The Complete Archive

In haste! Today's post is the press release issued by the Harry Dallara Foundation on the occasion of the dedication ceremony for the newly renovated youth fields and the installation of a bronze plaque at Duncan Park on Saturday, May 3rd.

As Blanche DuBois said of herself in Tennessee Williams's classic American play A Streetcar Named Desire, every old ballpark has always "depended upon the kindness of strangers." Even a storied wooden grandstand stadium like Duncan Park--which is generously supported by the kindness of the City of Spartanburg and Spartanburg County School District Seven, the Friends of Duncan Park, Play. Advocate. Live Well. [PAL]

Wofford College, that is. Beginning the week of March 10, 2025, the Wofford College Lifelong Learning Program will offer Duncan Park and the History of Baseball in Spartanburg as an 8-week class in its spring course schedule. Taught by yours truly, the class is based upon the research for my 2023 SABR Research Award-winning book Duncan Park: Stories of a Classic American Ballpark, published by Spartanburg's own Hub City Press. The class will both expand this research and deepen its exploration of a number of the topics covered in the book.

During the week of February 24-28 the Cleveland Academy of Leadership on the Northside of Spartanburg County School District Seven sponsored schoolwide exhibitions of the contributions of prominent Black Spartanburg citizens and others to the history of the City of Spartanburg and the United States. A prominent part of this celebration was the exhibition featuring Negro Leagues Baseball in the front entrance hallway of the school.

A longtime listener to Public Radio, I tuned in to “Weekend Edition” three days after Christmas this year on WEPR, South Carolina’s Upstate NPR affiliate. This last weekly installment of one of my perennially favorite shows, the year-end broadcast featured highlights from the past year from the worlds of politics, literature, entertainment, and sports. In addition to the Paris Olympics and the final arrival of Caitlin Clark and the WNBA as a force to be reckoned with in the national consciousness, the sports segment also noted the greater than usual number of passings from Major League Baseball.

Yes, for sure, but maybe just once. I’ve done some research that confirms it because a friend told me he had, but I had not seen anything in my newspaper database searches for my book about Duncan Park stadium that would have given me a clue.

At four o’clock P.M. on Thursday, September fifth, a group of Spartanburg civic leaders, elected officials, and public benefactors gathered at the youth ballfields at historic Duncan Park for the groundbreaking of a comprehensive renovation project which will significantly improve this underutilized public facility and stimulate participation of youth from neighboring and center city communities in youth sports.

On July 17, 2024, in Orlando the world of sports lost one of its best known and most talented executives. On that day Pat Williams, the retired Senior Vice President of the Orlando Magic, succumbed to complications from viral pneumonia, surrounded by the family who loved him. He had been admitted to the hospital in Orlando, his longtime home, suffering from this unforgiving disease at age 84.

What's in a name? In sports, quite a lot. In baseball, sometimes myths and legends. The name “Yankees” conjures a pantheon of the sport’s greatest players. “Wrigley Field” and “Fenway Park” are the holiest of holy MLB venues. The Atlanta “Braves” were home to “Hammerin’ Hank” Aaron, one of the noblest and most beloved players of all time. Ted Williams was “Teddy Ballgame,” Pete Rose “Charlie Hustle,” and Ty Cobb the “Georgia Peach.”