From 1902 to 1953 the City
of St. Louis was the home of the St. Louis Browns. The old expression
about the St. Louis Browns was, "First in shoes, first in booze, and last in the
American League." In their 52-year history, the Browns finished in the cellar 14
times, and seventh 12 times. They made only a dozen appearances in the first
division. Once, in 1944, they treated their fans to a pennant and faced their
cross time rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals in what was dubbed as the Trolley
Series.
After leading the
Cardinals two games to one, the Browns lost the final three contests, and the
World Championship. Due primarily to WWII, the 1940s have been described as a
time when "even the Browns" won a pennant, demeaning their only legitimate
success.
The owners that followed the 1944 pennant, Richard Muckerman
(1945-49), and Bill and Charlie DeWitt, were caught in a spiral of rising
inflation and sagging expectation. The Browns had to sell off players to pay
their bills; when attendance dropped as a result, they were forced to sell more
talent.
In 1951 Bill Veeck bought the non-contending Browns with the
expressed purpose of driving the Cardinals out of town. Cardinals owner Fred
Saight had income tax troubles that resulted in a prison term, but August Busch
restored order by purchasing the team. To draw fans, Veeck gave them "fun 'n'
games," including midget Eddie Gaedel. The stunts so angered the other owners
that Veeck was forced to sell the club to Baltimore interests in 1953, putting
an end to the St. Louis Browns.
Coming up on June the 8th, is the St. Louis Browns Reunion Dinner.
It's been fifty-three years plus since the Browns last season in St. Louis and
t
oday there are only 65 St. Louis
Browns players still living and this could be the last Browns reunion.It's never a sure a thing,
but some of the great Cardinal icons often show up as attendees at this event and they are
very accessible to fans when they do. We're talking about Stan Musial, Marty
Marion, and Red Schoendienst here.
"A Season to Remember: 60 Years Later" was the theme of the last St. Louis
Browns Reunion dinner that was held in St. Louis in 2004. In celebration
of the Browns 1944 American League Pennant, over 200 fans turned out for the
event. Legendary former Cardinal greats, Stan Musial, Marty Marion and
Bing Devine were present as well as former Browns, Jimmy Delsing, Bill Jennings,
Dick Kryhoski, Ed Mickelson, Don Lendhardt, Bud Thomas, J.W. Porter, Charlie
Hopkins, Roy Sievers (the 1949 AL Rookie of the Year) and Ned Garver (author
& 20 game winner on a team that lost 106 games).
The Browns
Reunion dinner this year will be held in the 4th Floor Crystal Room of the Missouri
Athletic Club, 405 Washington Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri.
Cost of the dinner will be
$65, the same as in 2004. Dinner reservations accompanied by a check should be
sent to:
Frank Kane, BFC Treasurer
443 Fieldcrest Drive
Webster
Groves, MO 63119
Parking for the dinner is available in the club's garage
located directly behind the club on Lucas Avenie. The garage can be reached by
proceeding north on 4th Street to the rear of the club building.
Former
players requiring room reservations should contact:
Erv Fischer
1921
Riverwoods Trail Drive
Florissant, MO 63031
or call
314-831-4843
Out-of-town fans wishing reservations at the (Missouri
Athletic) club may contact the club directly at 314-231-7220 and ask for Linda
Soncasi. Room rates are $90 for a single and $95 for a double. In making
reservations identify yourself as attending the St. Louis Browns Fan Club
meeting. The club will accept most major credit cards in payment. A continental
breakfast is included in the room rate. Don't miss this one - make your
reservations now!
If you are a baseball fan, you will want to attend this event and spend an
evening talking baseball. Personally, I attended the 2004 Reunion Dinner
and I'll be arriving early for this one and staying late, I hope to see you
there.
Bill McCurdy, Erv Fischer, the Baseball Library and the Baseball
Almanac contributed to this report.
For more information about
the St. Louis Browns, check out the Browns Fan Club website at www.thestlbrowns.com.