Happy stretch run! While the Rockies are well towards the cellar of the National League, the race for the postseason is as intriguing as ever with 2 wild card places now up for grabs. Will we have a massive tie in the AL between the Yanks, A’s, O’s, White Sox, and Tigers? Will the newly moneyed Dodgers nip the Giants for the NL West crown? Stay tuned…

With that, the announcements:

- THE 15th ANNUAL RMSABR BANQUET will take place Friday, November 9, 2012, at the Denver Athletic Club.
The Keynote Speaker will be 1962 NL MVP and breaker of Ty Cobb’s long-standing stolen base record, Maury Wills.
Our Featured Speaker will be Roland Hemond, the first living recipient of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award recognizing the profound impact he has had on the game.
Newly added to the program! Jonah Keri, baseball author most noted for writing The Extra 2% and as editor of Baseball Between the Numbers, will serve as the evening’s master of ceremonies.
Please join us for this unique event!
Tickets for this fantastic evening are $50. Reservations can be made by sending a check to
RMSABR
5803 Orchard Creek Ln
Boulder, CO 80301
OR you can use PayPal and order your tickets through the Banquet page. Click on “Banquet” at the top of the page.

- We have 2 GAMES OF THE MONTH in September!
The first GOTM will be Saturday, September 22, when the Rockies take on the Arizona Diamondbacks at 6:10 pm.
The second (bonus) GOTM will be Thursday, September 27, when the Rockies close out their home schedule against the Chicago Cubs at 1:10 pm.
The chapter will meet 1 and 1/2 hours before the first pitch at the Denver ChopHouse, located in the shadow of Coors Field at 1735 19th Street, Denver, CO
Tickets are $20, with the proceeds benefiting the chapter. Orders can be made by sending a check no later than 3 days before each game to
RMSABR
5803 Orchard Creek Ln
Boulder, CO 80301

- Even after the season ends, our MONTHLY LUNCH will continue on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. In September, that means we meet on the 19th. Gather at noon at the Wynkoop Brewery for some baseball chatter and camaraderie!

- The chapter board will meet September 22 at 3pm at the Denver ChopHouse. The meeting is open to all chapter members.

- This website will be going through some updates and changes in the coming months. Stay tuned for a new layout and new features here!

Ozzie Guillen, manager for the Miami (nee Florida) Marlins, was the headline attraction for the Rocky Mountain chapter’s meeting of the Society for American Baseball Research. In front of a chapter-record 91 attendees, the colorful manager of the team with baseball’s most colorful uniforms regaled the crowd with a multitude of stories and commentary and won over a few new fans in the process.

The meeting opened with a few announcements and chapter business items as many in the audience began to enjoy a buffet meal at the Denver ChopHouse in downtown Denver, CO. Chapter board member and past president Paul Parker emceed the affair, introducing chapter president Matthew Repplinger to handle this first part of the meeting. Announcements were made about upcoming Games of the Month (with two games in September, on the 22nd and the 27th) and upcoming dates for the Monthly Luncheons, held at the Wynkoop Brewery in Denver on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. A note was also made about the 15th Annual Rocky Mountain SABR Banquet, announcing Maury Wills as our keynote speaker and Roland Hemond as the featured speaker.

To introduce Ozzie Guillen, the emcee posed a trivia question for the crowd: Who was the last manager traded prior to Ozzie? (answer at the end of this post). Ozzie, who attended with his son Ozzie, Jr., then took to the podium and began to recall stories about how he got into baseball and what the game was like while he played, mused about what he likes and dislikes about the game today, and commented on his thought about aspects of modern life. The Caracas native talked about being scouted and coming to America as a 16 year old, and compared how he had to cope compared to today’s players. He jested how when he was scouted there was 1 scout for 30-40 kids, whereas now there are 70 scouts for 1 kid, yet also noted how his parents didn’t know how he was doing until he came home in the winter and, like many Latin parents even today, didn’t understand the hardships of trying to reach the major leagues. He lamented about the travel involved in being a baseball player and manager and how it caused him to miss a lot of moments in his children’s lives, as well as how front offices in the modern game treat baseball more as a business and lack a high level of passion for the game. He referred to winning the World Series with the White Sox as a dream come true, and expressed his appreciation for Davey Concepcion, Harold Baines, and Roland Hemond. He didn’t swear once. The general impression from the crowd was that of a different man that the image that has been created via the sports media.

