Eight chapter members went retro in their storytelling over barbeque in downtown Austin on Nov. 19, swapping stories about Joe DiMaggio, the annual baseball awards and game forfeitures in the last 40 years.
We also welcomed new member Keith Ordean, who ventured from Canyon Lake to join us. He grew up in Ohio and often roots for the Cincinnati Reds (though he admits to disliking the Dusty-Baker-as-manager era).
Eric Robinson, who grew up in Fort Worth, sported a sharp cap of the Fort Worth Cats of the Texas League.
As we shared memorable games we experienced either in person or by radio, Tom Wancho recalled listening to the “10-cent beer night” game between the Texas Rangers and the Cleveland Indians at Cleveland Stadium in 1974. The Indians had the go-ahead run on third in the bottom of the ninth inning just before inebriated fans rushed the field and attacked Rangers players, leading to the Cleveland forfeit.
This discussion caused Jim Baker to recall other memorable game forfeitures in the 1970s, and he asked, Have there been any others since then?
Gilbert Martinez, relying on his expert memory (also know as a smart phone), found a Retrosheet page that lists details of forfeited games that go back to the 19th century. Click here for the weblink to that page.
To answer Jim’s question, we found that the most recent and only forfeited game in Major League Baseball since the 1970s was a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995. See the above weblink for more details of what must have been a wild night at Dodger Stadium.
This meeting marked the 84th consecutive month in which the Hornsby Chapter has met. More details about the December meeting will soon be forthcoming.