Category: St. Petersburg
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Back-To-Back-To-Back, Part 1
Part 1: Ed Charles There have been three African American ball players to make the “white” major leagues that can be claimed as a son of St. Petersburg. Two of whom were native born. All three attended Gibbs High School when it was the segregated “negro” school for St. Petersburg. A unique feature of this…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 10
1914 Spring Training Branch Rickey is just 32 years old and is entering his first full season as a manager in the major leagues. Most managers his age are player-managers. Even though he will pinch-hit twice during the upcoming regular season, he really doesn’t fit that bill. Rickey did play in the major leagues prior…
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Ballplayer Becomes a Quiet Civil Rights Pioneer
Archie Wade took the new-school way into baseball. He completed college first. He was a 1962 graduate of Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Al, playing both basketball and baseball. He joined the Stillman faculty after graduation and assisted his old coach in football and basketball as well. You may remember from history (or at least from…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 9
Huggins v. Rickey As mentioned earlier Miller Huggins and Branch Rickey likely met in 1904. Huggins had a successful rookie year. Rickey was called to the majors for the first time late in the season. Rickey, as he was known for, refused to play on Sundays even then. The manager, Joe Kelley, refused to play…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 8
Food & Entertainment The lodging atthe brand-new 5th Ave. Hotel built for baseball got old in a hurry, and so did the food. As I mentioned with the Hotel, the smell from underneath as well as the food was so bad that the Phillies pulled out mid-training in 1916. Even earlier, the Browns owner had…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 7
Lodging Besides a suitable ball field, St. Petersburg lacked one other item for hosting a major league team for spring training: lodging. St. Pete’s winter tourism already taxed the existing lodging options, and none would provide a reduced rate to house a full team and give up full price bookings. Real estate was very reasonable…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 6
Rickey Builds a Modern Field As a playing field was constructed that would match any being used for spring training, it is the rest of the complex that helps St. Pete’s facility shine. To the north of the field (third base/left field line) was the teaching facility. Rickey will have installed four handball courts, three…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 5
Rickey Builds a Modern Field The Snell and Hamlett Company fulfills their obligations for the property in short order. The trees and stumps are removed, holes filled and the property is leveled. Rickey draws up his ideal design and sends the St. Louis ballparks head groundskeeper, Sam Barnes, to handle the development of the playing…
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1945 Florida State Negro Baseball League
League Re-forms – Final Regular Season Standings W L Pct Orlando All-Stars 16 3 .843 Daytona Beach Black Cats 13 4 .765 Bradenton Nine Devils 15 6 .714 West Palm Beach Black Yankees 11 7 .611 Lakeland Tigers 12 9 .571 Tampa American All-Stars 5 15 .250 Bartow Polk County All-Stars 4 15 .215…
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Coffee Pot Ballpark, Part 3
The Browns are coming! The first article in the Coffee Pot series was intended to mark the beginning of the piece. Circumstances took me back a bit in history and I found some fascinating information relating to St. Pete’s quest for Spring Training baseball. This information comes primarily from the archives of the St. Petersburg…