1915 Postcard?

This gorgeous postcard just sold on eBay. Postmarked April 2, 1915, it is listed as featuring our Milwaukee Brewers.

The front picture is amazing - never seen those sweaters with the white bands across the front.

The back of the postcard, however, casts some doubt.

It is labeled "The Kodak Shop, Owensboro, KY", although that seems to be a stamp more than publisher's mark (look at the way it overlaps "CORRESPONDENCE HERE"). Still, an odd notation for a Milwaukee Brewers postcard. The postmark is also Owensboro. Owensboro is about ninety miles west of Louisville, whose Colonels were stalwarts in the American Association. Is it possible that the photo was taken on a road trip?

Of course, it's also possible that the photo isn't of our Brewers at all. Let's take a closer look, see if we can make a determination.

We can start with the uniforms. I don't have a ready picture of the 1915 Brews in their uniforms, but there's no particular reason to believe it would be the 1915 club. The postmark, early in the year, suggests that the photo would have been 1914 or earlier. So let's look at the 1914 club. I do have a photo of that team, from the Milwaukee Sentinel and published in the paper when the Brews secured their second straight pennant.

The uniforms do seem to match, right down to the odd mismatch of wide stripes- and Northwestern-striped (thin/thick/thin) socks.

Also, some of the players appear to be wearing the thicker "M" from 1913, with its distinctive sword-notch down the middle. It had been replaced, at least on the home jerseys, by 1914.

When we compare our postcard to this team photo of the 1913 American Association pennant-winning Brews, we can see the earlier "M" in both photos.

The two monograms are a good match:

Of course, the 1913 home jerseys had simple piping while the postcard uniforms feature pinstipes. I've seen photos of road pinstriped uniforms from 1914, so that would seem to comport.

It's not unheard of to see these uniforms together, as seen in this photo:

1914 Photo courtesy of Rex Hamann
(Hand written names of Berg and Barbeau are reversed)

Home pinstripes and slender "M" (not unlike the one the Braves would adopt forty years later, road pinstripes with squat 1913-style "sword M".

So far so good. Of course, we could nail this down if only we could identify players in the postcard photo. And so we can.

Back row, seventh from the left in the postcard photo and middle row, fourth from the left in our 1913 photo - that's the unmistakeable visage of veteran first baseman Tom Jones.

Jones, who was 36 years old during the 1913 campaign, had been a major leaguer from 1904 through 1910, first for the St. Louis Browns and then the Detroit Tigers, where Brewer owner Charles Havenor had noticed him. Jones came to Milwaukee in 1911 and spent the last five seasons of his career in Brewer blue.

And that man next to him in the 1913 photo? Front row, third from right in the postcard? That looks like manager/third baseman Pep Clark.

So I think we can say at this point that yes, it is a photo of the Milwaukee Brewers. Likely of the 1914 team. And what a beauty it is. We also have an amazing new dugout item to add to our list of team gear, that blue sweater with bold white horizontal stripes.

The Kentucky connection, however, remains a mystery.

If you're the lucky new owner of this postcard, drop me a line. I'd love to talk to you about it.

1936-37 Red Ball Gum Pennant

This felt pennant is one of the highlights of my collection. Although small in size—measuring just 4¼ by 2½ inches—it features a fantastic graphic and dynamic type treatment.

The pennant is made of soft burgundy felt with the design in cream-colored paint. I love how the name "Brewers" ripples like a flag in the breeze. That's appropriate, as it dates to 1936 or 1937, right about when the Brewers were .

The batter is very cool, leaping out of the box as he finishes his swing.

These pennants aren't particularly rare; every American Association Brewer collector I know has one. But the history of this item is very interesting.

This beauty wasn't sold at Borchert Field's concession stands. In fact, it wasn't available through the Brewers at all. It was manufactured for the Red Ball Sales Company, and packed with sticks of gum.

Robert Edward Auctions

Red Ball, based out of Chicago, came on to the national scene around 1936. The gum was sold by the stick, one penny each, out of boxes of one hundred.

Robert Edward Auctions

There they are, all lined up. The reddish envelopes above were special prizes. In every box of one hundred individually-wrapped sticks of gum, twenty-five were labeled "Lucky Sticks" on the inside of the wrapper, entitling the lucky chewer to a free pennant, as seen on this in-store advertisement:

Network54.com

Network54.com

The pennants themselves were gorgeous, and featured an incredible variety. As you might expect, the major leagues were well represented. There were several variations for each of the big league clubs, some with stock graphics and some team-specific.

