Another Base Ball Life

[Big Six]

Hi again, everyone. It's been a while, but I've decided I want to give this dynasty thing another try.

I've tried writing several kinds of stories, but my favorites have been one of two different types: stories about fictional players in real MLB settings, and stories about entire fictional leagues. Once, I tried writing about a fictional player in a fictional league, and the story died quickly. I seem to remember it had to do with some weirdness in the game world; some statistical flukes that made the story less fun.

I'm going to try it again.

When I first wrote for this forum, my wife and I were about to start our family. Now, our oldest is a teenager, and our youngest will soon be able to read every word her dad might write here. Lately, we've all decided to to devote more time to doing the things we enjoy most. Writing stories like this is high on my list.

I'm setting this story at the turn of the twentieth century. I like the "vibe" of that era; it lends itself well to the written word, because that's how people communicated most often. It will take place in Pennsylvania, home of the Keystone League. I've created several different versions of this fictional league, and now, with txranger's logos and uniforms, it's more immersive and fun than ever.

I'm starting the league in 1880, so it will have some history by the time our protagonist enters the story. I'm going to play Great Base Ball Deity, and create a world where the game is played more like it was in 1985 than 1885. And, in my world, there's no racial barrier preventing any man who can play the game for a living from doing so in the Keystone League.

I hope we'll all have fun with the story, now and for some time to come. I'm ready to create a world that will last for awhile. You're invited to come along for the journey, and I hope some of you will do just that.

[skyballer455]

It's so nice to hear you're going to be doing this again. I highly enjoyed the Pat O'Farrell story and I'm sure this new one will be just as great.

[Big Six]

Originally Posted by skyballer455

It's so nice to hear you're going to be doing this again. I highly enjoyed the Pat O'Farrell story and I'm sure this new one will be just as great.

Thanks for your kind words, skyballer. I had such a wonderful time bringing Pat to life. Since then, I've been hoping to stumble upon a story I enjoy nearly as much. I hope this will be the one.

I'm currently fitting the teams with their logos, jerseys, and caps, so the story should begin very soon!

[Big Six]

Harrisburg Daily Patriot
October 11, 1879

NEW BASE BALL LEAGUE FORMING IN PENNSYLVANIA
Eight Teams To Begin Play Next Spring

HARRISBURG- Base ball enthusiasts will be delighted to learn of the formation of a league which shall begin play with the 1880 season.

This organization, which shall be known as the Keystone League, will be comprised of eight clubs. The cities of Allentown, Altoona, Bethlehem, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Scranton, Williamsport, and York have been granted franchises.

Denizens of the commonwealth's largest cities already have numerous opportunities to play and watch the national game. The Keystone League will offer these opportunities to those who live in smaller municipalities.

It has been said that the clubs are backed by gentlemen of some means, and that at least five of them have already secured their grounds.

The franchises will be stocked with players through an inaugural draft. Therefore, those men who would like to play in the Keystone League must be able to relocate to the city the team which drafts them calls home.

The League promises to offer a fast, competitive brand of ball, and connoisseurs of the game should be pleased with the final product.

[Big Six]

226 Prospect Street
Madisontown, Pennsylvania

Mr. and Mrs. John Fuller
118 High Street
Lancaster, Pennsylvania

October 11, 1879


Dear John and Ella,

I am writing to you today with the most wonderful news! This morning at about 7:30, Grace delivered our perfect baby boy. We have named him Roy, after Grace's father. Perhaps you remember Mr. Curtis passed away just after Christmas. I figure naming our son for him is a good way to keep his memory alive.

Grace and little Roy are both doing fine. Maybe I shouldn't call him little. He is a big boy--he weighs just over eight pounds.

I hope you and your Rose can come visit us sometime this fall, once Grace is feeling all better and before the weather gets bad. We both miss you very much. I'm sure Rose is growing up quickly. I wonder if we would recognize her.

Your friend always,
Ed

Note: Madisontown is a fictional town. I think it will be fun to make Roy's home town come to life along with him.

[Big Six]

Harrisburg Daily Patriot
February 15, 1880


The base ball season is now only a few weeks away, and the players and teams of the Keystone League appear to be ready for action.

The following eight teams will take the field for the inaugural campaign:

Allentown Fleetwings
Altoona Alleghenies
Bethlehem Steelers
Harrisburg Senators
Lancaster Red Roses
Scranton Electrics
Williamsport Loggers
York White Roses

All eight clubs have retained managers and coaches, and all have made arrangements for the grounds where they will play. Most important of all, each club is fully staffed with ball players, through the Inaugural Draft.

