Tag: Red Sox

Long Island, a Bastion of Baseball History

If you’re reading about SABR Landmarks research projects, you undoubtedly love seeing historical roadside markers. The more specific and local, the better. George Washington slept here. Teddy Roosevelt lived there. First Roman Catholic Church in the area. You get it. We see them when we’re least expecting and are probably driving too fast half the time to read every word, but we immediately appreciate that someone took the time to research and get that marker placed so that patrons of future generations know why that exact spot is special.

Before we get to baseball history on Long Island, it’s worth mentioning my origin story with historical markers. Without the work we did through the Press Club of Long Island (PCLI), no sports history markers would exist. PCLI is the local pro chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. As the longest-serving president of PCLI from 2014-2018, I constantly sought interesting ways to put the organization on the map and have it stand out from hundreds of other chapters nationwide. Our projects had to relate to our core values of education, advocacy, and ethics.

I noticed that SPJ had an application to apply for a chance to get a historical marker related to local journalism history for your region. I applied, and we didn’t get selected. In speaking with a longtime board member, local historian, and journalist, Bill Bleyer, I suggested we put up our own historical marker. He had experience doing it, the board agreed, and we sought our first location, which happened to be in Hempstead, NY, where Newsday was first printed in 1940. What better way to start than the spot where the island’s most recognizable news source came to life? We erected four markers during my tenure as PCLI president. 

The journalism marker project began in 2015. I became President of the Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame in 2017. The Hall originated in 1990 and has honored people of significance related to sports, from coaches and pro players to journalists and athletic administrators. From Craig Biggio, Carl Yastrzemski, and Henry Chadwick to Frank Catalanotto and Sal Agostinelli, there is no shortage of baseball people from Suffolk County who have reached the pinnacle of the sport.   

After rebranding the Hall, creating a digital archive of all Hall artifacts and documents, reimagining the induction ceremony and process, and evolving several satellite exhibits in the county, I wanted to make a splash with another purpose by enhancing our mission. Since then, the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame has developed a marker project honoring places of historical significance. 

So much history has happened on our 118-mile-long stretch of land. If it were a state, Long Island would be the 13th most populated in the country. It’s common to see markers designating where George Washington visited during the Revolutionary War, especially since he ran a spy ring in the area, and the Battle of Long Island was the first conflict following the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. But did you know Satchel Paige pitched here in 1950? Imagine seeing Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in a barnstorming game on the south shore in 1930, just three years after the 1927 New York Yankees built a reputation as one of the greatest teams in history. Ever think about where Yasztremski played his high school ball? 

There is no shortage of sports history, so I set out to spread the love and educate with one marker at a time.

Independent Baseball on Long Island

The Long Island Ducks, who play in the Atlantic League, have been synonymous with the area for over 20 years. Families and kids have made it a right of passage to attend Ducks games in Central Islip, NY, since 2000. In 2019, during the 20th season of Ducks baseball, we put up our first marker to commemorate the longest-running pro sports organization in the county. It felt right as the Ducks were celebrating their anniversary to mark it with this placard next to Fairfield Properties Ballpark.

“When Frank Boulton began this journey, many did not think a minor league ballpark in Suffolk County would work,” said Ducks President/GM Michael Pfaff. “Then, with the initial great success of the Ducks, others predicted it would not last. This marker celebrates the success and longevity of Long Island’s hometown team, a tradition we look forward to continuing.”

The Ducks baseball team got its name from the Long Island Ducks hockey club that played at Long Island Arena from 1959 through 1973. The Ducks have had some good talent, including big leaguers Rich Hill, Carl Everett, Edgardo Alfonzo, Danny Graves, Lew Ford, and Daniel Murphy.

Celebrating Yaz’s High School Stomping Grounds

We were delayed in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic but picked up with our second marker at Bridgehampton High School on Tuesday, April 5, 2022. The historical marker to honor where Baseball Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski played prep ball was timed with the resurrection of the baseball program in Bridgehampton, which returned after a 43-year hiatus.