(Answer to the trivia question: Lou Piniella)

Ozzie Guillen, the colorful manager of the Miami Marlins, will speak at our Rocky Mountain SABR Luncheon/Chapter Meeting on Saturday, August 18, at 11:30 a.m.  Please join us in hosting Ozzie as our guest at the Denver ChopHouse located at 1735 19th Street in LoDo, near Coors Field.

Cost to attend the event is $15.  Because this is a fundraiser for the chapter, lunch is not included with your admission.  Lunch options available by the ChopHouse are one’s own additional expense.

It is important to please send in your reservation as soon as possible as the event is likely to sell out.  “Day of“ tickets (if available) will be $20 per ticket so please take advantage of our pre-sale and reserve your seat today. The pre-sale deadline is August 14.

Reservations can only be made by mail.  Telephone and email cannot be accepted.  Your reservation is not secured until payment is received.

Mail $15 for each reservation, payable to RMSABR, to:

RMSABR

5803 Orchard Creek Lane

Boulder, CO  80301

Please email any questions to below address.

The 6:10 p.m. Rockies-Marlins game also is the chapter’s Game of the Month.  Cost per ticket for the August 18 game is a group discounted price of $20.  If you would like to attend, add $20 per ticket to the amount you send in.  You may purchase game tickets without attending the Ozzie Guillen Lunch – but if you miss Ozzie, you’ll miss a rare baseball experience like no other.

 IMPORTANT:  Please include your name and telephone number with your order.  We will acknowledge receipt of your reservation by phone.

 SAVE THE DATE:  The 15th Annual RMSABR Banquet will take place Friday, November 9, 2012, at the Denver Athletic Club.  The Keynote Speaker will be 1962 NL MVP and breaker of Ty Cobb’s long-standing stolen base record, Maury Wills.  Our Featured Speaker will be Roland Hemond, the first living recipient of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award recognizing the profound impact he has had on the game.  Please join us for this unique event!

Matthew Repplinger, President

Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Society for American Baseball Research

denverbrowns@gmail.com / (303)304-0156

On Saturday (June 30) of the national SABR convention in Minneapolis, I walked up to the elevator bank next to Roland Hemond, who was starting to look through the local newspaper.  A smart idea, considering how slow the elevators copuld be.  I introduced myself and told him how much we were looking forward to having him as our guest at our November banquet (Friday, November 9, Denver Athletic Club).  The elevator doors opened and we got in.  I didn’t say more because Roland obviously was trying to find something in the newspaper.  However, he turned to me and said, “I’m trying to find the Diamondbacks box score from last night.  I like to start my day right.”

“Roland,” I replied, “That really marks you as a 20th century person.  Most other people would have just pulled out their smart phone and looked it up.”

“I’m not too good with those things,” said Roland, “How about you?  Have you got one?”

“No, not me.  All I have is a moderately intelligent phone.  It takes pictures and lets me talk to people,” I said.

At this point, the doors opened and we went our seperate ways into the fifth floor lobby.  It was only then that it ocurred to me that Roland wasn’t just making idle conversation.  He was hoping I had a smart phone so I could look up the Diamondbacks box score for him.

Jim Powers

Just in time for Roland Hemond’s talk at the RMSABR Fall Banquet…..a new Bill Veeck book is out by SABR member Paul Dickson (BILL VEECK: BASEBALL’S GREATEST MAVERICK). I heard about the book at the national SABR office in Phoenix….it is getting good reviews from everywhere. I heard Roland talk at a Spring Training Banquet in Phoenix a few years ago and he has many fond memories and tales to tell about Veeck….so time to brush up on your history.

Showtime’s THE FRANCISE is starting up soon. Last year we were treated to a peek inside the SF Giants. This year, Miami will be the team they follow. Just in time for the show….a new book about Ozzie Guillen….OZZIE’S SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT by Rick Morrissey. ….also getting good reviews…even though I’m sure it focuses on Ozzie’s time with the White Sox

Also…FYI, recently read an article about Doak Ewing who has worked for the Braves and White Sox during his baseball career. In between times, his pasttime is finding rare and old baseball reels/films and restoring them to DVDs. visit www.RareSportsfilms.com to see a complete listing of what Doak has restored. note that he has restored the only known copy of the 1956 World Series game pitched by Don Larsen (available on the above mentioneed website).
Also visit mag.com/1935worldseries to see footage of the 1935 Cubs/Tigers World series

Annie Chaloupka

Unfortunately, the only thing that wasn’t hot in June was the play on the field by the Colorado Rockies.

