Backyard Adventures

6E PIKE PUBLISHING BACKYARD ADVENTURES 2018 By Ed Cahill The Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame, locat- ed on the campus of Vincennes University- Jasper Center in the Alvin C. Ruxer Student Center, showcases memorabilia from high school, collegiate and professional athletes from throughout the Hoosier State. Sponsored by the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association, it is "dedi- cated to the primary purpose of recognizing the successes, accomplishments and contri- butions of major/minor league players and managers, (and) our high school coaches and contributors who have given to the game of baseball with ties to Indiana." Jasper was selected by the IHSBCA to host the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame in June 1977. "They brought it into existence, but they had no place to put it," Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame executive director Ray Howard said. "It seemed like the ideal place to put it would be Indianapolis, but you were going to have to have somebody that was going to be willing to put in the time to maintain it, to put up displays, to generate revenue, to mar- ket it, and nobody in Indianapolis seemed to want to do it." Howard, who served as the head base- ball coach at Jasper High School from 1976 through 1987, said that Don Noblitt – the school's principal and athletic director – suggested that they offer to host it. "He talked to me one day and he says, 'Why don't we go to the coaches' meeting and if nobody up there in Indianapolis wants to host that, why don't we do it? '" Howard recalled. "So we went up there, and they finally agreed to do that." "Baseball is big down here in our com- munity," Howard added. "We've had some real good baseball teams, high school-wise. The semi-pro baseball team was still playing here – the Jasper Reds – so there was a lot of baseball interest, and there had been for a long time." The Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame was temporarily housed at the Jasper Inn and Convention Center until 1991, when it moved into the newly built Alvin C. Ruxer Student Center. "Alvin Ruxer asked if we would want some space in this new building," Howard said. "We told him, 'Well, sure.' We didn't have any place to go. So he worked it out with the university that there would be x-amount of square feet – somewhere in the neighbor- hood of 1,000 square feet – to start the Hall of Fame." "Little did I know that it was going to be a second job almost," Howard added. "But that's kind of the way it's been." The first inductions into the Indiana Base- ball Hall of Fame were made in July 1979, when 16 individuals – including National Baseball Hall of Famers Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown, Max Carey, Billy Herman, Sam Rice, Edd Roush, Amos Rusie and Sam Thompson – were honored. As of 2018, a total of 184 individuals have been inducted into the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame in four categories – professional player, coach/manager (high school, college or pro), contributor and veteran. "At the start, it was to recognize major league players or managers or high school or college players or coaches that have contributed in some way to baseball in our state," said Howard, who himself was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1990 as a coach. "Originally, they wanted them to be born here, in Indiana," Howard added. "We have since modified that to where you don't have to actually be born here, but that you spend the majority of your life here, doing things for baseball within the state of Indiana." In addition to plaques honoring each of the inductees, the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame – which was expanded in 2007 – fea- tures a variety of displays of jerseys, gloves, bats and other items related to the history of baseball in the Hoosier State, including a 48 -ounce bat that was used by Roush – the heaviest bat ever used in a major league game. "We have people who have given signed baseballs," Howard said. "Probably one of the oldest things we have here is a ball that's signed by Walter Johnson. That goes back to 1910." "It's hard to see his signature, but it's CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE > FAVORITE GAME Honoring America's INDIANA BASEBALL HALL OF FAME One of the exhibits at the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame features jerseys and gloves that date from the early 1900s from the collection of Dave Johnson of Evansville. Pictured above is the Don Mattingly exhibit at the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame. Mattingly, an Evansville native, played first base for the New York Yankees and served as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is currently the manager of the Miami Marlins. Where Every Night is Throwback Night! May 31 Muhlenberg Co. Stallions Opening Night/irsty ursday June 2 Owensboro Oilers Kids' Fun & Games and e Balloon Guy June 3 Paducah Cheifs Raider Football State Champs Recognition June 6 Hoptown Hoppers Hawaiian Night June 7 Madisonville Miners irsty ursday June 15 Henderson Flash Let's Make a Bombers Deal June 16 Fulton Railroaders XPOGO Stunt Team June 17 Hoptown Hoppers Faith, Family & Father's Day June 19 Paducah Cheifs Bombers Fun June 21 Madisonville Miners Rock-Paper-Scissors Night, irsty ursday June 23 Hoptown Hoppers Flying Hounds June 26 Madisonville Miners Youth League Night and Nonprofit Appreciation June 28 Fulton Railroaders Winner Winner Chicken Dinner and irsty ursday June 29 Henderson Flash e Balloon Guy June 30 Owensboro Oilers Brews in the Bullpen July 4 Owensboro Oilers Independence Day Fireworks July 5 Henderson Flash irsty ursday July 6 Muhlenberg Co. Stallions Host Family Night July 10 Fulton Railroaders Bombers Fun July 16 Paducah Chiefs Bombers Fun July 17 Muhlenberg Co. Stallions Fan Appreciation Night July 20-30 Playoffs Teams/Locations TBD All Times Eastern! Date Opponent & Promotion Date Opponent & Promotion 2018 HOME GAMES Home games played in League Stadium Located in Huntingburg City Park, at the end of East First Street. Call today for Tickets 812.683.3700 Dubois County Bombers P.O. Box 332, Huntingburg, IN 47542 dcbombers@psci.net STORY AND PHOTOS BY ED CAHILL

• Cover