Category: Chapter News

Rogers Hornsby Chapter Annual Report (January 2011 to May 2012)

The Rogers Hornsby Chapter continued to remain active throughout the year – extending its consecutive monthly meeting streak, hosting winter meetings and SABR Day celebrations, organizing baseball trips for members and honoring the chapter founder with a lifetime achievement award.

The chapter met for the 66th consecutive month in May 2012, a streak dating to December 2006.

Chapter members honored the Hornsby Chapter founder and longtime SABR member Bill Gilbert with the inaugural Rajah Award for his significant contributions to the chapter.

At the chapter winter meeting at Texas State University in January 2011, Houston Astros television broadcaster Bill Brown, Round Rock Express radio broadcaster Mike Capps and his radio booth partner Jerry Grote, former catcher with the 1969 “Miracle Mets,” were special guests. Later that month on SABR Day, members gathered for a viewing of “Field of Dreams” and “The Natural.”

Among the highlights of the year, a dozen chapter members and guests enjoyed the “owner’s experience” at Whataburger Field, home of the Corpus Christi Hooks, the AA affiliate of the Houston Astros, in late April and early May 2011. Other chapter activities in the year included an outing to a Round Rock Express game and hosting a watch party for Game 3 of the World Series. The group also attended a showing of the film, “Moneyball,” and discussed it with Brian McNulty, a production manager on several Hollywood films.

Chapter commissioner Gilbert D. Martinez gave a research presentation at SABR 41 in Long Beach, California, in July 2011. The presentation examined the no-decision statistic. More information about the presentation can be found on the chapter website (http://chapters.sabr.org/hornsby) under the research and articles tab.

In 2012, the chapter held their Sixth Annual Winter Meeting, which included presentations by Branch Rickey III, president of the Pacific Coast League; Frank Coffland, a retired minor league umpire; Norman Macht, baseball historian, former SABR board member and author of the multi-volume biography of Connie Mack; and Scott Barzilla, author of “The Hall of Fame Index.”

Another 2012 chapter highlight was the book signing by Macht of his newly published “Connie Mack: The Turbulent & Triumphant Years, 1915-1931,” the second volume of his biography of the great manager.

Hornsby Chapter member Monte Cely completed the last of three years of service as a judge for the SABR Baseball Book Research Award. For more information on these awards, go to the SABR website announcement (http://sabr.org/about/sabr-baseball-research-award).

Midseason baseball talk and bbq

Fifteen chapter members enjoyed barbeque and baseball talk at the midseason break on Thursday, July 12.

 

Despite quiz-maker Jim Baker’s best efforts, a few of us eked out a few correct answers in Baker’s “The Perfect Quiz,” which focused on the 22 perfect games in Major League Baseball history.

 

Bill Gilbert was the only one to reach double-digits in overall score with 10 total points. Ira Siegel was second with seven points. Try your hand in the ‘Contests’ tab above, or by clicking here.

 

This was the 68th consecutive month that the chapter has met. On the horizon are Mark McGwire’s 70 and Barry Bonds’ 73.

 

Next meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 23.

 

July Meeting

We will be gathering at Iron Works BBQ located at 100 Red River in downtown Austin on Thursday, July 12 starting at 6:00 p.m. 

There is a small parking lot on-site, a larger lot on the south side of Cesar Chavez plus large pay lots across the street to the east.  Please RSVP to Jan Larson at jan.a.larson@gmail.com if you plan to attend.

RedHawks down Express, 8-5, for June meeting

Sixteen chapter members and guests were treated to several impressive home runs on a pleasant summer evening Saturday, June 16, at the Dell Diamond.

 

The Oklahoma City RedHawks, the Houston Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, defeated the Round Rock Express, 8-5, in part, because of back-to-back home runs by Mike Hessman and Brad Snyder and another by Landon Powell. The Express made a charge in the ninth, scoring three runs before falling short. Brad Nelson and Julio Borbon contributed with home runs.

 

Former Detroit Tiger Armando Galarraga, who nearly threw a perfect game in 2010, pitched well enough for the RedHawks and notched his first win with the team. After stints with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Baltimore Orioles, Galarraga signed a minor league contract with the Astros in May.

 

The next Hornsby Chapter meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, July 12, at Iron Works BBQ in downtown Austin, and comes at the halfway point of the season. Discussions of the first half and predictions for the second half will surely be among the topics of discussion.

June Meeting : Meat and Baseball

The June meeting of the Rogers Hornsby Chapter is set for Saturday, June 16.  We will be gathering for pre-game barbeque at the Salt Lick restaurant at 5:30 p.m. followed by the game between the home standing Round Rock Express and the visting Oklahoma City Redhawks.   Game time is 7:05 p.m.

Please RSVP to Jan Larson at jan.a.larson@gmail.com by noon on Saturday June 9 (one week in advance of the game) and indicate (1) how many in your party will be partaking in the pre-game meal (for the purposes of making a reservation) and (2) how many game tickets you will require.  Tickets are $14 plus a $1 service fee.

 

May Meeting Wrap-Up

A group of eight Hornsby Chapter members gathered on a lovely evening at Iron Works BBQ in Austin on Tuesday, May 15.  Topics of discussion included early season surprising/disappointing teams, brief reviews of Dan Walsh’s early season trip to Nationals Park and Jan Larson’s recent trip to Chase Field, some rehashing of members’ past experiences with ticket scalpers and a spirited discussion of BABIP.

The June meeting, scheduled for Saturday June 16, will include a pre-game meal at the Salt Lick BBQ followed by the Round Rock Express vs. Oklahoma City Redhawks game at the Dell Diamond.  Those interested will be given the opportunity to purchase advance tickets.  Details will be forthcoming.

May Meeting

We will be gathering at Iron Works BBQ located at 100 Red River in downtown Austin on Tuesday, May 15 starting at 6:00 p.m. 

There is a small parking lot on-site, a larger lot on the south side of Cesar Chavez plus large pay lots across the street to the east.  Please RSVP to Jan Larson at jan.a.larson@gmail.com if you plan to attend.

April Meeting Summary

A smaller than usual but enthusastic group of seven gathered at Iron Works BBQ on Tuesday, April 17 to discuss baseball and consume meat.  Returning from a stint on the disabled list was chapter founder Bill Gilbert.

With no trivia quiz on the agenda there was more time to concentrate on the baseball topics of the day including (in no particular order) Ozzie Guillen, Bobby Valentine, the Dodgers’ triple play, the Astros’ early season competitiveness, various members’ upcoming baseball-related trips and the 2012 post-season format.  Other baseball topics, not necessarily of the day, that came up for discussion included Dave Kingman, the starting rotation of the ’81 Oakland Athletics, the 1990s Cleveland Indians, members’ first major league games, the relative abilities of past baseball greats versus modern players, some recent baseball books and former Astros’ second baseman Craig Biggio’s chances of first ballot election to the baseball Hall of Fame.

The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, May 15 at Iron Works.  Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 16 when we’ll attend the Round Rock vs. Oklahoma City game at the Dell Diamond.  More information will be forthcoming.

April Meeting

We will be gathering at Iron Works BBQ located at 100 Red River in downtown Austin on Tuesday, April 17 starting at 6:00 p.m. 

There is a small parking lot on-site, a larger lot on the south side of Cesar Chavez plus large pay lots across the street to the east.  Please RSVP to Jan Larson at jan.a.larson@gmail.com if you plan to attend.