series saw the Sun Valley Copperheads sweep the Morley City Millers 4 games to 0.

Final Standings
Continental League




Federal League

[GoBlue2419]

1947 Preview

The CSC Baseball Tonight 1947 Preview Show has written off the Mallards this season, predicting them to finish last in the Continental League race.

CL Predicted Standings
1. Riverdale Redbirds
2. Morley City Millers
3. Capital City Capitals
4. Bay City Seals
5. Metro City Metros
6. Gateway City Keystones
7. Tinseltown Aces
8. Manningham Mallards

FL Predicted Standings
1. Sun Valley Copperheads
2. Coconut Bay Pelicans
3. Tremont Colonials
4. Cascadia City Klondikes
5. Metro City Mutuals
6. Tottington Centennials
7. Magnolia City Marshalls
8. St. Charles Bears

New Players:
SP Tom Gould (Free agent) - went 18-14 last year for Capital City.
MR Fred White (Free agent) - went 2-1, 5 saves last year for Metro City Metros.
SP Heinie Wiley (Free agent) - 11-19, 4.43 ERA last year for Tottington.
C Vic Martz (Trade with St. Charles) - Hit .241 in 66 games last year.

Players Lost:
SP Tom Jillson (Free agent - signed with Coconut Bay)
SP Antonio Reyes (Trade with St. Charles)
C Ed Carter (Free agent - unsigned)

Expected Lineup:
C - Vic Martz
1B - Al Lone
2B - Yadier Hernandez
SS - Jimmy Lincoln/Noodles Jobe
3B - Dave Golden
LF - Tommy Patterson/Manuel Rivera
CF - Zenas Stewart
RF - Jim Jaye/William Smith

Rotation
Willis Raymon
Tom Field
Tom Gould
Heinie Wiley

Bullpen
Fred White
Al Byrd
Al Hamby
Ed Niswonger

[GoBlue2419]

[Editor’s Note: We pick up the story of the 1947 season on May 26, 1947. The Mallards are sitting at 22-29 on the season, currently 7th in the Continental League race.]

05/26/1947
Mallards Fall 7-6 to Aces
Story by Billy Brockman

The Mallards dropped their third straight game last night, losing 7-6 to the Tinseltown Aces in twelve innings in the second game of their three game set.

Tinseltown started the scoring in the bottom of the third inning. Tom Petty got things going for the Aces by hitting a double off of Mallards starter Tom Gould to start the inning. He moved to third base on the sacrifice bunt by Tommy Ortiz, and then scored when Hugo Duarte grounded to short and Manningham shortstop Jimmy Lincoln threw to first for the out.

The Mallards came back with two runs in the top of the fourth to briefly take the lead. Jimmy Lincoln singled with two outs, followed by a single by right fielder Cy Kemp, moving Lincoln to third. Noodles Jobe, playing third base, singled to bring Lincoln home, and Kemp moved to third on the hit, and then continued home to score on the relay throw.

Tinseltown scored one run in the bottom of the fourth to even the score at 2-2, followed by two from Tinseltown. The Aces then added two more runs in the six and two in the seventh to give Tinseltown a 6-5 lead in the top of the ninth inning.

The Mallards scored a run in the top of the ninth inning when Yadier Hernandez scored on an Al Lone double after singling himself.

Tinseltown won the game in the bottom of the twelfth inning when catcher Ed Brady scored on a Lew Hendricks single off of Mallards pitcher Fred White. Brady reached first by singling off of White and then moving to third when Manningham center fielder Zenas Stewart dropped Joe Highsmith’s routine fly ball.

White took the loss, dropping his record to 1-1. Lew Kunert picked up the win for Tinseltown after pitching 3 2/3 innings of shut out baseball. Kunert’s record now stands at 3-2.

Tom Gould started for Manningham, lasting seven innings but giving up six runs on eight hits and walking seven batters. Gould’s ERA now stands at 5.09 after thirteen starts.

On the offensive side, highlights were 1B Al Lone, who contributed four hits, including his 11th home run, and four RBI, while Noodles Jobe batted 3-4 with two RBI.


Noodles Jobe

The Mallards and Aces wrap up their three game set tonight when Tom Gould will start again for Manningham, while Mathieu Robert (1-6) gets the ball for Tinseltown.

Scores Elsewhere
Riverdale 2, Metro City Metros 1
Gateway City 8, Morley City 3
Bay City 7, Capital City 2
Metro City Mutuals 3, Tottington 2
Magnolia City 3, Sun Valley 2
St. Charles 7, Coconut Bay 5
Tremont 5, Cascadia City 1

Mallard Notes
- Lone’s four RBI moved his league-leading total to 44 on the season, while his 11 home runs still lead the league as well.
- Earlier in the day, Manningham traded 2B Winfield Newman and minor league pitcher Ed Westfall to the Bay City Seals for starting pitcher Al Weir. The thirty-four year old Canadian has a record of 6-4 this season, with a 4.86 ERA. Newman is batting .286 on the season, in 7 at bats.
- Also earlier in the day, Monumental League President Carmine Pastore announced that Manningham’s Tom Field and Tinseltown’s Tub Corbin were each suspended six games for their roles in the brawl during yesterday’s game. The brawl ensued when Corbin charged the mound after being hit by a Field pitch and quickly escalated when both benches cleared.
- Finally, Al Lone has been named Continental League Player of the Week. He batted .360 with three home runs and eight RBI on the week.

[GoBlue2419]

June 10, 1947
Redbirds Show They Fly Higher than Mallards
Story by Billy Brockman

Well, not much one can say about yesterday’s game, other than plain and simple, the Mallards stunk, and had their wings clipped by the Redbirds from Riverdale. Riverdale flew away from this game with a 21-3 victory as Mallards pitchers could not get anyone out.

The game was relatively quiet for three innings, as neither team scored in the initial third of the game. But Riverdale broke through with two runs in the top of the fourth inning. Manning ham answered back with a run of their own in the bottom of the fourth as Al Lone hit his 13th home run.

Riverdale scored again in the top of the fifth, but the Mallards would answer back with two runs in the bottom of the frame to tie the game at three after five. Manning ham scored both runs with two outs, as Manuel Rivera reached base on an error, moved to third on Yadier Hernandez’s single, and then scored on Zenas Stewart’s single. Hernandez then scored from third on Lone’s single into left field.

The Redbirds scored five times in the top of the 7th as they started to pull this one away, and then answered with thirteen runs in the top of the eighth inning. Chappy Edwards, Riverdale’s rookie third baseman, would play a key role in the scoring outburst, as his grand slam in the 8th helped fuel the fire.

Riverdale finished with 21 runs on 18 hits. Edwards was the key contributor, going four for six with four runs scored and seven RBI. Edwards is now hitting .374 with 10 home runs and 50 RBI for the season. CFer Al Strother went four for five with four runs scored as well.

Rivera, Stewart, and Lone each had two hits for Manningham, who put together eight hits total.

Jim Anderson (7-4) got the win for Riverdale, pitching six innings, giving up six hits and three runs.

Willis Raymon (8-8) took the loss, lasting 6.2 innings, giving up 11 hits and 8 earned runs. Heinie Wiley received the brunt of the punishment, lasting just 1/3 inning, giving up 9 runs on four hits, walked three, and hit two batters. If it were up to this reporter, Wiley has pitched his last game as a Mallard. Not to be left out though, Al Byrd, appropriately pitching in this battle of Mallards against Redbirds, pitched two innings, giving up four runs on two hits.

Game Two of this series takes place tonight, with Tom Field (5-8, 3.09) hoping to right the ship for Manningham, while William Rivero (7-7, 3.37 ERA) takes the ball for Riverdale.

