Duke Snider (1926-2011)

Duke Snider, elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1980 following an 18-year major league career in which he hit 407 home runs, passed away on Sunday morning from natural causes at the Valle Vista Convalescent Hospital in Escondido, Calif. He was 84.

Born September 19, 1926 in Los Angeles, Snider made his debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Once he assumed duties as the club's every day center fielder, Snider totaled 20 home runs in nine straight seasons, from 1949-1957, hitting a league-best 43 in 1956, and finishing as the National League Most Valuable Player runner-up in 1955, helping to lead the Dodgers to their only World Series victory.

A graceful fielder with a picture-perfect swing, Snider anchored six pennant-winning teams and clouted 11 World Series home runs, including four in 1952 and 1955, while driving in 26 runs in the Fall Classic. An eight-time All-Star, Snider led the league in runs scored in three straight seasons, 1953-55.

Snider's Dodgers tenure spanned 11 seasons in Brooklyn (1947-1957), followed by five seasons in Los Angeles (1958-1962) following the team's move West for the 1958 campaign. Snider played one season each with the Mets (1963) and Giants (1964).

He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America on his 11th ballot in 1980.

 

WWII Homefront Workers

Here's a lot of photos I picked up a while back showing industrial homefront workers during WWII.

Vintage Scovill Demin/Workwear Button Cards

Here's a few vintage Scovill denim/workwear button cards that I picked up a few years back.

Founded in 1802 in Waterbury, Connecticut, Scovill is one of the country's old operating companies.

Along with denim and workwear, the Scovill mark can be found on military garments dating back to the War of 1812. To read more on Scovill's history click here. The company's site can be found here.

Spring Training

Spring is in the air. Today is the first official day of Spring Training.

The annual event is almost as old as baseball itself with accounts of teams traveling south in the spring as early as the 1870s. Back then teams trained all over the south in places like Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida.

Today teams set up camp in cities throughout Arizona (Cactus League) and Florida (Grapefruit League).

For some more insight on spring training check out Spring Training Online 2011

If you're a true baseball fan, you owe it to yourself to head south in the spring and experience spring training. In 1983 I went with my parents to Florida. We started on the east coast and then looped around and hit the west coast and finished in the middle of the state. I was able to pick up a ton of autographs and meet players in a much more relaxed atmosphere. One of the best experiences was in Winter Haven, where the Red Sox trained. It was here that I got to meet Ted Williams. The team had already left for a road and only a few players and staff stayed behind. Williams was here as a hitting instructor. I got to sit next to him outside the clubhouse and talked to him about his book, The Science of Hitting. It was a trip I'll never forget.

Training Day - Boxing and T-shirts

The following is a collection of boxing photos that I gathered while doing some research. They showing boxers and trainers wearing T-shirts depicting their training facilities. On some of the photos the boxers are wearing branded tees. For the most part, they are from the early 1950s through the early 70s.