wisconsin state league baseball hall of fame wisconsin state league baseball hall of fame

Before he hung up his spikes, he took the Central baseball team to 17 state tournaments, winning twice (1978 and 1986) and finishing second six more times. To date the Corrine Zielke Fund has provided a half million dollars to area teams, communities, and schools for baseball equipment and facilities. %%EOF Gwen Jorgensen Gwen Jorgensen is an Olympic Gold Medal Winner from Waukesha, WI. In 1987 he was the first recipient of the United States Baseball Federation Volunteer Amateur Coach award, and in 2000 he received the WBCA Distinguished Service Award. His first professional season was his best. During his senior year he was spotted by a scout for the St. Louis Cardinals and invited to a tryout camp in Red Wing, Minnesota, where he impressed the scouts by striking out all three batters he faced. During his UWL career he coached ten players who went on to play either professional baseball or football, including Jerry Augustine (La Crosse Area Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2017) and Craig Kusick (Class of 2016). There were originally seven nominees for this years class, those who werent voted in this year will automatically be on next years ballot. In 1948 she made her professional baseball debut for Racine of the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. He graduated from Logan High School in 1941 where he helped lead Logan to both the intra-city and South Central Conference baseball championships, pitching a no-hitter against Sparta along the way. He took a team with a losing record in 1998 and turned them into perennial champions, winning 680 games in a 23 year career that featured 12 league championships and six NCAA tournament births. Sheboygan, WI 53082-0032, 2023 Wisconsin State Baseball League. Johnson stuck with the Reds for half the season, serving as the bullpen catcher, but never saw action, finally being sent down to Charleston of the Central League, where he hit .269 in 34 games. A talented pitcher, Nehring signed with the Yankees in 1950, playing four seasons in their organization before retiring due to a shoulder injury. His local honors include being named the 2000 La Crosse Tribune sportsperson of the year, and induction into the Viterbo University Wall of Fame in 2001. He moved from teaching jobs in Maxwell, IA to Westby, WI, where he began his coaching career, assisting the legendary head football coach Elmo Gulsvig. The first new member is Cy Berg, a baseball coach who led the Old Abes to four state championships. He was born on August 5, 1919 in La Crosse, and except for a few years in rural Westby, lived his entire life here. 1) The Negro Leagues Researchers and Authors Group put together by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum thanks to a grant provided by Major League Baseball. Stepping away from the baseball diamond did not mean he stopped contributing to the community though. After retirement, Schmidt completed his bachelors degree from the University of Minnesota and earned his law degree from the University of Wisconsin. Ghelfi pitched a total of nine seasons in the minors, compiling a career record of 58-52 with a 3.92 ERA, averaging seven strikeouts per nine innings pitched, and winning ten or more games four times. He also led all catchers in fielding percentage in both 2002 and 2004. The Sheboygan A's are members of the Wisconsin State League and Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League. She has won two gold medals at the ITU Triathalon World Championships. From 1948-50 he was a standout outfielder for the La Crosse Stars American Legion team. The big right hander usually batted cleanup and eventually attracted the attention of professional scouts. He spent two years as assistant baseball coach at Central High School before taking over the head coaching duties, which he held for 30 record-setting years. The Blackhawks played their home games at Copeland Park, and Henley was the star of the team, posting a 20-3 record with a 1.82 ERA in 1940. Green is also a four-time Pro Bowl selection. Ted Simmons (2020) The eight-time all-star during his 21-year career was twice so honored during his five years with the Brewers (1981-85). He currently resides in Onalaska, where he has lived most of his life. Zielke was born Corinne Swenson on February 18, 1916 in Ettrick, and grew up on a farm near South Beaver Creek, seven miles east of Ettrick. After his sophomore year in high school, he was offered professional contracts by both the St. Louis Browns and Cardinals, but turned them down. He played varsity baseball all four years at Aquinas, which were the first four years the sport was offered by the school. Box 32 After his playing career ended, Kusick served as assistant baseball coach at Rosemount (MN) High School from 1982-1990 and head coach from 1991-2004. He led the AL in fielding in 1978 when he won a career-high 13 games. He finished his lone professional season