Each Keystone League club is affiliated with two smaller clubs, which will afford players who are not yet up to Keystone League standard the opportunity to get regular games and training.

From the beginning, the League's organizers have been adamant that men of any race or station in life are welcome.

"It is the quality of a man's talent that will determine whether he is successful in our League," said president Josiah R. Murray. "No worthy player will ever be turned away because of his color or creed."

[Big Six]

December 4, 1888

My Future Plans
By Roy Porter
Grade 3
Madisontown School

My name is Roy Porter. I am nine years old. I am in the third grade at Madisontown School.

I have thought a lot about what I would like to do when I am grown. I have decided I want to be a base ball player. That is because my favorite thing to do is play base ball.

I think it would be a lot of fun to play in the Keystone League. Last summer I visited my Uncle and Aunt in Altoona. There is a team in Altoona called the Alleghenies. I went to some games with my father, uncle, and cousins. We watched the Alleghenies play against the Lancaster Red Roses and the Scranton Electrics. The Alleghenies won the first game we watched. There was a big crowd at the game.

I liked watching Barry Robinson most of all. He is the right fielder for Altoona. He has had the highest batting average in the Keystone League four times. Barry was hurt and could not play all the time last year, but I was lucky and got to see him. He bats left handed just like me.

My Uncle knows Barry, so after the game he took me to meet him. I was so excited! I asked Barry for his autograph and he smiled and signed his name for me.

If I am a Keystone League ball player one day, I will be as nice to young boys as Barry Robinson. I will always talk to them and sign autographs for them if they ask nicely.

After I am finished playing, I think I might like to go to college or run a store like my Dad.

[Hageneezz]

Fantastic!

The Base Ball Live of Patrick O'Farrell was one of the first dynasty threads i ever read on this forum, when i discovered this forum back in 2005...

I'll sure be following along!

God speed...



Verstuurd vanaf mijn WAS-LX1A met Tapatalk

[Big Six]

Originally Posted by Hageneezz

Fantastic!

The Base Ball Live of Patrick O'Farrell was one of the first dynasty threads i ever read on this forum, when i discovered this forum back in 2005...

I'll sure be following along!

God speed...



Verstuurd vanaf mijn WAS-LX1A met Tapatalk

Thanks for the compliments, Hageneezz. It's always fun to hear from someone who was a fan of Pat's, back in the day.

I'm glad you'll be reading this story, too. I hope to make it an enjoyable one!

[Big Six]

Scranton Times
September 25, 1891


THE ODYSSEY OF AARONA AARONA
A Career Like None Other

BLAKELY, PENNSYLVANIA--In this borough on the outskirts of Scranton lives a man whose base ball career nearly defies belief. His name is Aarona Aarona, and here is his story.

He was born here twenty-eight years ago, the son of immigrants from the islands of Hawaii. A stout lad, Aarona took naturally to base ball, earning some repute as a reliable batsman and a fairly nimble base runner and fielder. He was also an excellent student, earning high marks at the Blakely high school, from which he graduated in the Class of 1881.

Aarona enrolled in the University of Notre Dame, for whose nine he played with some distinction for the next four years. In 1885, he was chosen by the Lancaster Red Roses in the fifteenth and final round of the Keystone League Amateur Draft. The prospects for the young first sacker looked good indeed.

Aarona signed his first contract on June 18, 1885. That very day, the Red Roses released him. Two months later, the Bethlehem Steelers secured his signature, only to cast him away just as immediately. Thus began Aarona's peripatetic career.

April 12 was the Opening Day of the 1886 base ball season. When Aarona arose, he was the property of the York White Roses. Before the day was done, he had been released by the Yorks; signed again by the Lancasters, and released; signed by the Allentown Fleetwings, and released. The next morning, he was signed by the Harrisburg Senators.

The club released him that day.

By August of that year, Aarona Aarona had been the property of all eight franchises of the Keystone League at one time or another. He had come to bat exactly four times: once for the Boalsburg club, and thrice for Bryn Mawr.

Aarona hit safely all four times.

On April 9, 1887, Aarona was still playing for Bryn Mawr. That day, he hit one of the longest balls ever seen at the Bryn Mawr grounds. The fact that the bases were loaded at the time made the Hawaiian's clout even more impressive. Perhaps this would earn him a regular engagement with the Allentowners, who held his contract.