Mallard Notes
- If Wiley were to be sent down or released altogether, potential candidates to replace him could be William Adler or Tug Koski. Adler has compiled 1.88 ERA in 38.1 innings pitched in AAA Huxley, while Koski has put together a 2.14 ERA in 68 innings pitched at Huxley.

Other ML Scores
Tinseltown 4, Bay City 3
Capital City 5, Morley City 2
Metro City Metros 3, Gateway City 1
Coconut Bay 7, Magnolia City 6
Tremont 9, Metro City Mutuals 7
Tottington 5, St. Charles 0
Cascadia City 4, Sun Valley 3

Other News
- Yohan Garcia, pitcher for the Metro City Mutuals, could miss a year or more with a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Garcia was 6-6 with a 4.06 ERA this season.
- Chappy Edwards was named CL Player of the Week, even before last night’s game. In the past week, prior to last night, Edwards hit .522 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI.

[GoBlue2419]

Profile/History of Manningham

The city of Manningham is the capital and most populous city of the state of Westmoreland, with a population of 2.6 million people. With its location at the confluence of the Lafontaine River and Lake St. Joseph, one of the five Grand Lakes, Manningham is a city that has been built on shipping and manufacturing. It is a global hub for commerce, finance, industry, and transportation, with nearly all cross-country rail traffic, both North/South and East/West, flowing through Manningham. It is also a major tourist destination, with draws that include culture/arts, food, sports, and recreation.

History/Founding
The first known reference to the site of the current city of Manningham was by the French explorer Jacque Laplante in his memoir written in 1683. The area was populated for hundreds of years by Native Americans, and was a prime trading area for numerous tribes. When Laplante encountered the area, the Sauk and Fox tribe was living along the river. Jean Lafontaine is generally believed to be the first non-indigenous settler in the area when he arrived in the 1760s via Lake St. Joseph, and then continuing down the river that now bears his name.

Jacque LaPlante

In 1802, the United States Army built a fort on Millborough Island, offshore from the present location of Manningham, naming it Fort Millborough. The original fort was destroyed in the War of 1812, but later rebuilt. This second Fort Millborough still survives and is now a major tourist destination.


19th Century
The city of Manningham was founded on July 3rd, 1831, named after William Manningham, one of the earliest settlers when he set up a trading post in the area. Because of its ideal location, Manningham would see immediate and tremendous growth. In 1848, the Manningham and Summit City Railroad was completed, the first railroad to reach Manningham from the east. Manningham's strategic locale was quickly recognized, as freight could reach Manningham and travel westwards via railroad or steamer on the Grand Lakes. By 1850 it was one of the fastest growing cities in the world.

Much of the city was destroyed by a tornado and resulting fire in 1869, but industrious men like hotelier Parker Porter, retailer J.W. Bernard, and lumber maven Abe Jacoby helped spur rapid rebuilding. Having lost his first hotel in the Great Fire, Porter rebuilt and opened The Porter Palace, probably still the finest hotel in Manningham. Bernard's department store, J.W. Bernard's, became one of the stalwarts of Manningham retail at this time. Jacoby's lumber company, Jacoby Lumber, would supply much of the lumber used in the rebuilding, helping establish him as one of the civic leaders of the city.

In 1875, with help from investors that included Porter and Bernard, Ole Avery, a Norwegian who arrived in Manningham from Norway in 1867, founded the Manningham Northern Railroad, which quickly became of the country's leading railroads, and helped cement Manningham as the railway hub of the nation.

In 1888, Manningham hosted the World Expo, propelling the city to international renown. The 1888 World Expo had a profound effect on architecture, the arts, and industrial development. The Expo was hosted north of the Lafontaine River, and was instrumental in expanding development of Manningham northward. The area that hosted the Expo is now Expo Park, located in uptown Manningham, which along with Kingsbridge Park on the lake shore south of the river, is a major urban park.

With the rebuilding of the city after the Great Fire, Manningham not only grew outward, it grew upward. The city became one of the pioneers of the skyscraper age, and its skyline is one of the trademarks of Manningham now. Some of the most well known bastions of Manningham's skyline include The Avery Building, Globe Tower, The Riverside Building, and The Beacon.


The Avery Building

20th Century
In the early 1900s, another icon of Manningham was formed when the Manningham Municipal Monorail (MMM) was opened. This elevated public transportation system, informally known as "The Loft", eased the commutes of thousands of Manningham citizens coming to work in the downtown, midtown, and uptown areas.

The 1920s were a bit of a darker period for Manningham, as organized crime became prevalent in the inner workings of the city. Harvey Ellington, the Mayor of Manningham from 1923-1935, was rumored to be in the clutches of Johnny Maroni, the head of the Maroni Crime Family. The Maroni Family's chief rival was/is the O'Herlihy Family, then led by Seamus O'Herlihy. Though generally considered to be Public Enemy #1, Maroni and other key members of his syndicate would be seen frequently at Manningham Mallards or Manningham Mammoths games, at the Majestic Theatre, and many other public settings with little fear of prosecution.

Culture
Music is a key component of Manningham society. It is known for its blues and jazz scene, and among its leading contributors to the national music picture include Jelly Parsons, Martha Mannelly, Kix Parker, and The Sam McFarland Orchestra.

The city also has a burgeoning theater/musical culture, with the Majestic Theatre, the Manningham Garden Theater, and the Park Theatre leading the way.


A view down 2nd Avenue

Sporting Life
Citizens of Manningham love their sports. The Manningham Mallards are an original member of the Monumental League, formed in 1871 by Abe Jacoby and now owned by Nels Avery, son of Ole Avery, the founder of the Manningham Northern Railroad. Avery purchased the Mallards from the Jacoby family in 1933. The Mallards call Jacoby Stadium, located on the prime real estate at the southern shore of the junction of the Lafontaine River and Lake St. Joseph.

Manningham is a hockey city also, and the Manningham Mammoths have represented the city in the Monumental Hockey League since its founding in 1914. The Mammoths have won the Bowman Cup three times as the champion of the MHL. The Mammoths play their home games at Clive Staples Auditorium.

The Manningham Muskies football team is the city's representative in the Monumental Football League, forming in 1919, and playing its games at Carlson Field.

The Manningham Majestics of the Monumental Basketball Association are the most successful team in Manningham sports. The Majestics have won the MBA championship six times, second only to the Tottington Ramblers' ten championships, including the title it just won last week. The Majestics were an original member of the MBA when it formed in 1920, started by Nels Avery, and named after his Majestic Theatre. The Majestics also call Clive Staples Auditorium home.

Manninghammers also love their football, or soccer, and Manningham City FC is the biggest club in the city. Manningham City FC has been in existence since 1874, and has been a member of the Monumental Football Association (MFA) since its creation in 1890, apart from a six year stretch after it was relegated in 1922.

On the college sports scene, Thornhill University, the Lumberjacks, located in Dexter Haven, just to the north of uptown Manningham, is the main school in the area from a sports perspective. Thornhill is a private Christian university located along the lakeshore in Dexter Haven, with 5900 students, and has a prestigious business program. The Lumberjacks participate in Division A, the top division of the IAA (Intercollegiate Athletic Association), and are members of the Heartland Conference, one of the top sporting conferences in the IAA. Other member schools of the Heartland Conference include in-state rival Westmoreland State, Indiana Tech, Dakota College, Southern Michigan, Grand Lakes State, North Star State, Buckeye State, Keystone State, Badger State, and its biggest rival, Laribee State.

Other Manningham area schools participating in Division A basketball include St. Vincent's, Manningham Tech, Maguire College, and Manningham State.

[Young Drachma]

Love the detail and backstory. Looking forward to this. Might borrow one of your universities for one of my leagues at some point.

[GoBlue2419]

Originally Posted by Young Drachma

Love the detail and backstory. Looking forward to this. Might borrow one of your universities for one of my leagues at some point.

Thanks Young Drachma! I've enjoyed your leagues, so much appreciated!

