Saturday, March 19, 2011

Bob Turley At Browns Luncheon - May 25

Breaking news . . .

Just confirmed - Bob Turley to attend the 2011 St. Louis Browns Luncheon on May 25, 2011.

Bob Turley (born September 19, 1930 in Troy, Illinois and grew up in East St. Louis) (known as "Bullet Bob") was signed by the St. Louis Browns in 1948

He played his first game on September 29, 1951 for the Browns and moved with them to Baltimore in 1954. He was traded to the New York Yankees after the 1954 season and played for the Yankees from 1955 to 1962. After beginning the year 1963 with the Los Angeles Angels, he finished the year, and his career, with the Boston Red Sox.

His best year was 1958, when he won 21 games and lost seven. As a result, he won the Hickok Belt as top professional athlete of the year, and the Cy Young Award as the best pitcher in Major League Baseball.

Turley started his 1958 World Series on a low note, giving up a leadoff home run and lasting just one-third of an inning as the Yankees fell behind the Milwaukee Braves two games to none. With the Yankees one game away from elimination, Turley threw a shutout in Game Five, then picked up a 10th-inning save in Game Six. A day later in Game Seven, he relieved Don Larsen in the third inning and won his second game in three days, with 6 2/3 innings of two-hit relief. The Yankees became just the second team to recover from a 3-1 World Series deficit, and Turley was voted the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.

Pictured below - Fifty-seven years later, Bob Turley remembers the first big-league baseball game ever played at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Why not? He won it.


From left, Vern Stephens, Bob Turley and Clint Courtney. Stephens and Courtney both hit home runs in the Orioles' 3-1 victory over the White Sox on Opening Day on April 15, 1954. All three players moved from the Browns '53 to the Orioles '54.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

2010 Lunch DVD Order Form


1) Click on order form above to enlarge  2) Press Ctrl + P to Print out the order form  3) Mail in your order  (4) Enjoy the stories and laughs when your DVD arrives.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Fan Club Member Looking for Autographs

I am trying to get some 3x5 autographs of the following Brownies. Do any fellow fan club members have some I could buy?  Contact me at: William.Biery@FMR.COM

  Clint Courtney
  Willie (Willy) Miranda
  Bill Norman
  Cliff Fannin
  Bob Young
  Earl Harrist

I really need 3x5 signatures of these players for my collection. Thanks!

Marty Marion dies; shortstop was MVP with '44 Cards, Last STL Browns Manager

Marty Marion, known as "Mr. Shortstop" to a generation of St. Louis Cardinals fans, died of an apparent heart attack Tuesday night, according to his nephew, Scott Marion.

Mr. Marion was 93 and lived in Ladue a suburb of St. Louis.

Also known as "Slats" during his St. Louis career from 1940-50, Mr. Marion was the Cardinals' shortstop on four National League pennant-winners and three World Series championship teams (1942, '44 and '46). Marion also played for the St. Louis Browns as player/manager in 1952-53. He served as the Browns last manager before the team moved to Baltimore.

Mr. Marion's signature season was 1944, when he won the NL's Most Valuable Player award. According to Hall of Fame baseball writer Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch, this was more of a leadership and fielding award as Mr. Marion was considered the glue of the great Cardinals teams in the '40s. He batted .267 in '44. then sparked a Cardinals defense that made just one error in a six-game "Streetcar Series" victory over the Browns, who committed 10 errors.

His best season as a hitter was 1943, when he batted .280 in the regular season and .357 in the World Series against the New York Yankees. Stan Musial won the first of his three MVPs that year. In 1942, he batted .276 and led the NL with 38 doubles.

Mr. Marion made All-Star Game appearances in 1943-44 and 1946-50 (there was no All-Star Game in 1945), and led NL shortstops in fielding percentage four times during the decade. He was 6-foot-2 and 170 pounds during his playing days, and was known to sportswriters of the time as "The Octopus" because of his long arms and extraordinary range.

"You look at his stats and everything, he should be in the Hall of Fame," former teammate and Hall of Famer Red Schoendienst said today in Florida. "He never ever tried to say that he belonged in the Hall of Fame. He liked baseball. That’s why he played it.

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/article_befd89f4-4fe8-11e0-a6bc-00127992bc8b.html

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Browns Player, Fred Sanford, Passes Away

John Fredrick (Fred) Sanford signed with the St. Louis Browns in 1939 and played with the team in 1943, 1946-48. He was traded to the New York Yankees for the 1949-50 season. He played with four different teams in 1951 and finished his major league career that year back with the Browns. Fred was a pitcher and finished with a career ERA of 4.45 with 37 wins and 55 losses. His best season was with the Yankees in 1949 winning 7 games while losing 3.

Fred Sanford passed away quietly at his Salt Lake City home on March 15, 2011 at age 91. Fred’s passing was on the same day as Marty Marion.