Three days later, Aarona was once again released. And, once again, before the day was out, he had been the property of half the teams in the Keystone League. "I would receive a telegram telling me I had been signed, and an hour or so later, I would receive another with the news I had been released. I was used to it by then, since it had also happened the year before," Aarona recalled.

At present count, Aarona Aarona has been released 47 times. He has appeared in 178 contests, at the Class A and Class AA levels. His longest period of continuous employment, by far, came in 1889. He batted 270 times for the Lewisburg club, smacking five home runs and batting .189. Standing five feet, seven inches and packing 200 pounds onto his robust frame, Aarona can clout the ball with power, but he does not make consistent contact, especially when a pitcher throws him curves.

Aarona remains relatively unaffected by the events that have made his career so uniquely tumultuous. "If I have been released forty-seven times, I have also been signed forty-seven times," he says with a wry grin, before taking a bite of a gargantuan corned beef sandwich.

He is slightly incorrect in this accounting. Aarona has been signed forty-eight times. He is currently contracted to Allentown once again. This is the seventh time the Fleetwings have secured his services. He has been assigned to the roster of Kenilworth, the Wings' AA affiliate.

However, Aarona will not be of use to the Oaks anytime soon. He is currently suspended, and will remain so for the next 233 games. Aarona does not know why he has been made ineligible for so long.

"I got in a fight last year, when a pitcher hit me with a fastball," he admits. "I received an eight-game suspension for that offense. I wonder what I have done to be punished nearly thirty times as harshly."

I thought it would be fun to tell the tale of this quirky bit of business...I wonder what the computer GMs are up to?

[Big Six]

Madisontown Journal
May 10, 1897

SLUGGER PORTER DRAWING RAVES
Madisontown Prep Star Attracting Keystone League Scouts

MADISONTOWN--The Keystone League has been bringing quality base ball to the residents of the Commonwealth since 1880. Our town has yet to produce a ball player of sufficient quality to earn a spot on a Keystone League roster, but that might be changing soon. Several League clubs have been paying attention to the exploits of Roy Porter, Madisontown High School's slugging star.

Porter is currently a junior, but he has been a fixture in the Presidents' varsity nine for three seasons. On Saturday, Porter led the Presidents to a 7-3 victory over White Deer Area High, hitting safely in all four times to the plate. His long home run was the highlight of the game. Three clubs--Altoona, Harrisburg, and Lancaster--were said to have sent scouts to watch the game, with specific instructions to evaluate Porter.

A left handed batter and thrower, Porter is most comfortable playing first base. He is tall, already over six feet, and very strong. Some observers have compared him to York's standout first sacker, Claude Mansfield. Young Porter is taller and leaner than the solidly built White Roses slugger, and unlike Mansfield, he can also play the outfield. He does have a smooth swing that might remind an observer of Mansfield.

It is possible that Porter will decide to attend college instead of entering the professional game next spring. He is said to be interested in attending Madison College, and he would certainly add to the quality of the college nine were he to choose to enroll.

[Big Six]

226 Prospect Street
Madisontown, Pennsylvania

Miss Carrie Leonard
114 East Chestnut Street
Ephrata, Pennsylvania

June 3, 1898

Dear Cousin Carrie,

Thank you for your letter of May 28. I am sorry I have taken several days to reply to you, and I hope you will forgive me when you learn how busy I have been.

The day I received your letter, I played in my last base ball game for good old Madisontown High. We were playing for the County Championship. We lost, 4 to 2, which was a very disappointing outcome, considering we had beaten that team twice already this season. I had one hit, against a pitcher who is going to Yale to play base ball next year. I was happy to do that well against him, but I would have gladly traded that hit for a victory for our team.

Saturday was my graduation. I was happy, but also sad, because I have had many wonderful experiences at school. Mother made my favorite meal--roast chicken with carrots, potatoes, and peach pie.

Once graduation was over, I had to finally make a decision I have been postponing as long as possible. Would I attend Madison College, or pursue the opportunity to play in the Keystone League? I have been told that I will certainly be drafted by one of the clubs next week, perhaps in the first round. I read in the newspaper that many of the players who are expected to be drafted first are pitchers, and that if a club wants a batsman instead, I might be drafted very quickly. That would be exciting, but it would also create some pressure on me to succeed.

I talked to my Dad about it, and he told me he would support me in either decision. Mama wants me to go to college, so I know I would make her very happy if I told the Keystone League to wait. She knows Madison College will be waiting for me when my ball playing days are done, and that may happen very soon. Who knows? She is still convinced that ball players are mean, rough men. Why, Hal Knapp attended college at Pittsburgh, and Bob Schultz went to Rhode Island. Not all base ballists are hoodlums!