I hope everyone has stayed safe from the wildfires raging across Colorado and the Mountain West.

Announcements for July are as follows:

- Did you attend SABR 42 in Minneapolis? If so, we like for you to share you experience on our chapter website, www.rmsabr.org. Contact Matt Mitchell (statmattmitchell@gmail.com) with questions.

- SAVE THE DATE! Our 15th Annual Banquet will be on Friday, November 9 at the Denver Athletic Club, 1324 Glenarm Pl, Denver, CO.

Our keynote speaker this year is longtime MLB executive, recipient of the Buck O’Neill Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and fellow SABR member Roland Hemond! (P.S. I hear he was awesome to listen to at SABR 42.)

More information will following the coming months, including a registration form on the Banquet page at www.rmsabr.org.

- Join Rocky Mountain SABR for our Game of the Month on July 28, as Joseph Votto and the Cincinnati Reds make their annual visit to Coors Field to play the Colorado Rockies. First pitch is at 6:10 pm Tickets are $20, and can be purchased by sending cash or check to

RMSABR
5803 Orchard Creek Ln
Boulder, CO 80301

- Our Montly Luncheon for July will be on Thursday, July 19th due to the Rockies game Wednesay afternoon. As usual, we will meet at noon in the Landing Room of the Wynkoop Brewery in LoDo Denver.

- Our next Chapter Meeting will be August 18th. More information to come…

It only took 8,020 games, but the Metropolitans of New York finally have a no-hitter thrown by one of their pitchers.

June announcements are as follows:

- Our Game of the Month is June 9th, as Albert Pujols and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim come to Coors Field for interleague play against the Colorado Rockies. First pitch is at 2:10 pm. Tickets are $20, and can be purchased by sending cash or check to

RMSABR
5803 Orchard Creek Ln
Boulder, CO 80301

- Don’t forget our Monthly Lunch on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. That means we’ll have lunch on June 20th. As usual, we will meet at noon in the Landing Room of the Wynkoop in LoDo Denver.

- Thanks to everyone who took our web survey. Look for changes in the coming months to our website, www.rmsabr.org, our SABRnation and Facebook pages, and maybe even one or two surprises along the way. Stay tuned!

From today’s article from “sportswriter” Troy Renck:
“Of course, he couldn’t make it easy. No Rockies pitcher ever does. But once Friedrich reached a full count — that would have allowed Brandon Phillips to likely score from first base — Friedrich didn’t flinch. Heisey fouled off a fastball. Then Friedrich induced a harmless popup to catcher Wilin Rosario.”
How would a full count have allowed Phillips to score from first base?

“In these back-to-back wins — the first since a three-game winning streak since April 20 — ”

No they won back to back games on May 15 and 16

STAN COOK

Mr Parker has on several occasion posed a trivia question pertaining to the only player to bat in 100 runs at home in a season. Al Simmons did indeed have over 100 on one occasion, but Hack Wilson, unsurprisingly, had 116 in 1930.

The rain was nothing more than a mild distraction for the baseball fans of Rocky Mountain SABR who showed up for the chapter’s spring meeting on May 19. With Mark Stout graciously acting as MC again, the meeting started with Mark providing some Ichiro trivia in conjunction with the Mariners visit to Coors Field that weekend, along with a few plugs for upcoming features he had done for Root Sports. He then introduced the featured guest of the day, Jonah Keri. Jonah talked about two of his most noted baseball books, Baseball Between the Numbers, which he edited for the Baseball Prospectus team, and The Extra 2%, about the Tampa Bay Rays ascent from perennial doormat to World Series contender. He read a excerpt from the latter book illustrating how backwards the Rays front office was under the regime of GM Chuck Lamar and owner Vince Namoli. (For those that want to read the tale, it is in the “New Blood” chapter of the book). Jonah then facilitated a discussion on baseball with the initial premise “Why does the NL seem inferior to the AL in recent years?” The audience actively participated in this discussion, and the discussion ventured into other related topics such as free agency, roster construction, and tenure of front office members. Afterwards, a few announcements were made (more on those to come) and trivia questions were posed, and many of the attendees continued on by attending the Game of the Month that afternoon.