Legendary Auctions

There doesn't seem to have been much importance placed on matching team colors, which is why our Brewers were given a burgundy-colored banner. The Brews may or may not have worn maroon in their early years, but by 1936 they were firmly established as a blue-with-red team.

There was one team-specific variation; after the Yankees won the 1936 World Series, a special pennant was issued to celebrate the Bronx Bombers' fifth title.

At the time, though, the majors consisted of sixteen teams in just ten cities. The rest of the country was represented by various levels of minor leagues, and as we can see those minor league clubs were included in Red Ball's promotion. And not just the American Association, but teams from other large junior circuits such as the International League and Southern Association.

Legendary Auctions

Red Ball also offered several series of player-specific pennants. Some had just team and player names, some had stock player graphics and some an autograph-like script:

Legendary Auctions

Red Ball also made pennants for a staggering number of colleges and universities - at least two hundred.

eBay: scoreboardclassics, mattsvintagepennants

That wasn't enough; Red Ball also dabbled in popular culture, immortalizing Hollywood stars and popular musicians:

Hake's Americana & Collectibles

The variety is just astounding, and I'm not sure anything on that scale has been seen since.

The party was unfortunately short-lived. Sometime after 1938, just about two years after they burst on to the scene, Red Ball went out of business. That was a tough year for the American economy, still in the throes of the Great Depression. Unemployment, already 14.3% in 1937, jumped to a stunning 19.0% in 1938. In human terms, that meant nearly twelve million Americans were out of work in 1938, and industrial production dropped sharply to match. It appears that Red Ball was one of the many casualties of its era, leaving behind a legacy of hundreds of miniature felt pennants.

There's one other bit of the Red Ball story worth noting; printed on the folder each mini pennant came in was this intriguing offer:

Network54.com

I have no idea what "reasonable facsimiles" would have referred to at the time, but send in twenty-five wrappers along with fifteen cents for a full-size version of a Red Ball pennant. Amazing. I've seen several major-league versions of these pennants, but I don't know for sure if the offerings ever extended to the minors and our Milwaukee Brewers. It's an amazing thought, that there might be a thirty-inch version of this beauty out there just waiting to be discovered.

Cubs Throw Back to 1937! Will the Brewers Follow Suit?

Just minutes ago, the Cubs unveiled the series of throwback uniforms they will be wearing next season for Wrigley Field's 100th Anniversary.

Here's the jersey they will wear on Sunday, May 18th, against the Milwaukee Brewers:

It's an excellent represenation of their 1937 uniform:

And, not incidentally, superior to their current cluttered mess.

So where would that leave the Brewers? Presuming that they will wear throwbacks of a similar vintage (which was the rumor I heard several months ago), they could be wearing something like this:

I believe those are indeed the road uniforms in the Radio Day promotional photo - contrast the relatively dark flannels with team president Louis Nahin's white shirt top row center.

Information on the Brews' uniform history is spotty, aside from what I've been able to piece together (I know, I'm working on it).

This photo, at right, of local phenom Ken Keltner (from the collection of Paul Tenpenny) was taken in Spring Training of 1937, but reflects what I believe was the 1936 road uniform. It wasn't unusual for the team to receive new uniforms right before Opening Day, presumably so they looked their best for the first home game.

In any case, this could be an exciting time for fans of the Brews. I'll keep my ear to the ground and let you know as soon as I get any new information....

Could the Brews Return in 2014?

The Brewers don't have any plans to hold another Turn Back the Clock event this season to honor the Brews (although 1914 and 1944 were both championship seasons). There is still a chance that our American Association Brewers might still make an appearance on a major league diamond, but if so it'll be a diamond ninety miles south of Borchert Field's old location.

This summer, the Chicago Cubs will be celebrating the 100th birthday of their ballpark, Wrigley Field with a series of special events. One of those events might hold the key to seeing the old Brewers in action (throwback games are scheduled, outfitted and managed by the home team).

This tidbit recently appeared on the Cubs' site, as beat reporter Carrie Muskat fielded questions from Chicago fans:

Will the Cubs ever change their look, even just a little? They need new uniforms. It's time for a change. -- Lisa M.

You will see some new looks this year as part of the Wrigley Field 100th anniversary celebration. The Cubs have partnered with Majestic Athletic to recreate throwback uniforms from significant events at the ballpark during each decade of Wrigley's history. The first is a copy of the 1914 Chicago Federals uniform, which will be worn on the 100th birthday game, April 23 against the D-backs. The remaining uniforms will be worn on a "Throwback Sunday" game for the corresponding decade. Visiting teams also will wear retro uniforms on those games.

