Q: Before Ila Borders, before the Colorado Silver Bullets, what woman played against a Northern League team? A. The barnstorming (traveling) House of David baseball team played against the Eau Claire Bears on September 6, 1934, in a night game under lights. Among their players was the famous female athlete, Babe Didrikson. Originally scheduled to pitch against the Bears, she was unable to, due to an infected finger. She did pinch hit, though, drawing a walk and eventually scoring the House of David's sole run as they lost to the Bears 6 to 1. [more info] | |
Q: What is the greatest number of positions played by a single player in a Northern League game? A. On 8/6/1933, Mark Almli of the Superior Blues played all nine positions in a game against the Winnipeg Maroons. (Superior won 6-5 in 10 innings.) | |
Q: Besides Al Unser, what other "Unser" managed in the Northern League? A. Joe Hauser managed the Duluth-Superior White Sox in 1956, 1957, and part of 1958. Hauser, a native of Milwaukee, WI, was extremely popular with the german-speaking fans of that city, who nicknamed him "Unser Choe" ("our Joe") during his stay with the American Association Milwaukee Brewers in 1920-1921. While playing for the Mineapolis Millers in 1933, Hauser hit 69 home runs, a record that remained unsurpassed until 1954, when Joe Bauman hit 72 with Roswell of the Longhorn League. (By the way, Al Unser managed the Winnipeg Goldeyes in 1958, but I suspect that Al Unser wasn't the race car driver.) | |
Q: NBC had three announcers for the 1997 World Series: Bob Costas, Joe Morgan, and Bob Uecker. Which one played in the Northern League? A: Bob Uecker (Eau Claire Braves, 1957) | |
Q: What was the highest-scoring Northern League game? A. The highest scoring game is described by White, 1982, section "The Clubs and Their Cities": "It deserves mention that the record for total number of runs scored in a nine-inning professional baseball game was set in Winnipeg on August 16, 1933. Winnipeg defeated Eau Claire 35-19. There were 49 hits for 93 bases, yet the game was played in two hours and forty minutes. A very strong wind caused fly balls to do many tricks, including going over the fence for home runs." Reference: [White, 1982] | |
Q: How many fatalities have there been in Northern League play? A: There are three death accounts of which I am aware: Berg and Aligada, 1996, p. 10: "In 1936 the Jamestown Jimmies were a minor league team in the Northern League. They had a pitcher named Matty Matthews who won 20 and lost 2, and he could really hum that ball. There was a tragedy down there in 1936 too. The shortstop on the Superior Blues was batting against Matthews and he thought that Matthews was throwing a hook but it was a fastball. It hit him above the left ear and killed him there at home plate. I remember that like it was yesterday. I can still see him going down." Johnson and Wolff, 1997, p. 305: "July 21, 1938, Linus 'Skeeter' Ebnet, 23, shortstop for Winnipeg, Northern League, died in a Winnipeg hospital from being hit by a pitched ball in a game with Grand Forks five days earlier." White, 1982, section "The Players": "Two boys, playing in separate twilight games in Winnipeg, suffered fatal injuries by being hit in the face by pitched balls. They were Ebnet, a second baseman for Fargo-Moorhead, and Tkack, a Superior shortstop." Note that the last two sources disagree about Ebnet's team and position. References: [Berg and Aligada, 1996][Johnson and Wolff, 1997][White, 1982] | |
Q: Where did Hank Aaron get his start? A. With the Eau Claire Bears in 1952. By 1954, he was playing with the Milwaukee Braves. There is now a statue of him at Carson Park, the Eau Claire ballpark. | |
Q: How many Northern Leagues have there been? A: Six, including the present league:
References: [NL Teams][NL Classifications] | |
Q: Which manager has been with the same team for the entire existence of the current Northern League (1993-1997)? A: Ed Nottle has managed the Sioux City Explorers from 1993 to 1997. Recently, Nottle was part of a group that has purchased the Sioux City franchise. [more info] Q: Which manager has managed with the Northern League during those same years, though not with the same team? A: Doug Simunic managed in Rochester (1993), Winnipeg (1994-1995), and Fargo-Moorhead (1996-1997). | |
Q: What do the Colorado Silver Bullets have to do with the Northern League? A: Apparently, when the Silver Bullets started out, they were to be affiliated in some sense with the Northern League, playing games in each of the six (at that time) Northern League team cities. This didn't work out; the only game that was ever played was with the Northern League All-Stars in Charlotte, NC, on May 8, 1994 (Mother's Day). The All-Stars won 19-0. [Game result reference] From this result it was evident that the Silver Bullets would not compete effectively at Northern League level of play. Jane Yen's Silver Bullets history page has this to say (though note that Rochester, MN and not Winnipeg, Manitoba was actually selected for the league in 1993):
If you have more information about this affiliation, please let me know. | |
Q: What Northern League player wore his number backward, and why? A: John Neves, who played for Fargo-Moorhead in 1951,
wore his number "7" backward - "seven" spelled backward
is "n-e-v-e-s". | |
Q: During the 1997 season, who played on one of the 1st half division-winning teams, then was immediately traded to another team -- which went on to be one of the 2nd half division winners? A: Mike Meggers, who played with the Winnipeg Goldeyes throughout the first half of the season, and the Duluth-Superior Dukes throughout the second half. (For more information, see this news article.) As it turns out, both teams won their divisional championships, so Meggers and the Dukes will be playing Meggers' old teammates for the league championship. | |
Q: Which Northern League cities have been named by Money Magazine the #1 most livable city in the US? A: Two cities: Sioux Falls in 1992 and Madison in 1996. (Three cities, If you count Rochester, MN, which was in the Northern League in 1993, and named #1 by Money Magazine that same year.) | |
Q: Which team was part of the current Northern League during its inaugural year (1993), but folded after one year? A: The Rochester (MN) Aces (see NL team list). The next year, Winnipeg was awarded a franchise, and Doug Simunic, the Rochester manager, went to Winnipeg to become the manager of the Winnipeg Goldeyes. | |
Q: Which Northern League stadium has artificial turf? A: Winnipeg. | |
Q: Which manager has managed three different Northern League teams? A: Doug Simunic. Rochester Aces, 1993; Winnipeg Goldeyes, 1994-1995; Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, 1996-current. (The Rochester (MN) Aces were one of the original six teams during the Northern League's inaugural year, but folded after one season.) Source: The Doug Simunic page at the RedHawks Web site. | |
Q: Where does the name of the Duluth-Superior Dukes come from? A: From the name of one of their managers, Darby "Dook" O'Brien. (The name was adopted in 1959.) Sources: Fatsis, 1996, p. 99, and the history page at the Dukes Web site. |
Document URL: http://www.snake.net/nl/qa/answer.html
Maintainer: Paul DuBois,
paul@snake.net
Created: July 21, 1997
Last updated: May 2, 1998