Defeat Snaps 12-Game M.U. Win Streak(Columbia Daily Tribune, Saturday, June 12, 1954)
OMAHA, June 12 - Little Rollins college, which boasts only 300 male students, snapped Missouri's 12-game winning streak and dropped the Tigers into the losers bracket of the NCAA College World series with a 4-1 victory in the second round of the tournament before a crowd of 4,269 fans here last night.
The defeat paired the Bengals with the University of Massachusetts in a losers' contest at 2 o'clock this afternoon, with Ed Cook the probable Missouri pitcher. Massachusetts, which dropped its opening game to Michigan State, edged out Oregon, 5-3 yesterday afternoon.
Michigan State and Rollins remained the only undefeated teams in the tournament as the Spartans eked out a 2-1 victory over Arizona last night. The two unbeaten clubs will meet at 8:30 o'clock tonight. In the losers' game yesterday, Oklahoma A&M defeated Lafayette, 4-2, and will play Arizona at 6 o'clock this evening. If the Bengals can get by Massachusetts, they will take on the winner of the Aggie-Arizona game at 2 o'clock tomorrow afternoon. A Massachusetts victory would eliminate Missouri from the tournament.
The Tigers last night made only six hits off the southpaw slants of Phil Brophy, who posted 12 strikeouts. The Tars of Rollins had only six blows, all singles, off Bert Beckmann and Norman Stewart, but broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth with three runs on a pair of hits, two walks and an error.
Missouri's lone run came in the second inning when Jerry Schoonmaker reached first on Delton Helms' error, stole second and scored when Buddy Cox whacked a change-up pitch to the right field corner for a triple.
The Tars evened the count in the fourth on Conie Butler's inside-the-park home run, a drive which caromed off the left field fence and ricocheted into center. Butler rounded third as Dick Dickinson took the throw from the outfield, kept going, and beat the relay to the plate.
Brophy led off with a single off Beckmann in the sixth and was forced at second on Don Finnegan's hopper to Dickinson. Fred Talbot drew a walk and Butler smashed one over second base which Cox stabbed back-handed and beat Talbot with a dive to the bag as Finengan scored all the way from second. Butler took second as Cox threw to the plate in an attempt to flag Finnegan. Helms walked and then pulled a double steal with Butler. Bob McHardy went down swinging for what should have been the third out, but the pitch got away from George Gleason and rolled to the screen as Butler scored. Helms moved to third and MacHardy reached first. Dave Smith then singled to center to score Helms, after which Nick Vancho was retired on a grounder to short.
After Beckmann went out for a pinch-hitter in the seventh, Stewart took over and faced only six men in two innings, getting four of them on strikeouts.
The Tigers missed scoring opportunities in each of the last three innings. Jerry Schoonmaker tripled with one out in the sixth and after Gleason popped out, Bob Schoonmaker shot a line drive toward left that shortstop Vancho turned into a leaping catch.
After Cox had fanned in the seventh, Emil Kammer blasted out a three-bagger, but Brophy fired third strikes past both pinch-hitter Jack Gabler and Dickinson.
Gleason walked to open the ninth and Bob Schoonmaker followed with a single, but Cox fanned and Kammer hit into a game-ending double play.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Missouri Eliminates Massachusetts with 8-1 victory
(Columbia Daily Tribune, Monday, June 14, 1954)
OMAHA, June 13 - Saturday afternoon, Missouri eliminated Massachusetts from the tournament with an 8-1 victory over the Easterners in the first game of the third round.
Southpaw Ed Cook hurled five-hit ball for Missouri and had a two-hit shutout going into the last of the ninth inning when the first three men up hit safely, a double by Feliz Wisniewski driving in the Massachusetts run.
Missouri broke the ball game open in the fourth inning with a four-run splurge.
Gleason led off with a towering homer into the left field bleachers. After two singles and a stolen base, pitcher Cook singled into right for two runs that sewed up the game. Cook then scored on an error.
OMAHA, June 13 - Saturday afternoon, Missouri eliminated Massachusetts from the tournament with an 8-1 victory over the Easterners in the first game of the third round.
