Tag: Ted Sadowski

Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 1

With no baseball being played and “classic” games being broadcast on the radio and television I thought I would do something a bit different, at least for awhile, since no baseball is being played. I thought I would give up a brief recap of Minnesota Twins games from 1961.

I have been working on a very long term project whereas I do a brief recap of Twins games on my “In This Day in Twins History Pages.” So my plan is to give you a brief recap of the Twins first season as it plays out on a weekly basis. For more info on a particular game you can also click on the date and go to the appropriate “In This Day in Twins History Page” as there you will often get to see some player pictures and supporting documentation. We will see how long I can keep up with it, no promises. So let’s see what we have for week one.

Yankee manager Ralph Houk inspects the jacket of Twins manager Cookie Lavagetto prior to the Twins first ever game, played April 11, 1961 at Yankee Stadium. Twins win 6-0.
Continue reading Remembering the Twins first season from 1961 – Week 1

Steve Korcheck passes away at 84

KorchekSteve Korcheck passed away at the age of 84 from heart failure on August 26 in Bradenton, Florida. Stephen Joseph Korcheck was born August 11, 1932 in McClellandtown, Pennsylvania and was a celebrated high school athlete before going on to George Washington University where he played baseball and football and earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees.

Steve Korcheck never played for the Minnesota Twins so why you ask does he show up on a Twinstrivia.com web site? The Minnesota Twins didn’t exist yet and I never saw Steve Korcheck play baseball for the Senators but as a kid growing up in Taylors Falls, Minnesota I followed baseball and collected baseball cards. Back then Topps were the only baseball cards available and the local dime store sold the packs for a nickel each or six for a quarter. I didn’t have much money so I collected and returned empty pop bottles to finance my purchases.

Korcheck, SteveOne of the cards that I had was a 1959 Steve Korcheck card which I thought was a very cool looking card and that card caused me to follow Korcheck more closely. Korcheck wasn’t a very good hitter and the Washington Senators were a bad baseball team and my friends made fun of my like of Steve Korcheck. My baseball playing friends started yelling “you hit like Steve Korcheck” whenever a player made an out.

Five years later I was a senior in high school and in shop class I decided to make a baseball bat from scratch on a wood lathe. It took me some time since we only had 45 minutes or so in shop class daily but the bat turned out great. It was a beauty if I say so myself, a nice thin handle like I preferred and of course I had to have a name on the bat to make it look like the real thing so I stamped Steve Korcheck’s name on the barrel of the bat. A friend who played on the Taylors Falls High School baseball team asked me if he could use the bat and I was hesitant to loan it to him but he talked me into it. You can of course guess what happened, in his first at bat he hit a long foul fly ball and cracked the bat and my Steve Korcheck model bat was history. I did get an “A” on that shop project from the shop teacher who incidentally was also the baseball coach. I have never forgotten that experience or Steve Korcheck and later in life I started collecting some players autographs on their baseball cards and one of the autographs I have gotten was from Steve Korcheck who was kind enough to sign my card, write a short note, and enclose his business card as president of the State College of Florida. When I got the material back from Steve Korcheck I was amazed that this player and man that we had made so much fun of as kids had attained this status in life, President of a college and that he had earned a doctorate degree. This really made me think about what I had expected Steve Korcheck to be in real life versus the non-hitting catcher I saw as a child. Now days, in my late 60’s I play fantasy baseball and have for many years. One of my teams every year is called “Korcheck’s Bunch”, a reminder to myself that life is not all about baseball and that you might not be the best player in baseball but you can be great man in many other ways. Steve Korcheck was a teacher his entire life and he was All-Star but you won’t see it on his Baseball-Reference.com page.

After graduating from George Washington University in 1954 Korcheck signed as a free agent with the Washington Senators passing up an opportunity to play pro football with the San Francisco 49’ers who had selected the 6’1″ 205 pound Korcheck in the third round of the NFL draft as a center.