Yastrzemski was inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame in 1990, grew up in Bridgehampton, graduated in 1957, and hit .512 during high school. Yaz, unfortunately, did not come down from Massachusetts for the event.

Yaz’s longtime friend Dan Shedrick of Sag Harbor read a statement during the ceremony written by the local icon: “I truly regret that I am unable to join you today for this special honor. My thanks to my coaches and teammates, and members of the Bridgehampton community for their support. Most importantly, my congrats to the ‘Bridges’ new varsity team — learn from your coaches, play hard and have fun.”

Satchel Paige Barnstorming Moment Immortalized

Baseball Hall of Famer Satchel Paige pitched in Riverhead, NY, during a barnstorming game on July 21, 1950. Thanks to Fabio Montella, an assistant professor of library services and history for Suffolk County Community College’s Eastern Campus in Riverhead, this research was brought to my attention, and we circled this spot as the third location deserving a marker, which was erected on May 5, 2022.

The marker was placed on Riverhead Schools’ property on Osborn Avenue, where Wivchar Stadium once stood. Paige pitched for the Philadelphia Stars, a semipro barnstorming team. Also at the game that day was Carl Yastrzemski Jr., a 10-year-old bat boy for the Riverhead Falcons, a team his dad, Carl Sr., played on.

Ruth and Gehrig Come to Lindenhurst

I placed the Hall of Fame’s fourth historical marker at the location where Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig played a barnstorming game in Lindenhurst, NY, in 1930. We dedicated the marker on October 18, 2023.

Ninety-three years to the day, the marker was placed to designate the location on South Second Street, where the Baseball Hall of Famers played against Addie Klein’s Lindenhurst Nine.

There were more than 4,000 fans in attendance at the game. Ruth hit a monster home run that is believed to have gone at least 500 feet. Gehrig had three hits. After the game, they had a drink at the Plaza, a hotel, restaurant, and bar on Montauk Highway.

What’s next?

The process is different for each location. It depends on who owns the property and who can grant permission to put the marker in the ground. It might be a private owner, a school district, or a village government. I also rely on a maintenance, facilities, or public works team to help do the installation. Finally, none of this is possible without the beautiful craftsmanship from Catskill Castkings, who makes the markers and ships the heavy piece to me directly on Long Island.

You might be asking why we’ve only had baseball markers to date. It’s purely a coincidence, but I’m happy with the theme it presents to support our national pastime. We have a working list of markers for various sports worth considering in the future. Shinnecock Hills (Golf), Bridgehampton Raceway (Racing), Long Island Arena (Hockey), and the Canoe Place Inn (Boxing), where John Sullivan trained before his heavyweight title fight in 1892, to name a few. On the baseball front, we’ve explored the location where an all-woman baseball team, similar to the ones in “A League of Their Own” played, two more spots where Babe Ruth played in Riverhead and Kings Park, the field in Sag Harbor where Henry Chadwick watched games, and, my favorite, the location where the first all-Black baseball team played in 1885. The New York Cuban Giants were inducted into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame in 2019, and there is a large rock at the location of the old Argyle Hotel in Babylon, NY, to commemorate the location. The year 2025 marks the 140th anniversary of the team’s formation, a nice round number to honor with a historical marker.

Here’s to preserving history, honoring the past, and inspiring the future …

Beneath the Earth, Above the Stars: Cy Young Rests in Peoli

My wife and I are cruising along the rolling hills of eastern Ohio, some 50 miles south of Canton and a hundred miles east of Columbus. This is Amish country, the farmhouses close to the winding roadway, laundry drying on clotheslines, yellow signs reminding drivers to share the road with horses and buggies.

Ohio Route 258 dips into a grove of trees, then rises again. As it bends to the right, the trees give way to a small brick church on a hilltop. “Peoli Cemetery / p.m.c. 1870-2018” is painted above the front door. A sign on the lawn next to the flagpole reads, “Peoli Church. Resting Place of Cy Young,” with a hand-painted baseball and glove.