[GoBlue2419]

A Look at Riverdale

Riverdale was founded by German immigrants in the late 1780s. Its location on the Salt Lick River and the introduction of steamboats led Riverdale to once being the largest city west of the East Coast, but the emergence of railroads led to less dependence on steamboats for shipping, and Riverdale's growth slowed.

Riverdale's economy is still built around river shipping, but has diversified and is known for its breweries and distilleries as well.

Riverdale's culture is heavily influenced by its German history. Among its most popular events is Oktoberfest, a popular yearly festival that draws visitors from around the country. Oktoberfest is a culinary arts festival, featuring food, drinks, and music. Another popular yearly festival is Steam Stacks Days, when Riverdale's heritage of steamboats is celebrated. The river is full of vintage and replica steamboats for the week of the festival,

Riverdale is represented by the following professional sports teams:

* Monumental League (Baseball) - Riverdale Redbirds
* Monumental Football League (American Football) - Riverdale Rockets
* Monumental Basketball Association - Riverdale Royals
* Monumental Football Association (Soccer) - Riverdale Athletic FC

[GoBlue2419]

June 11, 1947
Mallards Jump to Early Lead, Hold On Against Redbirds
Story by Billy Brockman



At Jacoby Park last night, Mallards fans were treated to an early offensive outpouring, and then needed to hold on to the edge of their seats as Riverdale attempted to come back. But the home team held on for a 6-4 win against the pesky Redbirds.

The first inning saw Yadier Hernandez reach base after getting plunked by Redbirds starter William Romero, and then Al Lone moved him to third base iwth a single. Zenas Stewart's double then scored both Hernandez and Lone to put Manningham up 2-0. Stewart was able to reach third on the throw home as Redbirds left fielder Rochelle tried to nail Lone. Stewart's smart baserunning then allowed him to score on Jimmy Lincoln's fly out to center. Cy Kemp then doubled, but Noodles Jobe could not advance him any further as the inning came to an end.

Manningham scored two more times in the 3rd inning, behind a single from Stewart and a home run from Kemp, driving in himself and Stewart.

The Mallards added their final run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Lone led off with a single, advanced to second on a fielder's choice to second base, and then scored on Lincoln's single to right field.

Riverdale would get two runs back in the eighth inning. Tom Field walked Tommy Carter, at which point Mallards' manager Newt Brown replaced him with Fred White. White struck out the first patter he faced, but then gave up a single to Isaiah Lawson, a single to Al Ballard, scoring Carter, and then a single from Dave Lynn, scoring Lawson.

The Redbirds scored two more in the ninth off of Al Byrd. Byrd hit Vicente Vega with his first pitch, then struck out Al Strother, before giving up a triple to Carter, plating Vega. Ed Robertson then drove in Carter with a single before Byrd struck out Lawson and persuaded Chappy Edwards to ground out to second to end the game.

Tom Field picked up the win, running his record to 6-8, by pitching 7.1 innings, giving up 6 hits and just 1 run. He struck out five and walked two. White pitched 2/3 of an inning, giving up three hits and 1 run, and Byrd pitched an inning, giving up two runs on two hits.

The loss went to Riverdale starter William Romero, whose record fell to 7-8. He gave up 6 runs in 6 innings of work.

Top hitters for the Mallards included Lone, who went 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored, Stewart, who batted 2 for 4 with 2 RBI, and Kemp, who went 2 for 3, including his 6th home run of the year, and 2 RBI.

Dave Lynn, giving star rookie Chappy Edwards the day off before Edwards later pinch hit, went 3 for 4 for Riverdale.

In the final game of the series today, Al Weir (7-7, 5.31) takes the hill for Manningham, and Carlos Medina (3-8, 4.69) will pitch for Riverdale.

Mallard Notes
- Before the game, the Mallards sent down pitcher Heinie Wiley to AAA, calling up pitcher Tug Koski. Koski has pitched 68 innings at Huxley, posting a 2.14 ERA.

Other ML Scores
Morley City 5, Capital City 0
Metro City Metros, 3, Gateway City 1
Tinseltown 6, Bay City 1
Tremont 7, Metro City Mutuals 6
St. Charles 3, Tottington 2
Coconut Bay 8, Magnolia City 7
Sun Valley 1, Cascadia City 0

Notes From Around the League
- Tom Baker picked up his 11th win against 2 defeats in Coconut Bay's win over Magnolia City. Cristhian Gutierrez hit his 12th home run in that game also for Magnolia City.
- Gateway City has now lost 6 games in a row.

[Young Drachma]

Love these town names.

[GoBlue2419]

[From the journal of Manningham Mallards GM Dean Erickson:]

6/12/47
Well, we lost another one to Riverdale last night. 5-3 was the final, and it could have been much worse, since the Redbirds knocked out 16 hits (boxscore here). Al Weir started for us, and gave up 5 runs in 6 1/3 innings, allowing 11 hits in that time. The guy is 2-6 in his last 9 starts, and just 1-3 in his 4 starts for us since I traded for him. I may have made a mistake. But we are really hurting for pitchers, and he wasn't terrible for Bay City. I'll try to give him a couple more starts and hope he just needs to settle in here in Manningham. But the flip side is he is 34 years old. He is a free agent after the year, so will have to keep an eye out for pennant contenders in need if he doesn't turn things around, or we don't turn things around.

We did get home runs from Al Lone, his 14th, and John Jaye, his 6th. Jimmy Lincoln had two hits for us, raising his average to .277. So we had a few highlights.

But Chappy Edwards killed us. Man, that guy can hit. Riverdale has themselves a star with him. Four for four with two runs scored. He's hitting .382 with 10 home runs and 52 RBI. Not too shabby for a rookie. How did no one find him before last year? He's 27 years old, and had been tearing up his independent league. There were some scouting breakdowns league-wide for sure there.

In other games last night, Bay City beat Tinseltown 2-1, Morley City beat Capital City 9-5, Gateway City finally won a game, breaking their 6 game losing streak by beating the Metros 8-5. In the Federal League, the Mutuals beat Tremont 4-1, St. Charles beat Tottington 4-3, Coconut Bay won their 6th straight, beating Magnolia City 11-6, and Sun Valley defeated Cascadia City 4-2.

Yesterday I heard back from the agent of our 2nd Round Draft pick Erastus Cox on my signing bonus offer. He is asking for a $200,000 bonus, his recommended slot bonus is $145,000, and I offered him $150,000. Not too surprisingly he rejected it. I will submit a new offer of $175,000 to them and see where we go from there. I don't know that I'll be giving him $200k though.

Well, I need to run for now. Heading to The Porterhouse to meet our manager Newt Brown for breakfast, and then we gotta get to the airport and catch our team flight to Metro City this morning. As big as Manningham is, there is nothing quite like seeing Metro City from the air. It really does make Manningham seem like a quant little village.

Mallards plane on a flight over Cascadia City

We start a three game series with the Metros tonight. They have been playing pretty well of late, and are just 3 games back of Bay City, but hopefully we can catch them in a swoon after their loss to Gateway City last night.

Ed Wise, our scouting director, sent me the scouting report for the Metros series:


Have to remember to grab my news faxpaper before heading out. Man, now that they are able to transmit these things faster, it sure beats having to run down to the newsstand and buy a paper. I love being able to get the news delivered inside our apartment.


Alright, I really need to run now. Go Mallards!

[GoBlue2419]

Overview of Metro City
Metro City is the most populous city in the country. It is located at the mouth of the Gothenborg River, and much of Metro City is situated on the island of Metrolandia, with the West River on the west side, the Gothenborg River on the east side, and Metro Bay, which flows into the Atlantic.

A true global city, in many ways, in the worlds of commerce, art, finance, media, fashion, and entertainment, as Metro City goes, so goes the world.