Korcheck made his big league debut on September 6, 1954 as the starting catcher in the second game of a double-header against the Philadelphia Athletics at Griffith Stadium. Korcheck who went by the nickname of “Hoss” ended up 0 for 3 and the Senators lost the game 3-2. Korcheck  played in the major leagues briefly for the Washington Senators in 1954 and 1955 before serving his country in the Army in 1956-1957. After his military service was behind him, Korcheck resumed his baseball career appearing briefly in a Senators uniform in 1958 and 1959 but his hitting skills or lack there of kept him from earning a roster spot with Washington. Korcheck spent the entire 1960 season with the Washington Senators AAA farm team Charleston under manager Del Wilber and played with future Minnesota Twins like Bert Cueto, Jimmie Hall, Jim Kaat, Don Mincher, Ted Sadowski, Garland Shifflett, Sandy Valdespino and Zoilo Versalles before calling it a career and moving on with the rest of his life.

Why Did Senators Catcher Steve Korcheck Choose Baseball Over San Francisco 49’ers?

Stephen J. Korcheck, former MCC president and baseball player, dies

Final inning over in a life well lived

Thank you for the memories Steve Korcheck and may you rest in peace. Twinstrivia.com would like to pass on our condolences to the Korcheck family and friends. Steve Korcheck may be gone but he will never to be forgotten.

Ron Henry – baseball player, singer and actor passes away

Henry, Ron 1Ronald Baxter Henry was born in Chester, Pennsylvania on August 7, 1936 and passed away on May 14, 2016 in Denver, Colorado at the age of 79 from cardiovascular disease and end stage renal disease. Ron Henry played professional baseball for 15 seasons between 1954 and 1968 but his only time in the big leagues was in 1961 and 1964 when he served as the teams third catcher.

In 1954 Henry was acquired by the Milwaukee Braves from the Boise Pilots in the Pioneer League in some fashion and played in their minor league system through the 1960 season but after that season ended he was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1960 Rule 5 draft which required him to spend the 1961 season with the Twins or to be returned to Milwaukee. In 1961 Henry served as the teams third catcher behind Earl Battey and Hal Naragon and made his big league debut at the age of 24 on April 15 at Memorial Stadium against the Baltimore Orioles as a pinch-hitter for Ted Sadowski in the fifth inning with the Twins trailing 6-0. Henry faced Oriole starter Steve Barber and hit into a 1-6-3 double play. Henry only appeared in 20 games that season getting just 31 plate appearances and had 4 hits and 3 RBI. Henry spent the next two seasons learning his trade in the minors before he got another shot with the Twins in 1964 and again he was the third catcher behind Battey and Jerry Zimmerman. In 1964 Henry, who according to the 1964 Twins media guide was known as “Scratch” appeared in 22 games and in those 43 plate appearances he had a double, triple and two home runs.

Ron Henry
Ron Henry

Although his short stints in the majors did not show it, Henry was a very good hitter in the minor leagues where he played in 1,119 games and hit .260 with 126 home runs and 41 triples. Behind the plate Henry was a good catcher and one of the reasons the Twins selected him in the Rule 5 draft was his strong throwing arm. Henry played in the Twins minor league system until he was sent to the Houston Astro’s in mid 1967 in an unknown transaction. Henry played in the Astro’s system until he walked away from baseball after the 1968 season at the age of 31.

After his baseball career ended, which had been interspersed by a short stint in the U. S. Army, Ron settled in Denver, Colorado where he became a well-known and respected local singer and actor. Ron packed Denver nightclubs for 35 years. During his career he appeared in many of Denver’s hot spots. His acting career encompassed various venues, including Armando’s, Rodney’s and a turn at the Country Dinner Playhouse in “Damn Yankees”.

Ron henry
Ron Henry

During his life journey, Ron was married to Diane Chalmus, of Sicklerville, NJ;   Sarah Saunders of Denver, CO and Leslie Henry , Raleigh, NC.  After moving to Raleigh, he received a heart transplant at Duke University Hospital more than 10 years ago. Ron returned to his beloved Denver in 2008 where he lived for the remaining years of his life among family and close friends.

Ron had a larger than life personality that attracted numerous friends and fans. He had a gift for gab that included storytelling, putting smiles on faces and making people laugh. He was a fan of TV and talk radio and developed strong opinions on many subjects which he would debate and defend until the end.

Thank you for the memories Ron Henry and rest in peace.

 

Catcher turned crooner Henry to start anew in N.C.

Ron Henry, swingin’ Denver singer, dies at 79

 

Ronald Baxter Henry Obituary