with .215 batting average but a healthy .364 OBP in 107 games, hitting seven homeruns and compiling 43 RBIs. The next day he made his major league debut, getting his first hit in a 4-3 loss to the Reds. Interested organizations can contact Carley Sanfilippo by email at csanfilippo@wihalloffame.com or by phone at 414.507.6197. He died on June 23, 1980 while listening to a baseball game on his car radio. And when that wasnt enough, he organized a baseball league (the 13th Ward Baseball League, founded in 1961) and a tournament that grew to be one of the biggest in the country. The Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame 73rd Anniversary Induction Class: Ahman Green Ahman Green is the Green Bay Packers All-Time Leading Rusher with 9,205 rushing yards. Other players of note included veterans John Cahill (who played professionally for 12 years), Lee Hopkins, and Joe Killian (seven years each). He also coached the La Crosse Juniors for 22 years, winning a national title in 1986. During his three seasons (1947-49) he was named to the La Crosse All-Star team three times He also pitched for South Ridge, Bangor and Coon Valley. He married Marian Dorothy Stellick in 1948, and together they raised four children. During the 1940s and 1950s the local baseball scene was quite active and highly competitive, featuring teams from Camp McCoy that often featured major league players, against whom Henley frequently pitched, and held his own. In 1952 Babe signed on with the newly formed semi-pro La Crosse Peerless Mohawks. His success at the collegiate level earned him an invitation to the 1991 Olympic Baseball Trials. He continued to play baseball, appearing regularly at Copeland Park as a member of the La Crosse Old Styles in the 1980s. Playoff Table Partner for $6,000 Benefits above, preferred table location, 4 VIP passes to Champions Club with Hall of Fame Inductees and dignitaries. He pitched for Mabel and Houston teams in Minnesota, winning 13 of his teams 17 games one season. Shannon is a member of the Cardinals Hall of Fame and a two-time World Series champion. Carroll graduated from Aquinas High School in 1932, joined the U.S. army in 1942 and retired four years later at the rank of Major. On June 28 that year he began an incredible streak, knocking out two singles and a double. He played baseball for local legion and semipro teams and in city softball leagues for more than 25 years, playing his final game on his fiftieth birthday. She retired again when the store closed in 1984, but volunteered at the Gundersen Lutheran Hospital gift shop until shortly before her death. Registration is now open for the 2022 Wisconsin State League Awards and Hall of Fame Dinner. He managed local American Legion and semipro teams for six years before taking over the Western Wisconsin Technical College team. When his playing days ended, he turned to coaching, umpiring, and part-time scouting for major league teams. Lou Erickson moved to Rockford for the 1949 and 1950 seasons. He appeared in only four games in his brief stint that year, and opened 1970 at Idaho Falls in the rookie league. A total of 34 players earned all-conference honors under Terry. The highest-ranked recruit, Indianapolis native Xavier Booker, stands a spindly 6-foot-10, 205 pounds, and he is entering the most physical league in college basketball. In 1910 Konetchy put together a 20-game hitting streak, batted over .300 for the first of four times, and won the Triple Crown in fielding, leading NL first basemen in fielding percentage, putouts, and assists. Address: Check out some of our favorite shots from our 73rd Anniversary Induction Ceremony on Saturday April 1st. He passed away on September 27, 2006 in St. Paul, MN. The event will take . She has been inducted into the USA Triathalon Hall of Fame. Over the course of his minor league career, which included stops at St. In addition to baseball, Thornton also coached basketball, football, and both boys and girls skiing. In 1950 she opened Corinnes Caf at 2215 South 17th Street in La Crosse and operated it until 1970, when she retired and sold the property to Trane. April 25, 2022 1:15pm. In one such contest at Copeland Park, Henley outdueled Hall of Famer Satchel Paige, leading the local All Stars to a 3-1 victory over the barnstorming team of professional players. One of his catchers on the Bangor team was future Yankee Elston Howard, who caught for Bangor while stationed at Fort McCoy, Camp McCoy. Registration is now open for the 2022 Wisconsin State League Awards and Hall of Fame Dinner. #WSL He played professionally for one more season, splitting 1978 between Vancouver in the PCL and Jersey City in the Eastern League, turning in a fine 3.44 ERA and 8-11 record, before hanging up his spikes. He returned to Wisconsin for good after the season and married his high school sweetheart, Donna Johnson. He was involved in local labor circeles, and was honored one year as the Labor Day Parade Marshal. He was a regular at nearly every Central