Memory of Mantle and Stadium’s Outfield Hill Part of Story for Independent’s Newest Team

Mickey Mantlehelped put Joplin, MOon the baseball map in 1950 when he reeled off 199 hits and a Western Association-leading .383 average in only 137 games.  Old-timers in the city of 60,000 and market of 250,000 still talk about the feats of the 18-year-old.

Joplin is officially back in professional baseball for the first time since 1954 after being voted in during league meetings this week in Sioux City, IAas the 13th member of the American Associationfor next season and assigned to what will be a five-team Southern Division.

One remaining similarity to the past is that games still will be played in Joe Becker Stadium, twice damaged by fires and now being completely renovated in a $4.7 million project.  It has a unique feature of an incline that goes up a few feet and stretches from the right-field foul line much of the way to center.  Outfielders will find a challenge roughly equivalent to the centerfield hill at Houston’s Minute Maid Park.

“We didn’t want to touch the character of that hill,” said co-owner Shawn Suarez, who along with baseball-playing brother Gabewill operate the Joplin Blasters.

Starters, Comeback Slam Have Lancaster Near Title

With the starting staff stringing together a dazzling 1.88 earned run average throughout the postseason, it is easy to understand how the Lancaster (PA) Barnstormersare within one win of earning the Atlantic Leaguechampionship.   Butch Hobson’screw not only has a 2-0 advantage over the Sugar Land (TX) Skeeters, but it also will be at home for the remainder of the best-of-five series.

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Antoan Richardson Scored in Jeter Finale,  And Respects the Game

Antoan Richardsonearned a level of fame in September when the speedy outfielder scored the winning run on Derek Jeter’sdramatic walk-off single which capped the final game of his Hall of Famecareer at Yankee Stadium. Richardson’s career–indeed, his life–was pretty much framed during one of his last few days in Independent Baseball, a time when he was chatting with teammate Kelly Huntwhile with the Schaumburg (IL) Flyersearly in 2010.

To set the stage, Richardson had played in Schaumburg part of the previous season, then had gone to Atlanta’sminor league spring training camp in the spring of ’10, only to be released on the very last day.  Hunt, a hulking first baseman out of Bowling Green University, advanced as high as Class AA before tumbling back to various Indy leagues.

“Look at us (baseball players), all we do is complain,” said Richardson, 26 at the time and turning 31 next week, quoting Hunt.  “Nothing is ever good enough.  It is too hot or too cold, the food isn’t right.”

It was an “eye opener” for the speedy, but diminutive Richardson.  “I stepped back; thought about it.  I changed my attitude (to) where it should have been all that time.  This is a game; we need to enjoy it.  I try to embrace the game I love.”

About 10 days later, the Bravescalled back and re-signed Richardson.  “I asked if I could hang out one more day (in Schaumburg).  Kelly Hunt was released that day.  I had come to Schaumburg to meet Kelly Hunt,” the eloquent Richardson told me from his home in The Bahamasthis (Thursday) morning.

Hunt is not believed to have played again, but his impact had been felt.  Richardson worked his way up to a cup of coffee (Nine games, 2-for-4 with two runs) with the parent Braves in 2011, then was back in the minor leagues for three more seasons, including this summer with the Yankees’top farm club in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, PA(.271-3-22 with 26 steals in 93 games) before New York called him up, primarily to pinch run, in September.

He pinch ran on one occasion for Jeter ( Insider , September 11), started a few times, went 5-for-5 in steals and hit .312 (5-for-16).

“I had the chance to talk to him (Jeter) a few times,” Richardson said.  “He’s even a better person (than a player).  He really cares about his teammates.  He knows every single person in the clubhouse by first name.  We had a couple of conversations about The Bahamas.”

Richardson has no inkling of what the future holds with the Yankees.  But Antoan Richardson, now with all of 22 major league games on his career record, knows not to complain; embraces the game.  Kelly Hunt helped him realize all of this that day in Schaumburg.

(This is an excerpt from the column Bob Wirz writes on Independent Baseball.  Thirty-six columns are planned during 2014.  Fans may subscribe for as little as $6.99 at www.WirzandAssociates.com , enjoy added stories on the blog www.IndyBaseballChatter.com , or comment to RWirz@aol.com .  The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)