Metro City was long the entry point for immigrants coming into the country, and as a result is an extremely diverse city, quite possibly the most diverse in the world. It is the home of the League of Nations, and is an important center for international diplomacy.

Metro City is made up of six boroughs, with the largest being Metrolandia. The other boroughs are Crown Point, Flemingside, Midvale, Park Ridge, and Naven Island.

Metro City is the country's top spot for theatrical productions, one of the premier locations in the world, and reaching "Theatre Row" is the goal for many young actors and actresses. Other cultural icons of Metro City include the Metro City Museum of Natural History, the Ranhurst Radio Hall, Northerly Park, and the Midvale Zoo.

The country's financial well-being rises and falls with the Metro City Stock Exchange, and more Finance 500 companies are headquartered in Metro City than any other city in the country.

Major universities within the Metro City metropolitan area include Empire State University, Hudson University, King's College, St. Luke's University, and Metro City University.

Because of its large size and population, Metro City is able to support multiple sports teams in each of the five major sports leagues. As well, each of the major professional sports leagues are headquartered in Metro City. Its major professional teams are:

* Monumental League (Baseball) - Metro City Metros (Continental League)
* Monumental League (Baseball) - Metro City Mutuals (Federal League)
* Monumental Football League (American Football) - Metro City Empires (Continental Conference)
* Monumental Football League (American Football) - Metro City Excelsiors (Federal Conference)
* Monumental Hockey League - Metro City Metropolitans
* Monumental Hockey League - Metro City Blades
* Monumental Basketball Association - Metro City Knights
* Monumental Basketball Association - Metro City Continentals
* Monumental Football Association (Soccer) - FC Metro City
* Monumental Football Association (Soccer) - Crown Point Celtic


Metro City's Grand Union Terminal Railroad Station


Metro City's City Hall


Metro City's famed West Avenue

[GoBlue2419]

June 13, 1947
Mallards Cannot Hold Lead in the Big Metro, Lose 5-2
Story by Billy Brockman



In a story not too uncommon, the Mallards jumped out to a lead, and were unable to hold it, as they fell 5-2 to the Metros last night.

Our boys in green and red scored first, plating two runs in the top of the third inning, thanks to a single from Noodles Jobe, playing shortstop last night, and then a home run from left fielder Manuel Rivera, scoring both of them.


Those would be the only runs the Mallards would score though, and the pitching could not hold back Metros bats. Metro City scored once in the bottom of the fourth to pull within one, and then added another run in the sixth inning.

Metro City's first run came courtesty of a double from Metros shortstop Tom Chambers, and followed up by a single from pitcher Ed Helfrich to score him.

Chambers would drive in the second Metro City run when he singled, scoring Jim Jackson from third after his triple.

The scoreboard would be quiet for the next inning and a half before Metro City won it with a three run eight inning. ___ Franco doubled, and Mallards manager Newt Brown tried to set up a force play by instructing Al Byrd to intentionally walk Tommy Forbes. The move backfired when both Franco and Forbes scored, along with Jim Lindsay, after Lindsay sent Byrd's pitch 397 feet for a three run home run.

Eager to create a comeback, the Mallards bats did not cooperate with their will as they went 1-2-3 in the top of the ninth to end the game.

Metro City's second pitcher of the night, Odalis Juarez, picked up the win, his fifth of the season against no defeats. Helfrich started, and pitched 7 innings, allowing 5 hits, two runs, and two walks, while striking out 8. Juarez relieved him and pitched two hitless innings, striking out four Mallards hitters to boot.

The loss went to Tom Gould, who started and pitched 7 innings, giving up 9 hits, three runs, four walks, and struck out four. His record fell to 5-6.

Game Two of the series will see Willis Raymon (8-8, 4.64) face off against Jumbo Evans (9-3, 2.29).

Mallard Notes
- Just four Mallards hitters notched base hits. Rivera knocked two, Al Lone doubled, Jobe singled, and Gould picked up a base hit.
- Al Lone has hit safely in four straight games.

Other ML Scores
Capital City 6, Riverdale 5
Gateway City 7, Tinseltown 4
Morley City 5, Bay City 3
Coconut Bay 5, Tremont 2
Sun Valley 7, Tottington 4
St. Charles 7, Metro City Mutuals 2
Magnolia City 11, Cascadia City 5

ML Notes
- Magnolia City had two players hit two home runs in their win over Cascadia City. SS Ed Platt hit his 10th and 11th home runs of the season, while Jimmy Kane also hit his 10th and 11th.
- Ted Pascoe went 4 for 5, with his 10th home run and 2 RBI for Capital City.
- Manuel Trujillo went 3 for 3 for Tottington. He hit his 10th home run also in the Centennials' loss to Sun Valley.
- Coconut Bay has run its winning streak to 7 games now. They sit one game behind Sun Valley for the top spot in the Federal League.

[GoBlue2419]

[From the journal of Manningham Mallards GM Dean Erickson:]

6/16/47
The last three days have really been hit or miss for the team. We lose big Friday in Metro City, 12-4, come back and beat them soundly 14-4 on Saturday, and then come home and score some runs, but give up more, and end up losing to Tinseltown 11-8.

Friday night we threw Willis Raymon, and he struggled. He gave up 9 hits and 7 runs, 6 of them earned, before Newt Brown pulled him after four innings. He also walked four batters, so just really not sharp whatsoever. His record fell to 8-9 as a result. Two errors from Dave Golden at third base didn't help matters. Cy Kemp has a had a good couple days at the plate though, and went 2 for 3 in this game, and also walked once. Lone got another hit, and drove in a run. Bernie Suarez was the top hitter for Metro City, going 3 for 5 with 3 RBI, but every Metros starter picked up at least one hit. Jumbo Evans got the win for them, going 8 innings and giving up 8 hits and 3 runs, while striking out 10 of our hitters in running his record to 10-3.

On Saturday it was cool and the wind was blowing in strongly, but it did not seem to affect our bats. The boys really put together a solid game offensively, racking up 18 hits and scoring 14 runs. We scored at least one run in every inning except the 2nd and the 8th. Lone went 3 for 5, with a solo home run, his 15th of the season. John Jaye hit his 7th home run, and went 2 for 6. Jimmy Lincoln got two hits as well. Jim Louis had two hits. But the biggest bats of the day belonged to Zenas Stewart, who notched four hits in six at bats, and Cy Kemp, who went 3 for 4, including his 7th home run, and also knocked in six RBI. Tom Field was the benefiter of our offensive performance, getting the win to move to 7-8, despite giving up 4 runs himself in 7 innings.


We flew back home then after Saturday's game, and got ready to welcome the Tinseltown Aces to town. Tinseltown was two games ahead of us in the standings heading into the series, so it was an opportunity to gain some ground. But alas, it was not to be yesterday at least. We had jumped out to a 8-2 lead after 7 innings, but the bullpen couldn't hold the lead. Fred White stunk, giving up 5 runs in 1/3 of an inning of work, and we brought Heinie Wiley back up again to give him another shot, and he did not redeem himself, giving up 3 runs and taking the loss. We sent him back down to AAA Huxley right after the game, and I do believe he has pitched his last game for the Mallards. It's a shame, but he just doesn't have it anymore. Al Weir lasted 7 innings, giving up just three hits and two runs. It's too bad his effort was wasted by the bullpen.

Our record now stands at 31-40, thirteen games back of league leader Bay City. We have two more games with Tinseltown in this series, with Manuel Vega (3-5, 4.94) going against Al Byrd (6-5, 3.67) pitching tonight, and Fatty Wills (9-5, 3.21) throwing against Willis Raymon (8-9, 4.92) tomorrow night.

Meanwhile, Coconut Bay has now won 10 games in a row over in the Federal League, and has pulled ahead of Sun Valley for 1st place in that league, who has now lost two games in a row.