Southpaw Ed Cook hurled five-hit ball for Missouri and had a two-hit shutout going into the last of the ninth inning when the first three men up hit safely, a double by Feliz Wisniewski driving in the Massachusetts run.
Missouri broke the ball game open in the fourth inning with a four-run splurge.
Gleason led off with a towering homer into the left field bleachers. After two singles and a stolen base, pitcher Cook singled into right for two runs that sewed up the game. Cook then scored on an error.
Coach Hi Makes MU Champions
(Columbia Missourian, June 4, 1954)
Athletic recognition on a national scale has come to Missouri of recent date, only in baseball – the seemingly unwanted child around collegiate athletic departments.
There are many explanations and reasons for Missouri’s diamond successes. But it can never be said that the Tigers athletic department is guilty of coddling the national pastime.
Of the average yearly allotment of 110 scholarships, 6 got to baseball. It’s understood that football draws about 70, basketball 20 and track 14.
So how has Missouri, with so few scholarships, produced a near national champion (in 1952) and another contender for national honors this season?
The reason – simply and plainly – is the coach, John (Hi) Simmons, who consistently converts the springtime mob of candidates into well-knit, hustling nines.
Will to win and hustle are the two traits that the Tiger coach demands. When he finds them in a player, then he looks for hitting, throwing and running ability – Simmons’ big three from the talent standpoint.
Missouri 4, Oklahoma A&M 1
(Columbia Daily Tribune, May 14, 1994)
For Game 4, Missouri needed a pitcher. Kammer, Beckman and Cook had pitched the first three games. The Tigers were in the losers bracket, having had a 12-game winning streak broken by Rollins College of Florida after beating Lafayette. So Missouri faced elimination in each of its last four CWS games.
Stewart got the call against Oklahoma A&M. In a regular-season game with the Aggies, Stewart's performance in relief almost caused him to quit the team. He compounded walks with throwing errors.
``He lost his poise in that first game,'' Simmons said. ``He couldn't get hold of himself.''
After that, Stewart was on hold until after Missouri clinched the Big Seven and with it an automatic berth in Omaha. He won a regular season start at Iowa State after the conference race was decided.
Stewart said he almost fell off his stool when Simmons announced the Game 4 starter during a team meeting. ``Hi said, `They think we're out of pitchers, but we've got a guy that's been working.' I think most of the guys thought he was going to bring somebody in from Columbia. He said, `We've got a guy that's been working, and he's ready to pitch.'
``I'm sitting back there, and I heard my name. I said to Bert Beckman, `What'd he say?' When he said my name, Bert said, `Aw, shit.' In a humorous way.''
That would be part of the ``no slack'' description.
``I said `What did he say?' Burt said, `He said you're going to pitch tomorrow.' I said, `That's not a very good reaction for my teammate to have. That's not very encouraging.' ''
Having been informed by Simmons that hits were preferable to walks, Stewart frustrated the Aggies who left 13 men on base in Missouri's 7-3 victory.
``Norm was absolutely fantastic in the clutch that game,'' Gleason said. Gleason and Schoonmaker homered.
For Game 4, Missouri needed a pitcher. Kammer, Beckman and Cook had pitched the first three games. The Tigers were in the losers bracket, having had a 12-game winning streak broken by Rollins College of Florida after beating Lafayette. So Missouri faced elimination in each of its last four CWS games.
Stewart got the call against Oklahoma A&M. In a regular-season game with the Aggies, Stewart's performance in relief almost caused him to quit the team. He compounded walks with throwing errors.
``He lost his poise in that first game,'' Simmons said. ``He couldn't get hold of himself.''
After that, Stewart was on hold until after Missouri clinched the Big Seven and with it an automatic berth in Omaha. He won a regular season start at Iowa State after the conference race was decided.
Stewart said he almost fell off his stool when Simmons announced the Game 4 starter during a team meeting. ``Hi said, `They think we're out of pitchers, but we've got a guy that's been working.' I think most of the guys thought he was going to bring somebody in from Columbia. He said, `We've got a guy that's been working, and he's ready to pitch.'