High School sporting event, and frequently provided baseball equipment to the team when athletic budgets were tight. Dee also spearheaded the renovation of an old campus gymnasium into a state-of-the-art indoor training facility. He died on May 24, 2008. Boyer graduated from La Crescent High School in 1970, and later that summer married his high school sweetheart, Susan Czechowicz, who survives him. He was also a respected and successful manager. Tony Ghelfi was born in La Crosse in 1961. After graduating from UWL he took over the family furniture business and signed on as an assistant coach for his alma mater Lancers. He was named a National League All Star in 2002, doubling twice in three at bats, driving in two runs and scoring one. He led Aquinas to its first state basketball championship in 1941. The demands of the Skogens growing grocery business eventually forced Dave out of an active role in baseball, but his love for the sport never faded. He was a standout pitcher for the Minnesota Gophers, leading the team to the Big Ten Championship in 1992. 0 He caught for the Onalaska high school team as a fifth grader. He opened the 1952 season at class A Binghamton but suffered a shoulder injury and was sent down to Quincy at the end of the season to recover. But that didnt stop Hockenbery. His baseball career, like many local players, began in Little League, including participation in the Stars of Tomorrow tournament, run by La Crosse Area Hall of Famer Jay Buckley. He appeared in seven games, including two starts, without a decision. Founded in 1951, the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame was created to preserve the legacy and rich history of sports and athletic achievements in our state. 1) The Negro Leagues Researchers and Authors Group put together by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum thanks to a grant provided by Major League Baseball. Following the 2005 season, he was named Senior Director of Player Development for the Texas Rangers. Baseball Hall of Fame member Hank O'Day played for the 1892 Marinette Badgers. The event will take place on Saturday . Louie Erickson Sauer was born on June 2, 1929 in Whitehall, WI. He began his coaching career at his alma mater, leading the Aquinas baseball team to four consecutive WISAA state titles from 1982-87. Sheboygan Athletic Club Launches New Website, Logo . Bill Terry took the reigns as UWLs head baseball coach in 1969 and kept the job for eleven years. In his first MLB game, Ghelfi struck out six in five innings of work, picking up the win over the Giants. . With a 5-3 victory over Kenosha Tuesday night, the As have advanced to the second round of the Wisconsin State Leagues step-ladder playoffs. While at Rosemount he also coached football and basketball and was responsible for fundraising that refurbished the baseball field. Jerry Augustine has done it all when it comes to baseball in his native state of Wisconsin. The success of Jay Buckley Baseball Tours has attracted competitors, but none has succeeded in dethroning Buckley, which remains the largest, widest ranging, and most successful baseball tour business in the country. Later that same year he was honored by the city of La Crosse for his lifetime contributions to the local softball scene. In 2017 he was league coach of the year and also selected as the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Mideast Region Coach of the Year. Ghelfis career was cut short by injury after four years of steady progress in the Cardinals minor league system. At one point that season Kober was struggling and talking about quitting. He remained active for the rest of his life, playing for local teams in Stoddard, La Crosse and La Crescent, moving on to senior league baseball when he reached his 50s. During the summers, he switched from coaching to playing. Please join us in congratulating these honorees for the positive impact they have made on our state.. He also helped establish the local meals-on-wheels program. It was his defense, however, that won him awards. He was hitting .359 when the St. Louis Cardinals purchased his contract for $1000 in June of 1907. Also inducted will be Dave Johnson, a baseball player who had played with the Eau Claire Cavaliers for 18 years, and managed the legion team for 13 years. The Hall of Fame data is found for the years 1920-1948 and the Ashwill data is found from 1904-1919. Three times (1993, 1994, 1998) he ranked among the top three NL catchers in fielding percentage. Jay Buckley is Mr. He earned his second win a week later. He was part of a Brewers staff that transformed the team from 90+ losses each year from 1975-77 into division winners in 1981 and a World Series appearance in 1982. In 2014 West Salem honored him by dedicating their baseball diamond Damian Miller Field. He has played, coached, umpired, and served as an executive and entrepreneur. During the 1930s and 1940s Major League and Negro League ballplayers often barnstormed around the country after their