Anyway, I have decided I will wait to see if I am chosen in the draft, and if I am, then I will see if I think I will like the club who drafts me. If it seems like a good fit, I will sign a contract. If not, I can go to college, play ball there, and perhaps, join a professional club after I graduate.

That is more than enough about me. Please write to me very soon and tell me what you have been doing. I hope you, Will, and your parents will come visit us later this summer.

Your cousin,
Roy

[Big Six]

Lancaster Journal
June 7, 1898

RED ROSES EMPHASIZE PITCHING IN DRAFT
Eight Moundsmen Chosen
First Round Pick Is Promising First Baseman Porter

READING--The Red Roses stocked their pantry with a fresh crop of young pitchers in yesterday's First-Year Player Draft. Among the fifteen players chosen were eight twirlers. The club appears to be committed to improving the quality of the young arms in the team's farm system, which has not been known for producing top-notch pitchers in recent years.

The team's first round pick was, however, not a pitcher, but a first baseman who promises to give other teams' moundsmen a rough time. Roy Porter, age 18, hails from Madisontown. He is a strapping left-handed batsman with a smooth swing. As a high school senior, Porter hit seven home runs in 22 games.

"Porter has a lot to learn," said team owner Hal Guy. "That is to be expected, since he is still a teenager."

The Red Roses will assign Porter to their Class A affiliate in Fox Chapel. There, he will join a Foxes club that is playing .500 ball, and it is hoped that the addition of players like Roy will soon have them challenging for a spot in the league playoffs.

There is some question about whether or not Porter will immediately sign his contract and begin his professional career. It is said that he is considering college instead; he has been accepted at Madison College and might begin there in the fall. Were he to play for Fox Chapel, or any other minor professional nine, he would forfeit the opportunity to suit up for Madison...

[Big Six]

226 Prospect Street
Madisontown, Pennsylvania

Miss Carrie Leonard
114 East Chestnut Street
Ephrata, Pennsylvania

June 8, 1898

Dear Cousin Carrie,

I know your family reads the Lancaster papers, so you might have seen that the local club chose me in the Keystone League draft this week. I was happy to see that the Red Roses picked me, because I have at least visited Lancaster a few times when my family visits yours.

I had a very difficult decision to make. As I told you, my mother wants me to go to college very much. The base ball coach at Madison College has told me I would have a place in their varsity nine, and the football coach wants me to go out for football, too. I like to study, and Clarence has enjoyed his time at Bucknell very much. I have always admired my brother, and following in Clarence's footsteps and becoming a college man has its appeal.

But I also love playing ball, and the prospect of earning money to do so is also very attractive. Perhaps if I went to Madison and played there, I would have the opportunity to play professionally after that. But who knows? Is this my only real chance? I know I would be able to attend college after my career as a ball player was over.

I haven't slept much the past two nights while I thought about what I would do. This morning, I woke up and told my parents I was going to sign a contract with the Red Roses. Mother seemed sad, but she told me she thought all along that was what I would do. I wanted you to be the next person to know.

I won't be playing for the Red Roses right away. They have assigned my contract to their Class A affiliate club in Fox Chapel. I had to look for Fox Chapel on a map; it is a small town a few miles northeast of Pittsburgh. I will be staying in a hotel for a few days, at the club's expense, while I find a room at a boarding house. It is exciting, but a bit scary at the same time.

The Red Roses have a good player at my position, first base. His name is Jack Rogers. He is six years older than I am, and in the prime of his career. Lancaster won't need to rush me to the Keystone League, so I will have time to develop my skills. They tell me they are very excited about my potential, however, and that I am one of the team's best prospects.

I will be leaving for Chadds Ford on the train in just a few hours. I will meet the Fox Chapel club there, and I will be in uniform for tomorrow's game. I will write to you again and give you the address where you can write to me once I get it.

I need to end this letter so I can mail it on the way to the railroad station. Tell your parents and Will my news, and I will write to you again soon.

Your cousin,
Roy

[Big Six]

It's been a LONG time, but I decided to return to this story. It has been a tough past few months, complete with a health scare for my wife's mom. Fortunately she is better now, so I'm more in the mood for some OOTP fun.

I'll start us back off with a picture of a satisfied-looking Roy Porter in his Fox Chapel uniform. Why does Roy have that confident half-smile on his face?

You'll find out soon enough...