``I'm sitting back there, and I heard my name. I said to Bert Beckman, `What'd he say?' When he said my name, Bert said, `Aw, shit.' In a humorous way.''
That would be part of the ``no slack'' description.
``I said `What did he say?' Burt said, `He said you're going to pitch tomorrow.' I said, `That's not a very good reaction for my teammate to have. That's not very encouraging.' ''
Having been informed by Simmons that hits were preferable to walks, Stewart frustrated the Aggies who left 13 men on base in Missouri's 7-3 victory.
``Norm was absolutely fantastic in the clutch that game,'' Gleason said. Gleason and Schoonmaker homered.
“I got a letter from my mother . . .
. . . Leona, a dear woman..... She said in that letter, “You know, I thought it was about time school would be out. I was wondering where you were, why you hadn’t come home. Then we were listening to a Cardinal game on the radio, your dad and I. And when the World Series was on, we knew Missouri was in it. One night, Harry Caray said that Missouri had beaten Oklahoma A&M. And he said the battery for Missouri consisted of Gleason and Stewart. When Caray said that, I turned to your dad and said, ‘I bet Norm went out for baseball."
(Norm Stewart in Stormin’ Back)
Tigers Post Two Victories Over Weekend
(Columbia Daily Tribune, Monday, June 14, 1954)
Missouri will meet Michigan State at 8 o'clock tonight in the fifth round of the NCAA college world series, after the Tigers posted a pair of wins in tournament play over the weekend.
Radio station KFRU will broadcast the Missouri-Michigan State baseball game at 7:55 o'clock tonight. Jack Sandler of station KOWH, Omaha, will handled the play-by-play.
The Missourians ousted Oklahoma A&M , 7-3, yesterday afternoon.
Missouri is expected to be at near-top strength for the contest with the heavy-hitting Spartans although shortstop Dick Dickinson is nursing an injured ankle. He sprained it alighting from a taxicab Saturday night.
Missouri and Michigan are two of the 'bigs' in the series, and they are tangling to see who plays Rollins College, one of the smallest ever to get to the tourney. That game, at 8 o'clock tomorrow night, will decide the championship.
Missouri, Michigan State and Rollins now have tourney records of 3-1. The meet is a double elimination affair.
Back-to-back homeruns in the fifth inning featured Missouri's 7-3 victory over Oklahoma A&M in the fourth round of the series.
The defeat dropped the Aggies out of the running with a 2-2 record.
Missouri actually wrapped up the ball game with three runs in the third and two in the fourth before the crowd was thrilled by the back-to-back homers.
The first was hit by Jerry Schoonmaker and landed in the left field light tower. It was the longest home run of the tourney to date. George Gleason slammed one over the left field wall.
The homers were hit off pitcher Don Anderson, a surprise starter in place of J.B. White, who was held out due to a sore shoulder.
Sophomore pitcher Norm Stewart for Missouri gave up 12 hits but kept them well scattered
Missouri will meet Michigan State at 8 o'clock tonight in the fifth round of the NCAA college world series, after the Tigers posted a pair of wins in tournament play over the weekend.
Radio station KFRU will broadcast the Missouri-Michigan State baseball game at 7:55 o'clock tonight. Jack Sandler of station KOWH, Omaha, will handled the play-by-play.
The Missourians ousted Oklahoma A&M , 7-3, yesterday afternoon.
Missouri is expected to be at near-top strength for the contest with the heavy-hitting Spartans although shortstop Dick Dickinson is nursing an injured ankle. He sprained it alighting from a taxicab Saturday night.
Missouri and Michigan are two of the 'bigs' in the series, and they are tangling to see who plays Rollins College, one of the smallest ever to get to the tourney. That game, at 8 o'clock tomorrow night, will decide the championship.
Missouri, Michigan State and Rollins now have tourney records of 3-1. The meet is a double elimination affair.
Back-to-back homeruns in the fifth inning featured Missouri's 7-3 victory over Oklahoma A&M in the fourth round of the series.