Taking a look at stat leaders, Sun Valley's Phil Chester leads the Batting Average race barely, compiling a .377 average, while Riverdale's Chappy Edwards is right behind him at .375. Our own Al Lone leads the ML in home runs with 16, four more than the group tied for second behind him. He also leads the ML in RBI with 55, while Chappy Edwards has 52.

On the pitching side of the leaderboard, Sun Valley's Syl Garland leads in all of the Pitching Triple Crown categories. His 13 wins are one better than Tom Baker of Coconut Bay, his 1.29 ERA betters that of Coconut Bay's Lew Holmes' 1.59, and his 180 strikeouts bests the next closest competitor, Riverdale's Jim Anderson, who has 153 strikeouts on the season.

[GoBlue2419]

June 17, 1947
Jaye Leads Way in Mallards Win over Aces
Story by Billy Brockman

Mallards lead-off hitter John Jaye led the way for the Mallards, as they defeated the Tinseltown Aces 5-4 last night at Jacoby Park. The Mallards jumped out to a 5-2 lead, and then held on as Tinseltown scored two late runs to make it close.

Tinseltown actually jumped out to the lead first, scoring two runs in the top of the third inning. But Manningham came right back with three of their own in the bottom half of the inning. Manuel Rivera, leading off the inning, reached first base thanks to an error by Aces shortstop Kitty Bryall. He moved to third on Skyrocket McVeigh’s grounder to short. Pitcher Al Byrd then reached first by a bases on balls to put runners at the corners. Both runners scored next on Jaye’s triple. Jimmy Lincoln then flew out to center field deep enough to score Jaye from third.

The Mallards scored another run in the fifth, with Jaye once again at the center of events. He singled, stole second, and then scored on Jimmy Lincoln’s double.


Manningham scored their final run in the seventh inning. Rivera singled, moved to second on McVeigh’s sacrifice bunt, and then stole third base. He then scored on Byrd’s single.

Tinseltown scored two runs in the eighth to bring the deficit to one, and almost scored another run, but Kitty Bryall was thrown out at home by Rivera from right field.

Byrd picked up the win for Manningham, running his record to 7-5. He pitched 7 2/3 innings, giving up 10 hits and 4 runs, while striking out five Aces. Ed Niswonger pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to pick up his 8th save.

The loss went to Tinseltown starter Manuel Vega, who fell to 3-6 on the season. He lasted 7 1/3 innings, in which he gave up 5 runs, 3 earned, on 7 hits.

Mallard Notes
- Willis Raymon (8-9, 4.92) faces off against Fatty Wills (9-5, 3.21) in tonight’s ball game.
- Al Lone was named Continental League Player of the Week for last week. Lone batted .444 with 4 home runs and 7 RBI for the week.

Other ML Scores
Metro City Metros 12, Riverdale 7
Capital City 4, Bay City 1
Gateway City 2, Morley City 1
St. Charles 2, Coconut Bay 1
Tremont 2, Cascadia City 1
Metro City Mutuals 7, Tottington 5
Magnolia City 3, Sun Valley 0

ML News
- Arlie Wall of Magnolia City pitched 8 innings of shutout baseball in the Marshalls’ 3-0 victory over Sun Valley.
- The Magnolia City win also snapped the 10 game winning streak for Sun Valley.
- Capital City’s Ruddy Rosado also pitched 8 innings of scoreless ball in the Capitals 4-1 win over Bay City.
- In another 8 inning, scoreless outing, Ed Dietert of St. Charles also struck out 9 Pelicans hitters.
- Magnolia City shortstop Ed Platt was named Federal League Player of the Week. He hit .385 with 3 home runs and 9 RBI last week.

- The Tottington Centennials announced that reliever Lew Blaylock will miss 5 months due to bone chips in his elbow. Blaylock has a record of 6-3 this season, with 11 saves and a 1.79 ERA.

[GoBlue2419]

June 18, 1947
Mallards Top Aces 3-2 at Jacoby Park
Story by Billy Brockman


In a bit of a rarity of late, the Mallards found themselves in a bit of a pitchers' duel last night, and came away victorious 3-2 over the Aces from Tinseltown.

Willis Raymon and Fatty Wills found themselves locked in a battle, and while Wills pitched better than Raymon, the Mallards defense came through at key moments to assist the Mallards pitchers along the way.

Neither team scored until the third inning. Tinseltown picked up the first run of the game in the top half of the inning, when Aces right fielder Lefty Giuseppe singled, moved to second on a fielder's choice, and then crossed the plate courtesy of a Fatty Wills single as the pitcher helped himself.

Manningham answered right back with two runs in the bottom of the third. Catcher Vic Martz led off the inning with a walk, and then Raymon put down a perfect sacrifice bunt to advance Martz to second base. John Jaye then continued his great series by depositing the fat pitch from Fatty Wills into the right field bleachers for a two run home run, his 8th of the season.

Both pitchers settled down after that for four innings, with neither giving up a run until the 8th inning. Tinseltown center fielder Benny Flores led off the 8th with a single, at which point Manningham manager Newt Brown brought in Ed Niswonger to pitch. Tinseltown manager Dusty Peery answered with a couple moves of his own, bringing in Al White to pinch run at first and bringing Tub Corbin to the plate, pinch hitting for first basemen Willis Ray. Corbin singled, moving White to second base. Niswonger then persuaded Ed Brady to fly out to right field. Niswonger then walked Lew Hendricks to load the bases. Stub Stephens then pinch hit and hit a grounder into the hole between first and second, and an outstanding play by Mallards second baseman Yadier Hernandez, in which he made a diving play and threw out Stephens at first, saved more than one run from scoring. But the run did score, tying the game at 2-2. Niswonger then managed to get out of the inning without further damage thanks to a pop out to catcher by pinch hitter Sid McCormick, batting for Wills.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Martz led off with a single off of new pitcher Abe Atz. Chappy Bernard, who had entered the game in the top half of the inning in a double switch along with Niswonger, grounded into a double play. But Jaye once again came through, this time singling to preserve the rally opportunity. He then stole second, his 14th steal of the season, which then allowed him to score on Hernandez's single.

Niswonger picked up the victory, his first of the season. His record now stands at 1-3. Tub Koski, in his debut for the Mallards, picked up his first save in 1/3 of an inning of work. Raymon lasted 7 innings, giving up 2 runs on 9 hits, striking out 7 and walking 3.


Atz ended up with the loss for the Aces, falling to 6-5 on the year. Starter Wills pitched 7 innings, giving up just three hits and two runs, while striking out eight and walking just one.

We have now reached the All-Star Break, so the Mallards team is off for the next three days. Al Lone and Zenas Stewart do not get any time off though, as both will be attending the All-Star Game. This will be Lone's 8th All-Star appearance, while the youngster Stewart makes his 1st appearance in the Summer Classic.

Mallard Notes
- Jaye went 2 for 4 on the day, with 2 RBI, giving him 33 on the season.
- Martz had a rare offensive outburst, going 2 for 2 to move his average on the year to .182.
- The only other Mallards with hits were Hernandez and RFer William Smith, each with one.
- Erastus Cox, the 2nd Round pick of the Mallards in this year's Draft, has announced he has rejected the latest offer from the team, and will re-enter the draft next season.

Other ML Scores
Riverdale 2, Metro City Metros 1
Bay City 9, Capital City 2
Gateway City 8, Morley City 5
Coconut Bay 10, St. Charles 2
Cascadia City 5, Tremont 2
Tottington 5, Metro City Mutuals 2
Magnolia City 7, Sun Valley 5

ML News
- Coconut Bay's Al Smith went 4 for 4 on the day, and also walked once.
- Riverdale's Jim Anderson pitched 8 innings, giving up 6 hits and just one run, while striking out 12 Metros. He is now 8-4 on the season.