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They’re still quite proud of Denton True “Cy” Young out here, nearly 68 years after his death.

We slow down and park in a turnout at the bottom of the 1.8-acre cemetery next to a field of grazing cattle. It’s a warm, 70-degree day with a pleasant breeze as we walk beneath a wrought-iron archway reading “PEOLI CEMETERY” in white letters. Two gravel ruts bisect the church yard in a straight line and it’s not long before we spot the headstone on the right, up the hill:

⚾YOUNG⚾

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Cy Young’s grave isn’t quite at the peak of the rise, but it’s not far off. The view to the south opens up to more rolling, green hills, the only other building in sight about half a mile away. It’s such a serene resting place.

The other side of the headstone features a winged baseball centered at the top – a fly ball? – the names of Cy and his wife, Roba, and their dates of birth and death below. The logo of the Order of the Eastern Star is etched next to Roba’s name, the Freemasons’ Scottish Rite emblem next to Cy’s; they were both members. An epitaph reads: “From 1890 to 1911, ‘Cy’ Young pitched 874 Major League base ball games. He won 511 games, three no-hit, and one perfect game in which no man reached first base.” Baseballs, caps and a bag of sunflower seeds have been left by other pilgrims who have ventured to this spot.

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What brought baseball’s winningest pitcher to this tiny hamlet 10 miles east of his hometown, Newcomerstown? The answer is etched on the left side of the gravestone: Roba was born and raised in Peoli. Her family – parents Robert and Sue, brother Fred – are buried in the Miller family plot just a few steps away. All were members of this church, and their funerals were held here. About half a mile back up the road stands a battered red farmhouse, the last place Cy Young lived before his death on Nov. 4, 1955. He had moved there after Roba’s passing, staying with the Benedum family for the last 22 years of his life.

Casey and I made this trip the first week of June, just days before the Landmarks Committee added Hall of Famers’ gravesites to the map – not that this cemetery was hard to find; Cy Young’s grave is on Google. But before heading out to the country, we did use the map to find Cy Young Memorial Park in Newcomerstown.

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Nestled between a neighborhood and U.S. 36, the park contains a state historical marker as well as an elaborate Cy Young memorial next to a baseball field. There are also basketball courts, a beach volleyball pit, picnic tables and a community pool.

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The elaborate memorial is centered on the pitcher’s mound of a small infield replica. Images of Young are engraved into the center pillar, with slabs on either side highlighting his career achievements. “BASEBALL’S IMMORTAL PITCHER” is chiseled on the left half. “In his youth on a nearby farm, ‘Cy’ played baseball for love of the game, a quality that remained with him throughout his long life. He began his Major League career in 1890 with Cleveland and continued as an active pitcher in the big leagues until he retired at the end of the 1911 season.” 

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The right-side header reads, “MEMBER OF BASEBALL’S HALL OF FAME,” and the text below echoes the wording on plaques in Cooperstown: “Pitching for Cleveland, St. Louis, and Boston, his record of 511 victories in 912 games will never be surpassed. His total of 3508 strikeouts in 22 years and 751 complete games including three no-hitters, one of which was a perfect game in which no man reached first base, may also stand forever.”

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To be sure, his plaque is a bit simpler. And the gravestone and memorial have different career totals from what Young was known to have accomplished: 815 games (not 874 or 912), 2,803 strikeouts (not 3,508) and 749 complete games (not 751). The discrepancies and inaccuracies are understandable, though – the memorial was installed in 1964, five years before The Baseball Encyclopedia debuted and nine years before Nolan Ryan threw his first no-hitter. As we drive out of the parking lot, I notice a lawn sign promoting the 2023 Cy Young Days Festival, a three-day celebration of baseball and the hometown hero held the fourth weekend in June. We’re about two weeks too early, but it gives us a reason to come back.