The defeat dropped the Aggies out of the running with a 2-2 record.
Missouri actually wrapped up the ball game with three runs in the third and two in the fourth before the crowd was thrilled by the back-to-back homers.
The first was hit by Jerry Schoonmaker and landed in the left field light tower. It was the longest home run of the tourney to date. George Gleason slammed one over the left field wall.
The homers were hit off pitcher Don Anderson, a surprise starter in place of J.B. White, who was held out due to a sore shoulder.
Sophomore pitcher Norm Stewart for Missouri gave up 12 hits but kept them well scattered
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Couldn’t You Just See Hi Simmons Grinning When Kammer Tightened and Fanned the Side?
by Joe Pollack, Missourian Sports Editor
(Columbia Missourian, June 15, 1954)
The game came into the living room and we spent last night in Omaha, restraining a pounding heart and straining with every pitch.
For the Tigers it was a game that counted. A loss would have seen a dejected crew on its way home today. The win puts the Bengals into their second NCAA final in three years.
The three solid hits that gave Missouri two runs in the second inning were cause for rejoicing, and when the Tigers added to the lead, joy was unbounded.
However, right at the start hearts had sunk to shoe-top level on the Spartans’ first-inning threat, but Bob Schoonmaker’s throw to the plate and Kammer’s tightening up made breath come easier.
When he fanned the side in the second, we could visualize Hi Simmons grinning in the dugout, reflecting on the wisdom of his choice when he took the sophomore third baseman and turned him into a pitcher – not a thrower – but the best pitcher in the conference.
From the days of watching him at Rollins Field, it was not hard to see Kammer’s curve breaking across the knees. Bob Schoonmaker handled 11 putouts at first base and the infield turned two fast double plays. As a matter of fact, the Tiger outfield accounted for only six putouts.
On the second double play, the radio announcer grew rapturous over Bob Schoonmaker’s stretch. But Missouri fans have been watching Schoony make that play for three years, stretching to the utmost.
Nowhere does there exist a better team man than the husky graduate, three-letter man, honor student and one who is always giving everything on the playing field. There may be better ballplayers than Schoony, but they don’t come any tougher and none have any more of what Simmons calls “that fortitude”.
Things got tougher toward the end of the game, and we squirmed with Simmons when the Spartans put two men on – and then came through with the runs. And when Chuck Matthews tripled and came home with the tying run in the eighth, you could see the gloom in the living room.
When Bill Hopping doubled in the top of the sixth and then sped to third, some seemed to think the tigers had suffered a mental lapse. That may be, but there is another possible explanation. Perhaps Kammer felt he was a bit more effective pitching from a full windup and decided to gamble on it.
And then Cox walked, used his head to get tot third – and the Omaha stadium dissolved into bedlam on Kammer’s single. It’s a wonderful feeling, isn’t it?
(Columbia Missourian, June 15, 1954)
The game came into the living room and we spent last night in Omaha, restraining a pounding heart and straining with every pitch.
For the Tigers it was a game that counted. A loss would have seen a dejected crew on its way home today. The win puts the Bengals into their second NCAA final in three years.
The three solid hits that gave Missouri two runs in the second inning were cause for rejoicing, and when the Tigers added to the lead, joy was unbounded.
However, right at the start hearts had sunk to shoe-top level on the Spartans’ first-inning threat, but Bob Schoonmaker’s throw to the plate and Kammer’s tightening up made breath come easier.
When he fanned the side in the second, we could visualize Hi Simmons grinning in the dugout, reflecting on the wisdom of his choice when he took the sophomore third baseman and turned him into a pitcher – not a thrower – but the best pitcher in the conference.
From the days of watching him at Rollins Field, it was not hard to see Kammer’s curve breaking across the knees. Bob Schoonmaker handled 11 putouts at first base and the infield turned two fast double plays. As a matter of fact, the Tiger outfield accounted for only six putouts.
On the second double play, the radio announcer grew rapturous over Bob Schoonmaker’s stretch. But Missouri fans have been watching Schoony make that play for three years, stretching to the utmost.