Ah-ha. Interesting.

What we don't know is if every Sunday game at Wrigley will be designated a "Throwback Sunday" game, or if it will be limited to select days. But these are the teams scheduled to play in Chicago on Sundays during 2014:

Sun, 4/6 Sun, 4/20 Sun, 5/4 Sun, 5/18 Sun, 6/8 Sun, 6/22 Sun, 6/29 Sun, 7/13 Sun, 7/27 Sun, 8/10 Sun, 8/24 Sun, 9/7 Sun, 9/21

Phillies Reds Cardinals Brewers Marlins Pirates Nationals Braves Cardinals Rays Orioles Pirates Dodgers

If the 4/23 game will be the first Turn Back the Clock game, that rules out the Phillies game on April 6th and the Reds game on April 20th. But the Brewers will visit Wrigley less than a month later, indicating that throwbacks might indeed be on the schedule.

So if the Brewers are indeed to be the opponents in a game honoring "each decade of Wrigley's history", what might we expect to see? The odds seem good that they'd reach back into the American Association days. Those Brewers played exhibition games at Wrigley Field in the 1940s—in the days of manager Charlie Grimm and owner Bill Veeck, the two clubs were closely related—so that's a strong possibility.

This is mere speculation on my part, but it's fun to guess. I'll keep following the announcements and will let you know once any such game has been announced.

"The Brewers Expect to Tango Their Way to 1914 Championship"

We're starting our 1914 season in review a little earlier this year, with a look at a delightful article from the Milwaukee Journal published on January 11, 1914:

SH-H-H IT'S A SECRET! BUT BREWERS EXPECT TO TANGO THEIR WAY TO 1914 CHAMPIONSHIP

IS THE TANGO AND OTHER NEW DANCES GOING TO EFFECT BASEBALL? CAN A DUCK SWIM?

While the local Radiator league are batting about eight hundred and umpty umpty, smoking large pipes of Federal "okum," they have overlooked the best bet of all - the new dances. It has been learned on pretty good authority that several of the Brewers, during the winter, have taken to the new steps and just a glance at some of their capers, would lead one to believe that Milwaukee has the pennant won before they start.

In Paulding, Ohio, Harry Clark has gone mad over the Tango. Yes, sir, dippy is the word. Harry says that he has a set of steps that he expects to use around third base that will bewilder the heaviest sticker in the association. Clark is working on what he calles the "Altizer Hesitation," and promises to use only his feet in executing it.

Little Johnny Hughes has rented a barn on the outskirts of the city and while none have been able to see him in action, except his one man orchestra, John expects to charm the umpire with what he calls his "Catch-as-Catch-Can-Can."

Tom Dougherty promises a real surprise. Tom is caretaker over at Slapnicka's Parch Parlor and when not coaxing a beer out of the icebox or mixing up a brown soda, is hard at it, rehearsing his "Snit Snitsky," which he claims will cause the best batters in the league to clout wildly at nothing.

JONES HAS "DIPPY DIP."

Little or nothing can be learned of Tom Jones, but an unconfirmed rumor has wandered into the office to the effect that Tom has missed several nights of good sleep, struggling with the "Dippy Dip." If properly danced it is said that a runner after making a hit, seeing the dance, stops dead in his tracks as if suddenly hypnotized and becomes an easy out. Here is hoping that Tom dances it properly.

Phil Lewis takes time out, only for meals perfecting what he calls the "Terrible Twitch," and he says that if he can muster it, there will be no stealing on the Brewers next year, as the steps strike terror into any runner that has overcome Jones "Dippy Dip: and reached first. In fact, Phil says that it will take a brave man to even advance to second on a hit.

Randall, who has charge of a herd of pin boys over at the Eagles' Club, is battling with a new one called the "Fly Ball Flip" and states that in a pinch he can take care of the entire outfield as the steps take him all over the lot.

All the other players promise to kick in with some new dances of this winter look like a man with rheumatism and gout in a wooden leg, trying to run a hundred yards in ten seconds.

From a new dance standpoint, next year will be a winner and gossip has it that President Timme of the Milwaukee club combined pleasure with business in his trip abroad, looking for the very latest in fancy steps. If the above reports carry any truth, Secretary Nahin is making arrangements with the fire department to flood the field in the middle of the game, so as to cool it off a bit after a few innings of these dances.

Wow.

And let's take a look at the graphic that accompanies it:

A little context: the tango had come to the United States the year earlier, becoming all the rage in New York in 1913. Very au courant for the Journal to reference it.