All-Star Selections




Current Standings

[GoBlue2419]

With a couple days off for the All-Star Break, I'm up here in the Northwoods at our cabin in Pine Creek. Thanks to the Fisherman's Express high-speed train out of Manningham up to the Northwoods, I got up here in like three hours. Much faster than driving, and flying is tough because there is not much of an airport up here. Zeppelin travel is an option, but it's pretty expensive. And besides, the Fisherman's Express is so much more comfortable.


Obviously with the season during the summer, my chances to get up here when its warm are pretty slim. But once in awhile I can get away during the All-Star Break for a couple days. While up here, I'll do a little fishing with Pops Murtaugh, the finest guide, hunting and/or fishing, in all of the Northwoods, but I will also do some analysis of the team and potential moves I could make in the 2nd half.


Tonight is the All-Star Game in Riverdale. This year we have Al Lone and Zenas Stewart participating. This will be the 8th time Lone has played in an All-Star Game, he's become pretty much a mainstay there. The guy is amazing. The consummate pro. Does everything the right way. Wish we could have a couple more Al Lone's on the ball club.

As for Zenas, this is his first time there. Probably not his last though. Easy to forget sometimes the kid is still just 23 years old (yesterday happened to be his birthday - not a bad birthday present to make the All-Star Team). I still can't believe our fortune with him. We draft him in 1943, #5 overall, but just can't get him signed. He goes back into the draft for the next year, and we are able to get him again, this time with the 6th overall pick. I was not going to lose out on him again this time. We got him signed (albeit very expensively). All he does in his first full season of minor league ball at Single A Blandings Bay is hit .322/.351/.475, hit 8 home runs, and drive in 55 runs. He made his big league debut at the end of 1945, hits a home run in his 2nd big league game, and then makes the ball club out of spring training in 1946 at the age of 21. As a rookie last year he hit .251/.299/.352, with 5 home runs and 36 RBI. Not great numbers, but he showed his potential a number of times. Very excited for his future.


Well, that's all for now. Heading out on the lake for some boating with the family.

[GoBlue2419]

Profile of Al Lone, 1B, Manningham Mallards


Al Lone was born in Paradise Bay, Florida on August 31, 1918 to Walter and Bessie Lone. He was discovered by Manningham Mallards scout Art Pennyforth playing independent ball in the Southeastern League as a member of the Paradise Bay Bandits. Manningham signed him to a contract on December 1st, 1934 when he was just 16 years old.

Minor League Career
- 4 times named Player of the Week
- Won the 1937 A Gold Glove at 1B
- Named to 1938 AA All-Star Game
- Named 1938 AA Outstanding Hitter

Monumental League Career
- Made his Monumental League debut in 1938 at the age of 19.
- Tallied 6 RBI against the Morley City Millers on August 8th, 1938
- Won the 1938 Continental League Rookie of the Year Award.
- Hit first walk-off home run of career on August 21, 1939 against the Riverdale Redbirds.
- Named to first career All-Star Team in 1940.
- Hit first career grand slam on July 31, 1940 against Bay City Seals.
- Finished 2nd in voting for the 1940 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Selected to the 1941 All-Star Team.
- Hit three home runs against the Capital City Capitals on August 18, 1941.
- Finished 3rd in voting for the 1941 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Had a 24 game hitting streak in 1942.
- Selected to the 1942 All-Star Team.
- Finished 3rd in voting for the 1942 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Selected to the 1943 All-Star Team.
- Finished 2nd in voting for the 1943 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Selected to the 1944 All-Star Team.
- Won the 1944 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Selected to the 1945 All-Star Team.
- Won the 1945 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Selected to the 1946 All-Star Team.
- Finished third in voting for the 1946 Continental League Outstanding Hitter Award.
- Hit a walk-off grand slam on April 21, 1947 against the Capital City Capitals.
- Selected to the 1947 All-Star Team.

Has been named CL Player of the Week 19 times.
Has been named CL Batter of the Month 9 times.
Has won 2 CL Outstanding Hitter Awards.
Has been named to 8 All-Star Teams.

He is currently 8th in Career Batting Average all-time for Manningham.
Has the 2nd highest career OBP for Manningham.
3rd highest Slugging Percentage all-time.
8th all-time for Manningham in runs scored.
6th all-time for Manningham in Home Runs.
7th all-time for Manningham in RBI.

A model of consistency, has missed just 5 games in his Monumental League career thus far.

And he's not yet 29 years old.

Career Stats

[GoBlue2419]

June 20, 1947
Pitchers Rule the Day at ML Midsummer Classic
Story by Billy Brockman

Typically offense is the name of the game when baseball's best get together in the Monumental League's annual Best of the Best outing, but yesterday the pitchers stole the show in Riverdale. The Continental League defeated the Federal League 3-1, while Continental pitchers held the Federalites to two hits total.

The Continental stars were the first to strike, scoring a run in the bottom of the second. The hometown hero, Chappy Edwards, reached base on an error by Sun Valley's shortstop Sam Malone (Editor's Note: I did not change his name). He moved to third on a single by Capital City's Ed Broussard, and then scored on a sacrifice fly off of the bat of the Metro City Metros' 19 year old sensation Sam Peet.

The Federal fellows evened things up again in the top of the third. Malone led off the inning with a walk. He reached third base courtesy of a single by Magnolia City's Ed Platt, and scored on a fielder's choice hit by the Metro City Mutuals' Christian Nicoli.

The scoreboard was quiet until the bottom of the 6th inning. Tinseltown's Piggy Washburn led off by walking against new Federal League pitcher Eli Reyes of Sun Valley. Reyes then walked Ted Pascoe, he of Capital City personage. After our own Al Lone struck out, Washburn scored by way of a single from Gateway City catcher Antonio Ramos. Pascoe moved to third on the single, and then one batter later trotted home after Chappy Edwards drove a deep fly to left that was caught at the base of the wall.

The Metros' Jumbo Evans ended up picking up the win for the Continental League. He pitched the 6th inning, not allowing a baserunner. In fact, Continental League pitchers did not allow a hit after the third inning. The Morley City Millers' Jimmy Mayes pitched the ninth to pick the save. Reyes took the loss for the Federal League.

Riverdale's Jim Anderson, the starting pitcher for the Continental League, ended up taking Player of the Game honors, pitching two innings of shutout ball, giving up one hit while striking out two.

As for our own Mallards representatives, they did not fare so well. Lone went 0-3 with two strikeouts, and Zenas Stewart pinch hit for Lone in the 8th, and struck out himself.

[GoBlue2419]

June 22, 1947
Mallards Start Off 2nd Half With Win
Story by Billy Brockman

The Mallards started the second half of the 1947 season off the right way, with a victory over the evil Morley City Millers, 5-2. Our local boys jumped out to an early 3-0 lead and never looked back.

Morley City threatened in the top of the first inning, but Manningham starter Tom Field managed to wiggle his way out of the jam, thanks to a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.

In the bottom half of the opening frame, Morley City starter Jim Kinnon managed to strike out the first batter, Jim Jaye, but then walked Yadier Hernandez. He followed that up by walking Al Lone. Zenas Stewart strolled to the plate, and singled to right to score Hernandez from second. Lone advanced to third, and Stewart reached second on the throw attempt at home. After Dave Golden popped up to first for the second out, Jimmy Lincoln singled, scoring both Lone and Stewart.

Manningham scored again in the third, thanks to a walk to Lone, a single by Stewart, and a fielder's choice off of the bat of Golden.

The Millers finally crossed home in the 7th inning. Al Odom singled, and then Field hit Bid Gibson with a pitch to put runners at first and second. Field then walked Jose Velazquez to load the bases. Phil Neal then hit a dribbler back to Field, who threw home to get Odom. But Sam Harris then singled to score Gibson, and Fabio Zapata singled to score Velazquez.