Nowhere does there exist a better team man than the husky graduate, three-letter man, honor student and one who is always giving everything on the playing field. There may be better ballplayers than Schoony, but they don’t come any tougher and none have any more of what Simmons calls “that fortitude”.
Things got tougher toward the end of the game, and we squirmed with Simmons when the Spartans put two men on – and then came through with the runs. And when Chuck Matthews tripled and came home with the tying run in the eighth, you could see the gloom in the living room.
When Bill Hopping doubled in the top of the sixth and then sped to third, some seemed to think the tigers had suffered a mental lapse. That may be, but there is another possible explanation. Perhaps Kammer felt he was a bit more effective pitching from a full windup and decided to gamble on it.
And then Cox walked, used his head to get tot third – and the Omaha stadium dissolved into bedlam on Kammer’s single. It’s a wonderful feeling, isn’t it?
THE PLAY
(Columbia Missourian, March 14, 1994)
Stewart's victory propelled the Tigers into the semifinals against pre-tournament favorite Michigan State. The Spartans had outscored their opponents 25-13 in the World Series and posted a 25-10-1 record. But the Spartans also had lost, 5-4, to Rollins College.
The Missouri-Michigan State game had one of the most important plays in Tigers baseball history, thanks to a bit of horseplay between a pitcher and a reserve outfielder who had only three at bats during the regular season.
"The night before the game with Michigan State I was wrassling with Bob Beauman, and I fell and broke one of the lenses of my glasses,'' recalled Lee Wynn. ``I didn't dare say anything about it. So I went to batting practice and played the whole game without my right lens trying to see as best I could.''
Little did he know that he would play an integral role in the game. In the ninth inning of a 3-3 game, Buddy Cox was on first base and Wynn was called on to sacrifice him to second, one lens in and one lens out. After fouling a few pitches off, he swung and missed at a high fastball. But the ball eluded the catcher.
In a curious juxtaposition of space and sound, no one moved for three or four seconds. Finally, the umpire's cries of ``strike three'' set the scene into motion.
"The catcher realized I had struck out and he raced back to the screen,'' Wynn said. ``Simmons was saying `Run, Lee, run to first.' And I said, `Well, I'm out.' And he said `Run to first.' So I took off running for first and in all of the confusion, the catcher got confused. He picked the ball up and threw it to first base to get me, and in the meantime the other runner continued all the way around to third.''
Missouri now had the winning run on third base with one out for pitcher Emil Kammer, who to that point was hitless. But he was athletic enough that during the regular season he had played left field when not pitching and batted .273. With this game on the line, he came through.
"I got a hit, a bloop over third base - they're all line drives in the box score - on an inside pitch,'' Kammer said. ``I remember I got about 15 feet from first base and jumped way up in the air and landed on the bag.
``I think we felt that we weren't going to win, and when we won that I think we said, `Hey, we have another shot.'|''
But the story doesn't end there. In a strange bit of twisted fate, perhaps Wynn didn't strike out after all.
``To this day, I still know in my own heart that I didn't run and the catcher didn't run because I foul-tipped it,'' he said. ``But somehow, the umpire didn't see it and it was strike three to him.
``It all turned out for the best. It meant a great deal to me personally because I had not played much during the year, so it was an opportunity to be a part of something big and also be a part of a story or two.''
As for the glasses?
``I went into Simmons after the series was all over and told him, and he sort of changed colors when he thought about what could have happened. But there was no way I was going to miss playing.''
Stewart's victory propelled the Tigers into the semifinals against pre-tournament favorite Michigan State. The Spartans had outscored their opponents 25-13 in the World Series and posted a 25-10-1 record. But the Spartans also had lost, 5-4, to Rollins College.
The Missouri-Michigan State game had one of the most important plays in Tigers baseball history, thanks to a bit of horseplay between a pitcher and a reserve outfielder who had only three at bats during the regular season.
"The night before the game with Michigan State I was wrassling with Bob Beauman, and I fell and broke one of the lenses of my glasses,'' recalled Lee Wynn. ``I didn't dare say anything about it. So I went to batting practice and played the whole game without my right lens trying to see as best I could.''
