Ted Butterman, 1935-2022 (center)
The Chicago Cubs paid regal tribute to the passing of Queen Elizabeth II with a moment of silence before Friday’s game against the San Francisco Giants.
But they missed on Wrigley Field’s King of Swing.
Slugger Dave Kingman? Nope. Third baseman Patrick Wisdom? They’re still here.
Wrigley Field bandleader Ted Butterman died Aug. 31 in a care facility in Buffalo Grove, Il. The Dixieland jazz maestro was 87 years old. He was in hospice for one day. A lifelong musician, Mr. Butterman played to his biggest audiences between 1982 and 2017 at Wrigley [...]
High school-era Pete Crow-Armstrong
SOUTH BEND, Ind.—Maybe this isn’t all about baseball.
I’ve devoted some of the summer following the South Bend Cubs, the Midwest League High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. The future lives in South Bend, the birthplace of Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. I’ve followed the team to Midwest League outposts in Beloit, Wi. and Davenport, Ia. Last Friday I saw the Cubs lose 3-1 to the Quad Cities River Bandits before 6,700 fans on a steamy South Bend evening.
I keep a notebook on the passenger side of my car. I jot down thoughts and observations. [...]
Roland Hemond, 1929-2021
Roland Hemond is one of the most remarkable front office figures in Chicago baseball history.
He worked for White Sox owners John Allyn, Bill Veeck, and Jerry Reinsdorf. As White Sox general manager in December 1971, he traded pitcher Tommy John to the Los Angeles Dodgers for slugger Dick Allen, which saved the Chicago franchise. After a lousy 1971 White Sox season Allen enchanted the south side in 1972 while hitting 37 home runs and winning the American League MVP.
Hemond spent 70 years of his life in baseball.
He died last December at the age of 92.
I’ve weathered the [...]
Riverview Stadium, Clinton, Iowa–built 1937.
CLINTON, IA..—The Clinton LumberKings hosted the Burlington Bees on Aug. 3 in their final home game of the 2021 Prospect League season. Both Iowa teams landed in the Prospect League, a collegiate wood bat league after Major League Baseball kicked them out of the affiliated minor leagues. Both teams have storied histories.
The Bees were members of the now-defunct Midwest League from 1962 until 2020. Their home field was built in 1947. The LumberKings were also members of the Midwest League from 1956 until 2020. They play in the historic Riverview [...]