The Mallards generated the final margin in the bottom of the seventh, courtesy of a Field single and a Jaye double.

Field pitched 7.2 innings to pick the win, his 8th against 8 defeats. Ed Niswonger pitched 1 1/3 innings to pick up his 9th save. Morley City starter Kinnon took home the loss, going 8 innings, giving up 9 hits and 5 runs to drop his record to 5-7.

Each team was the recipient of timely defense as well, with both clubs turning three double plays.

Stewart, Lincoln, and Field each contributed two hits to the Mallards cause, while Lincoln had the two RBI.

Mallard Notes
- The Mallards have signed their 3rd and 4th Round draft picks this season. LF Jim Mighty and P Win Walker were signed to minor league deals yesterday, and both have been assigned to Single A Blandings Bay.

Jim Mighty

Win Walker

Other ML Scores
Bay City 5, Gateway City 1
Capital City 6, Metro City Metros 3
Riverdale 3, Tinseltown 2
St. Charles 6, Cascadia City 0
Sun Valley 5, Metro City Mutuals 3
Coconut Bay 4, Tottington 0
Tremont 3, Magnolia City 1

ML News
- Tottington traded 33-year-old reliever Ed Wiss and 21-year-old minor league first baseman Alfonso Romero to the Morley City Millers for 28-year-old first baseman Reggie Berdecia. Wiss has compiled a 1-6 record and 4.85 ERA in 30 relief appearances. Berdecia is batting .222 with 0 HR, 2 RBI in 28 token appearances.

[GoBlue2419]

June 23, 1947
Millers Gang Up on Weir, Mallards Fall
Story by Billy Brockman

In a story played out all too often, Al Weir struggled for the Mallards, and the team paid the price, falling to Morley City last night 6-4.

Weir gave up 15 hits in 7 innings of work, allowing all 6 runs on his way to earning his 9th loss of the season. His record now stands at 7-9 on the season, and just 1-4 with the Mallards. Surely GM Dean Erickson has to regret the deal that brought Weir to Manningham.

Morley CIty did the bulk of its damage in the 3rd inning. Fred Mathewson doubled to score Ed Beil, who had singled to lead off the inning. Mathewson scored on a single by Chicken Geddes. Geddes scored on a sacrifice fly by Phil Neal, and Bid Gibson, who had singled earlier, scored on a single by Elias Kennedy.

The Millers added the final two runs of their tally in the seventh inning, as Gibson and Jim Ledet scored on another single by Kennedy.

Starting in the bottom of the seventh, the Mallards decided to try to come back, scoring two in that frame and two more in the ninth. In the bottom of the 7th, Zenas Stewart led off with a double. He was able to trot home thanks to a two run shot by William Smith.

In the ninth, Manningham added two more runs on a two run home run by Vic Martz after Smith had been hit by Millers' pitcher Yale Oldham's pitch. But the Mallards could muster no more and fell by the final 6-4 deficit.

Oldham picked up the victory for Morley City, moving his record to 7-6. He pitched 8 innings, gave up 7 hits and 3 runs, while striking out 7 and walking none.

Tom Gould pitched the final two innings for Manningham, allowing just one baserunner by walk, while striking out three.

Gibson went 4 for 4 for Morley City, while Kennedy also picked up 4 hits in 4 at bats, while adding 3 RBI as well.

For the Mallards, Al Lone, Stewart, and Martz each had two hits.

Other ML Scores
Metro City Metros 5, Capital City 0
Bay City 5, Gateway City 1
Riverdale 6, Tinseltown 3
Sun Valley 11, Metro City Mutuals 2
Tottington 10, Coconut Bay 0
Tremont 5, Magnolia City 1
Cascadia City 10, St. Charles 2

ML Notes
- Cascadia City's Jim Musgrove went 3 for 4 with 2 home runs ( ) and 5 RBI.
- The Metros' Jimmy Kelner pitched a complete game two hit shutout to pick up his 9th win.
- Lafayette Bridges of Bay City pitched a complete game five hitter, giving up 1 run in running his record to 12-3.
- Kelner was named Continental League Player of the Week for the past week thanks to his outing yesterday. For the season Kelner is 9-7, with a 3.30 ERA. In 144.2 innings, he has struck out 111 hitters and walked 48.

- Federal League Player of the Week honors went to Sun Valley's Sam Malone. Malone patted .600 for the week with 1 home run and 4 RBI. On the season he is hitting .303, 7 home runs, 35 RBI.

[GoBlue2419]

June 25, 1947
Mallards Bats Flying in 12-4 Win Over Millers
Story by Billy Brockman

The Mallards showcased their hitting prowess in a 12-4 win at Jacoby Park last evening, knocking off their bitter rivals. The Mallards jumped out to a 10-0 lead by the 5th inning, behind a balanced offensive attack.

Manningam jumped to an early 3-0 lead after one inning against Morley City starter Dave Ramirez. Manuel Rivera led off with a single. Yadier Hernandez followed that up with a single of his own, moving Rivera to second. Both runners scored on the double off the bat of Zenas Stewart. Stewart moved over to third on a fielder’s choice hit by Al Lone, and then scored on a sacrifice fly from William Smith to cap the rally.

The Mallards would add two more in the fourth, thanks to a triple by Dave Golden and Vic Martz’s second home run in two days, and fourth of the season.

In the fifth, the Mallards added to their lead. Hernandez reached on an error by starter Ramirez. He moved to second on a single by Stewart. Lone singled next to load the bases and set the table for Smith. Smith then singled, scoring Hernandez and Stewart and advancing Lone to second. After Al Drum came in to relieve Ramirez, Golden singled to score Lone. Noodles Jobe then followed that up with a single to score Smith and Golden to close out the scoring for the inning.

Morley City reduced the deficit by two, thanks to a two run home run from Bid Gibson (his 7th) in the top of the sixth, and then added two more run in the seventh.

Manningham scored again in the bottom of the seventh to expand the difference again. Cy Kemp and Martz both walked, Jobe singled scoring Kemp, and then Manuel Rivera doubled, scoring Martz.

Al Byrd picked up his 8th win, going 7 innings, giving up 7 hits, 4 runs, while striking out 8 and walking 3. Tug Koski pitched two innings of shutout ball in relief.

Ramirez took the loss, his third against nine wins, lasting four innings and giving up nine runs on nine hits.

Smith and Jobe both tallied three RBI, and Stewart added two. Mallards with two hits each included Rivera, Stewart, Golden, Martz, and Jobe.

Other ML Scores
Tinseltown 5, Riverdale 1
Capital City 8, Metro City Metros 5
Gateway City 5, Bay City 0
Coconut Bay 9, Tottington 4
Sun Valley 4, Metro City Mutuals 1
Magnolia City 5, Tremont 4
St. Charles 2, Cascadia City 1

ML News
- Ed Broussard went 4 for 5, with a home run and 3 RBI to pace Capital City in their win over the Metros.
- Ed Dietert pitched 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball for St. Charles to run his record to 6-7.
- Manuel Vega pitched a complete game, and got the win for Tinseltown over Riverdale.
- Ed Ashton, 3B for the Coconut Bay Pelicans, tallied the 2500th hit of his career against Tottington. For his career, Ashton is batting .285 with 274 home runs and 1275 RBI. He is 2nd amongst active players in career hits, behind only the 3162 of Tinseltown’s Piggy Washburn.

[GoBlue2419]

June 25, 1947
Mallards Lose Tough One in Ninth to Bay City
Story by Billy Brockman

Down 6-4 after five innings, the Mallards fought their way back to take the lead in the eighth inning, only to see league-leading Bay City come back with two runs in the bottom of the ninth to defeat our boys 8-7 last night at Shively Stadium.

Manningham scored the first run of the night as Yadier Hernandez crossed the plate courtesy of a Zenas Stewart single in the top of the third. Jim Jaye led off the inning with a single, but was thrown out attempting to steal second. Hernandez, Al Lone, and Stewart then all singled in succession, culminating with Stewart's run-scoring one baser.