So what can we learn from this article, other than purple prose was alive and well in 1914? I admit that I find it all rather dense, but it's exciting to see interest being churned up months before Spring Training.

Within months, the Brewers would re-assemble to defend their American Association championship. And perhaps work on their dancing at the same time.

Late 1940s Television Broadside

This cardboard broadside was recently sold at auction:

Lot #226: 1947-52 Milwaukee Brewers Gimbels Department Store 17" x 21" Radio/TV Broadside

Offered is a broadside letting fans of the Milwaukee Brewers baseball club, then a minor league affiliate of the Boston Braves in the American Association, know what their options were for catching a game on tv or the radio if they couldn't make it down to Borchert Field in person.

Sign measures 17" x 21" and reads as follows, "Gimbels Brings You Brewers Baseball Play-By-Play on Radio WEMP featuring Mickey Heath and Television WTMJ-TV featuring Larry Clark" over a green diamond with a baseball scene featuring a sliding runner, a middle infielder and an umpire.

Radio voice Mickey Heath played with the Cincinnati Reds in 1931 & 1932 and also served as the Brewers player/manager in 1939 among numerous other minor league stops while TV Man Larry Clark was the first to broadcast play by play of baseball games in the state of Wisconsin. Broadside remains in good to very good overall condition with a few small areas of staining present.

Mickey Heath is well known to our readers. He come to Milwaukee as a first baseman in 1937. In November of 1938, club president Henry Bendinger fired club skipper Alan Sothoron and made Heath a player/manager. Heath did both jobs at the Orchard for a year and a half until he too was relieved of his managerial duties partway through the 1940 season, at which point he quit altogether. He went into radio and was hired back in 1942 as a part-time coach and full-time radio man. He was the voice of the Brewers through 1950.

On the television side, Larry Clark started with the club in 1948, not 1947. In that year, Milwaukee only had an estimated 700 television sets, most of them in taverns. WTMJ was only the eleventh commercial television station in the United States, and Milwaukee was the seventh American city to have its own station. In those early days, Clark was paid $10 a game to sit in a small booth on the Borchert Field roof and call play-by-play to fans gathered around those few hundred sets in bars and appliance store windows. According to reports, there were no Brewer broadcasts in 1951 or 1952, which sets an upper date of 1950.

Visually, it's interesting but not terribly impressive. It's three-color printing with stock graphics (a "B" team versus a "C" team? They couldn't be bothered to airbrush in a Milwaukee "M"?). As a piece of Milwaukee's baseball and media history, on the other hand, it's invaluable.

Our Resolutions for 2014

As we turn the page to 2014, I'd like to begin by apologizing for our light December. Big things happening on our sister site, the Green Bay Packers Uniform Database. We have a total rebranding in the works over there, and it's caused a slowdown in our production for BorchertField.com. But not to worry - we have lots of exciting things on tap for the New Year.

2014 is the 70th Anniversary of Casey Stengel's time at the Orchard, not to mention the Brews' fifth pennant, and second of what would become three in a row. We'll have full coverage of that amazing season, from the first pitch at the Orchard to the final inning of the playoffs. If you enjoyed our "This time in 1913" series from last summer, there'll be a lot more for you to like.

This is also the 70th Anniversary of Milwaukee's short-lived entry in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, known variously as the "Chicks" or "Schnitts". And yes, I did suggest to the Brewers that they consider a Turn Back the Clock event to honor the team.

In any case, we expect 2014 to be a very big year here at BorchertField.com, and we're honored to invite you to join us.

Have a Jolly Cholly Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from everyone at Borchert Field!

The story behind our seasonal photo is here.

"On Him It Looks Good, Too"

This cartoon from Milwaukee Sentinel cartoonist Lou Grant, published seventy years ago last month, shows Brewer president Bill Veeck having recently enlisted in the Marine Corps.

The "sport shirt kid", Bill Veeck has up and joined the Marines... and so it's good-bye for a while to "Leatherneck" Veeck, the guy who put the Brewers on the map...

I particularly like Grant's new lyrics for the "Marines Hymn":

From the walls of Borchert Orchard
To the shores of Old Long Neck,
The Marines have never had a pard'
Who could duplicate Bill Veeck!!

Another Ebbets Field Flannels Sale!

Our friends at Ebbets Field Flannels have a special going on now for "Cyber Monday". From now until Monday, December 9, use this promo code:

CYBER

to get 20% off your total order.

This is the perfect time to pick up your reproduction 1947 road jersey (seen above), a 1936 road jersey or 1905 Brewers road cap.