Little did he know that he would play an integral role in the game. In the ninth inning of a 3-3 game, Buddy Cox was on first base and Wynn was called on to sacrifice him to second, one lens in and one lens out. After fouling a few pitches off, he swung and missed at a high fastball. But the ball eluded the catcher.
In a curious juxtaposition of space and sound, no one moved for three or four seconds. Finally, the umpire's cries of ``strike three'' set the scene into motion.
"The catcher realized I had struck out and he raced back to the screen,'' Wynn said. ``Simmons was saying `Run, Lee, run to first.' And I said, `Well, I'm out.' And he said `Run to first.' So I took off running for first and in all of the confusion, the catcher got confused. He picked the ball up and threw it to first base to get me, and in the meantime the other runner continued all the way around to third.''
Missouri now had the winning run on third base with one out for pitcher Emil Kammer, who to that point was hitless. But he was athletic enough that during the regular season he had played left field when not pitching and batted .273. With this game on the line, he came through.
"I got a hit, a bloop over third base - they're all line drives in the box score - on an inside pitch,'' Kammer said. ``I remember I got about 15 feet from first base and jumped way up in the air and landed on the bag.
``I think we felt that we weren't going to win, and when we won that I think we said, `Hey, we have another shot.'|''
But the story doesn't end there. In a strange bit of twisted fate, perhaps Wynn didn't strike out after all.
``To this day, I still know in my own heart that I didn't run and the catcher didn't run because I foul-tipped it,'' he said. ``But somehow, the umpire didn't see it and it was strike three to him.
``It all turned out for the best. It meant a great deal to me personally because I had not played much during the year, so it was an opportunity to be a part of something big and also be a part of a story or two.''
As for the glasses?
``I went into Simmons after the series was all over and told him, and he sort of changed colors when he thought about what could have happened. But there was no way I was going to miss playing.''
The Spartans of Springtime
(from Baseball-Almanac.com: a Michigan State perspective on the MU-MSU 1954 CWS game)
Baseball is a game that usually generates a team feeling among the players, particularly as the level of competition rises. The hard work in practice, the mental preparation, the clutch situations in games, and the time spent together on and off the diamond all lead to a spirit of camaraderie. That team feeling often lingers long after events of the season are only memories.
But seldom does any team experience the lasting camaraderie which the Michigan State College (the name was changed to university in 1955) baseball team felt after winning the 1954 Big Ten Championship, winning the National Collegiate Athletic Association Regional Playoff, and finishing third in the NCAA World Series.
Those Spartans still hold a reunion every fifth year. Starting in 1964, ten years after winning Michigan State's first Big Ten baseball championship, a group of more than twenty players returned to East Lansing and Old College Field, their field of dreams.
"Our 1954 team did not have super stars like some other Spartan baseball teams have had," pitcher Bud Erickson explained. "But what we had was chemistry. That chemistry propelled us to the Big Ten Championship and to the College World Series.
"As evidence of this chemistry, our 1954 team has held regular reunions longer than any athletic team in Michigan State history. We are all just glued together."
Following an 11-17 record and a seventh-place finish in the Big Ten for 1953, the '54 Spartans, coached by John Kobs and assistant Frank Pellerin, produced an impressive regular season record of 25-10 and one tie. State led the conference in hitting with an excellent average of .313.
Further, after winning the NCAA Regionals over Ohio University, MSC traveled to Omaha and finally lost to eventual national champion Missouri by one run.
Three of those Spartans later made the major leagues - although few baseball fans would recognize their names:
During the middle of the second year of Dwight Eisenhower's Presidency, the Spartans competed in what is still MSU's only College World Series. At Omaha in the double-elimination tourney, MSC blasted Massachusetts, 16-5, stopped Arizona, 2-1, lost to tiny Rollins College, 5-4, beat Rollins in 10 innings, 3-2, and fell to eventual NCAA champion Missouri, 4-3.