Manningham added three more in the fourth inning to jump out to a 4-0 lead. Shortstop Jimmy Lincoln led off with a single, stole second, and then Vic Martz hit another home run to score Lincoln and himself. Martz has now homered in three straight games. After pitcher Willis Raymon struck out, Jaye singled, and then scored on a double by Hernandez.

The Seals came back with six in the bottom of the fourth though to take the lead. Jim Mouton singled, and then Wes Vaughn hit a two-run homer for the first two runs of the inning. Ed Giovannucci then reached on an error by Mallards third baseman Dave Golden. After Raymon struck out Pony Kunshige, Josh Brown deposited a 3-2 fastball into the seats for another two-run bomb for the Seals. Wild Bill Scarborough and Jim Howard then both singled, and a walk to Lon Thompson loaded the bases for Mouton. His singled scored both Scarborough and Howard.

The Mallards chipped away at the lead with runs in the 6th, 7th, and 8th innings. In the sixth, Manuel Rivera singled, stole second, and scored on a single from Jaye.

The run in the seventh came as a result of a walk to Lone, an error by Seals' third baseman Mouton allowing him to move to third, and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Golden.

The final run from the Mallards in the 8th inning was by way of a solo home run by Cy Kemp, his 8th of the season.

Up by a lead in the bottom of the ninth, and Ed Niswonger pitching, things appeared to be wrapped up after two outs were recorded. But the Seals had other thoughts. With two outs, pinch hitter Dad Ward singled. Josh Brown then singled, moving Ward to third. Niswonger then walked Scarborough to load the bases for Howard. Howard did not disappoint the local fans, hitting a walk-off single scoring both Ward and Brown to win the game.

Jaye went 4 for 4 on the night, with a run scored and an RBI. Hernandez and Lincoln also picked up two hits each, while Martz contributed two RBI on his 5th home run of the season.

Seals pitcher Sil Maldonado picked up the win, running his record to 2-0 this season, while Niswonger came away with the loss, and now has a 1-4 record for 1947.

Game Two of the series goes tonight, with Tom Field(8-8, 3.06) taking the mound for the Mallards, while Jimmy Milham (9-4, 3.22) throws for Bay City.



Mallard Notes
- Mallards 3rd Round draft choice in this year's draft, Buttercup Weinzierl, has rejected the initial offer from Manningham. Mallards GM Dean Erickson is expected to counter in the next day or two as hopes of a deal are still high on both sides.

Other ML Scores
Riverdale 1, Morley City 0
Tinseltown 1, Metro City Metros 0
Gateway City 6, Capital City 5
Coconut Bay 4, Metro City Mutuals 3
Magnolia City 12, St. Charles 4
Sun Valley 8, Tremont 1
Cascadia City 9, Tottington 2

ML Notes
- Magnolia City right fielder Al Jeffries contributed 6 RBI on a 3 for 5 night in their win over St. Charles.
- Gateway City's Dave Haynal hit two home runs, scoring four Keystones in their 6-5 win over Capital City.
- Packy Babcock pitched nine innings of shutout ball for Morley City, along with 8 strikeouts, but came away with a no decision in the Morley City-Riverdale game. Riverdale scored the only run of the game in the bottom of the 10th inning to win it.

[GoBlue2419]

July 3, 1947
Mallards Lose Third Straight to Capitals
Story by Billy Brockman

After going 5-2 in their previous seven games, the Mallards have now dropped three straight to the Capital City Capitals after last night's 3-2 loss. The Mallards, after briefly finding themselves ahead of hated rival Morley City in the standings, now look up at the Millers who have a three game lead for 5th place in the Continental League.

Manningham scored the first run of the game, jumping out to an early 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st. Al Lone doubled, scoring Yadier Hernandez, who had doubled one batter previous.

The Mallards extended the lead to 2-0 in the third inning after Hernandez doubled, and then scored again, this time off of a Dave Golden single.

Capital City tied the game in the bottom of the 4th, finally getting to Mallards starter Willis Raymon. Al Clemons and Carlos Ramos both singled, and then each moved up a base courtesy of an Ed Perry sacrifice bunt. Chippy Henderson then drove in both runners with a single to right field.

The Capitals scored the winning run in the bottom of the fifth. Willie Gavrilopoulos singled, and he moved to third base on a single from Eddy Diaz. He then trotted home for the third and final run of the game when Clemons singled.

Raymon took the loss for Manningham (39-46), falling to 8-10. He pitched 7 2/3 innings, giving up 12 hits and 3 runs. He struck out 5 and walked 3.

Perry picked up the win for Capital City (49-36), running his record to 6-6 on the season. Ed Oliver pitched a scoreless ninth to pick up his 11th save of the year.

Hernandez and Cy Kemp each had two hits for the Mallards to lead the way offensively. Henderson clubbed three base knocks for Capital City, along with two RBI, to lead their offense.

The Mallards are off today as they travel to Riverdale and get set to begin a three game series with the Redbirds starting tomorrow. Expected pitching matchups for the series are:


Mallard Notes
- Manningham reportedly turned down a trade offer from Gateway City for 31-year-old Keystone catcher Luis Caminos. Rumors have it that the Keystones were asking for Mallards outfielder Chappy Bernard and minor league shortstop Jim McDonald in return for Caminos. Caminos is batting just .133 on the season in 67 plate appearances. While Manningham definitely needs an upgrade behind the plate, Caminos is definitely not that, and Vic Martz has been hot of late for the Mallards. Since his average dropped to .171 on June 13th, he has raised it to .203 as of today, and has hit 5 home runs and knocked in 12 runners in that span.


Other ML Scores
Bay City 2, Metro City Metros 1
Riverdale 9, Gateway City 0
Morley City 7, Tinseltown 2
Tottington 6, Tremont 2
Metro City Mutuals 5, Magnolia City 4
Sun Valley 2, St. Charles 1
Cascadia City 2, Coconut Bay 1

ML Notes
- Tremont catcher Al Williams hit his 15th home run of the season in their 6-2 loss to Tottington.
- Syl Garland moved to 16-3 on the season, picking up the win in Sun Valley's 2-1 win over St. Charles.
- Sun Valley has now won 12 games in a row and is beginning to run away with the Federal League.
- Riverdale's Chappy Edwards was named Continental League Batter of the Month for June. He batted .392 on the month, with 6 home runs and 28 RBI. He's now batting .368 on the season to go along with 12 home runs and 61 RBI.
- Jimmy Kelner, the Metro City Metros ace, was named CL Pitcher of the Month, thanks to going 5-2 with a 2.10 ERA in June. His season stat line includes a 11-7 record, 2.95 ERA and 161.2 innings pitched.
- No surprise here, but Edwards was also named CL Rookie of the Month, winning the award for the second month in a row.
- Sun Valley's center fielder Lou Alford picked up the Federal League Batter of the Month award for June. Alford swung for a .337 average, 5 home runs and 20 RBI. His season totals are .284 average, 16 home runs, and 51 RBI.
- A Sun Valley Copperhead also picked up the FL Pitcher of the Month award as Eli Reyes won the honor for June. In 7 starts for the month, he racked up a 5-0 record and 0.71 ERA along with striking out 44 in 50 2/3 innings. He is 11-4 on the season with a 2.22 ERA.
- CFer Jim Huff of the Metro City Mutuals picked up the FL Rookie of the Month award, courtesy of a .368 average, 1 home run, and 10 RBI during June. He is batting .291 on the season, along with 5 home runs and 30 RBI.
- The League Office announced that Gateway City shortstop Erastus Burns and Riverdale starting pitcher Wes Bell have been suspended for 10 games each for their roles in yesterday's bench-clearing brawl.