regular season ended, taking on local teams. Today, the Wisconsin State Baseball League officially announced the major award winners for the summer 2022 season. Those members are: Boyd and Matt Rohde (Horicon Hurricanes), Matt Fredricks (Janesville Aces), Steve Ploetz (Madison Avenue Bar) Bob Sauger (Sheboygan A's Baseball).The five will be inducted at the League's Annual Awards and Hall Fame Dinner at Blue Harbor Resort and Conference Center in Sheboygan on Saturday, January. Fingers was named MVP of the 1974 World Series with the Oakland As. He began playing organized ball as a pitcher and centerfielder for the American Legion Junior All Star team representing La Crosse from 1937-39. That year he was named coach of the year by the Minnesota State High School Baseball Coaches Association. Schmidt made his major league debut at Yankee Stadium on May 17, 1996. In 1920, his 13th season in the majors, Koney, as his name was often shortened in box scores, played in his first and only World Series. In three years at AAA he was 18-18 with a 4.92 ERA and 4.9 strikeouts per 9 innings. He also guided his teams to 23 regional titles, 18 MVC championships, and 24 city championships. All Rights Reserved. Merv Henley, raised in Coon Valley, was a standout ballplayer, pitching and playing outfield for local semi-pro teams well into his 40s. Craig Kusick was born on September 30, 1948 in Milwaukee. P. O. He appeared in nine games that year, all in relief, posting a 2-0 record. In between, he and his wife Marilyn raised eight children, he starred on the baseball field, and made a mark on the community that has been commemorated with a baseball field and an apartment building bearing his name. That solid performance earned him a promotion back to Quad Cities in 1971, AA Shreveport in 1972, and AAA Salt Lake City in 1973, where he pitched in 1974-75 as well. His teams made five state tournament appearances, winning it all in 2009. Sheboygan, WI 53082-0032, 2023 Wisconsin State Baseball League. His stellar play resulted in a lifetime offer to play with a national championship softball team back in the US. After graduating in 1941, he received scholarships for both basketball and baseball at Notre Dame. His career totals included 172 games, a .243 batting average with 10 home runs, 19 doubles, two triples, 104 hits and 62 runs scored. Charlie Abbey (1892) Charlie Bartson (1892) Grant Briggs (1891) Harry Burrell (1892) Joe . Address. Since retiring from professional baseball, he spent 12 years as head baseball coach at UW-Milwaukee, and for the past nine years he has been calling games for the Brewers on FOX Sports Wisconsin. It was at Westby High School where he first began coaching baseball, and eventually was named Athletic Director as well. He sat out the 1953 season and attempted a comeback with Binghamton in 1954, but retired after only five games and a 1-1 record. He was employed as a birddog scout for the St. Louis Cardinals for a time beginning in the early 1970s. For the season he hit .265 with 13 homeruns, 22 doubles, and 47 RBI. Ghelfi is the father of five children, two of whom also played baseball professionally. Robert Kootch Carroll was born in La Crosse on October 8, 1915 and died there on January 11, 1988. Konetchy and Cardinals manager Roger Bresnahan led the rescue effort, carrying several passengers to safety. Boyer spent 45 years coaching at La Crescent High School, the final 17 as head coach, fashioning a 326-143 record. . Support provided by Market New York through I LOVE NY/ New York State's Division of Tourism as a part of the Regional Economic Development Council awards. He umpired for more than twenty years for the Stars of Tomorrow tournaments and the Minnesota State Legion tournament. Henley, who stood 58, was known locally as The Mighty Mite. Despite his diminutive stature, he was an accomplished ballplayer, and pitched professionally for two seasons (1940-41) with the La Crosse Blackhawks in the class D Wisconsin State League. He was promoted to Joplin the following year where he compiled a 20-4 record with 161 strikeouts in 196 innings, earning him league MVP honors over his teammate, Mickey Mantle. The Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame 73rd Anniversary Induction Class: Ahman Green - Ahman Green is the Green Bay Packers All-Time Leading Rusher with 9,205 rushing yards. All Rights Reserved. Everett Johnson was born on October 7, 1926 in Onalaska. That year he batted only .249, resulting in a reduced contract offer from management, spurring him to sign with the Pittsburgh Stogies of the Federal League. Registration is now open for the 2022 Wisconsin State League Awards and Hall of Fame Dinner. He guided the girls ski team to the 1979 state championship. Martin talked him out of it and in addition to tying the triples record, Kober went on to an 11-year career and finished with a .324 career batting average, 80 doubles, 23 triples, 65 home runs and membership in both the A's and Wisconsin State League Halls of Fame.