Playing the squad's fifth game in five days, Hobaugh pitched a strong game against Missouri while his teammates produced three runs. In the top of the ninth with the score tied, 3-3, State tried to rally with two outs, as Bill Hopping doubled to right and stole third. But pinch-hitter Ron Stead, who helped beat Arizona with a pinch double, popped out to end the threat.
In the bottom of the ninth with none out and runners on first and third, thanks to a controversial call on a missed third strike on the second hitter (Yewcic thought it was a foul tip), Hobaugh yielded the game-winning RBI on a single to opposing pitcher Emil Kammer.
Still, the Spartans enjoyed a great season, going 25-10-1, winning the Big Ten, and finishing third in the College World Series. After the May 1st loss to Purdue, State won five straight conference games, lost to Michigan, 9-8, and played inspired baseball on the final weekend, beating Indiana once and Ohio State twice.
Those Spartans still treasure their 1954 experiences.
"We battled each other during the week," Jack Risch said, "and then we battled the other guys on the weekend.
"After that, we learned to respect and even like each other, and thank God that has continued over the years."
Baseball is a game that usually generates a team feeling among the players, particularly as the level of competition rises. The hard work in practice, the mental preparation, the clutch situations in games, and the time spent together on and off the diamond all lead to a spirit of camaraderie. That team feeling often lingers long after events of the season are only memories.
But seldom does any team experience the lasting camaraderie which the Michigan State College (the name was changed to university in 1955) baseball team felt after winning the 1954 Big Ten Championship, winning the National Collegiate Athletic Association Regional Playoff, and finishing third in the NCAA World Series.
Those Spartans still hold a reunion every fifth year. Starting in 1964, ten years after winning Michigan State's first Big Ten baseball championship, a group of more than twenty players returned to East Lansing and Old College Field, their field of dreams.
"Our 1954 team did not have super stars like some other Spartan baseball teams have had," pitcher Bud Erickson explained. "But what we had was chemistry. That chemistry propelled us to the Big Ten Championship and to the College World Series.
"As evidence of this chemistry, our 1954 team has held regular reunions longer than any athletic team in Michigan State history. We are all just glued together."
Following an 11-17 record and a seventh-place finish in the Big Ten for 1953, the '54 Spartans, coached by John Kobs and assistant Frank Pellerin, produced an impressive regular season record of 25-10 and one tie. State led the conference in hitting with an excellent average of .313.
Further, after winning the NCAA Regionals over Ohio University, MSC traveled to Omaha and finally lost to eventual national champion Missouri by one run.
Three of those Spartans later made the major leagues - although few baseball fans would recognize their names:
During the middle of the second year of Dwight Eisenhower's Presidency, the Spartans competed in what is still MSU's only College World Series. At Omaha in the double-elimination tourney, MSC blasted Massachusetts, 16-5, stopped Arizona, 2-1, lost to tiny Rollins College, 5-4, beat Rollins in 10 innings, 3-2, and fell to eventual NCAA champion Missouri, 4-3.
Playing the squad's fifth game in five days, Hobaugh pitched a strong game against Missouri while his teammates produced three runs. In the top of the ninth with the score tied, 3-3, State tried to rally with two outs, as Bill Hopping doubled to right and stole third. But pinch-hitter Ron Stead, who helped beat Arizona with a pinch double, popped out to end the threat.
In the bottom of the ninth with none out and runners on first and third, thanks to a controversial call on a missed third strike on the second hitter (Yewcic thought it was a foul tip), Hobaugh yielded the game-winning RBI on a single to opposing pitcher Emil Kammer.
Still, the Spartans enjoyed a great season, going 25-10-1, winning the Big Ten, and finishing third in the College World Series. After the May 1st loss to Purdue, State won five straight conference games, lost to Michigan, 9-8, and played inspired baseball on the final weekend, beating Indiana once and Ohio State twice.
Those Spartans still treasure their 1954 experiences.
"We battled each other during the week," Jack Risch said, "and then we battled the other guys on the weekend.
"After that, we learned to respect and even like each other, and thank God that has continued over the years."
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