1937 Game Reports / Alberta     

EDMONTON SENIOR LEAGUE

TEAMS
Army & Navy Cardinals
National Home Furnishers
North Edmonton Belmonts
Starky’s Miners

FIRST-HALF
FINAL FIRST-HALF STANDINGS
Army & Navy            10 – 2    .833
Starky Miners           4 – 4    .500
North Edmonton          3 – 4    .429
National Home           1 – 8    .111

SECOND-HALF
FINAL SECOND-HALF STANDINGS
Army & Navy             4 – 2    .667
Starky Miners           4 – 3    .571
North Edmonton          4 – 3    .571
National Home           1 – 5    .167

(August 29)  Even though the Army & Navy Cardinals annexed both halves of the Senior League schedule, it was decided that the two clubs that tied for the runner-up spot in the second-half series would play a sudden-death contest, the winner to face off with the Cards for the playoff championship of the circuit.

PLAYOFFS
SEMI-FINALS  Starky Miners vs North Edmonton (sudden-death)


(August 31)  North Edmonton Belmonts smashed out a decisive 11 – 2 win over the Starky Miners to advance to the Edmonton Senior League finals against the Army & Navy Cardinals. Winning tosser “Scotty” Lee held the Miners to just three safeties. Playing-manager Laurel Harney drove in four runs for the Northsiders.

Lee (W) and Harney
Eaton (L) and J. Lupul

FINALS  North Edmonton vs Army & Navy  (best-of-seven series)

(September 5)  With playing-manager Ralph Morgan pitching six-hit ball and his mates chalking up bingles with the greatest of regularity, the Army & Navy Cardinals dumped the North Edmonton Belmonts 9 – 1 to grab a one-game lead in the Senior League finals. Middle pasture patroller Dave Brockie sparked the Redbirds with the baton, slamming a triple and two singles.

Tougas (L), Johnson (4) and Harney
Morgan (W) and Smith

(September 7)  A first-inning unearned run stood up as the lone tally of the tilt in which the Army & Navy Cardinals outlasted the North Edmonton Belmonts 1 – 0 to move in front of the Senior Baseball League finals two-games-to-nothing. Pitching was at its finest in this encounter. Winning moundman Tommy Brant surrendered just two bingles while loser Herman Loblick was nicked for only three. In the opening panel, the Redbirds’ Harold Wismer walked, went to second on a fielder’s choice and galloped all the way home after Brant lifted a long fly ball to Johnson in the middle garden who made the catch but threw wildly to the hot corner cushion after Wisner tagged up and tried to advance.    

Brant (W) and Smith
Loblick (L) and Harney

(September 12)  The North Edmonton Belmonts fought their way back into contention for the Edmonton Senior Baseball League playoff crown when they decisioned Army & Navy 8 – 6 in a loosely-played third game. Walt Wagner singled four times for the winners while Freddy Kokura went yard with a four-ply clout for the vanquished Cards.

Loblick (W) and Harney
Brant (L), Morgan (5) and Smith

(September 19)  A six-run seventh stanza helped seal the deal for the Army & Navy Cardinals who scored a smashing 13 – 7 victory over North Edmonton to take a stranglehold on the final series. “Phats” Rimstad singled twice and doubled for the winning Redbirds although the game’s leading swatsmith was Phil Horne of the Belmonts who clubbed a home run, double and one-bagger.

Wynn, Morgan (W) (4) and Smith
Scotweld (L), Lee (1), Tougas (7) and Harney

(September 26)  With the weatherman helping to shorten the game to 4-1/2 innings, just enough for a regulation game, the Army & Navy Cardinals pulled out a narrow 2 – 1 conquest of the North Edmonton Belmonts to claim the 1937 Edmonton Senior Baseball League title. A heavy downpour of rain that left the diamond unplayable halted proceedings unexpectedly. Losing chucker Herman Loblick stroked two of his team’s three hits and, while hurling from the elevated portion of the diamond, yielded four safeties.

Loblick (L) and Harney
Morgan (W) and Smith


CALGARY

The Cowtown had a lone senior-level baseball club in 1937, the Bronks, who were independent and partook in a number of exhibition encounters, essentially against teams from the Foothills League.


SOUTHERN ALBERTA BASEBALL LEAGUE

A circuit consisting of Lethbridge, Medicine Hat and Foremost folded after just two games had been played when the Gas City team, the Monarchs, withdrew as a result of being unable to fulfil all their road engagements. The teams went their separate ways and played out the balance of the campaign as independent clubs.

Foremost :
Lethbridge Miners
Medicine Hat Monarchs


ALBERTA SENIOR AMATEUR BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

(August 30)  Cadomin Maroons retained their Northern Alberta championship Monday defeating Cadogan in the second game of a double header. Cadogan tied the series with a 7-2 win in the opener, but the Maroons came back to win the nightcap 12-3.
        
(September 8)  Lethbridge Galt Miners repeated as Alberta Senior champions Wednesday downing Cadomin in four straight to claim the Calgary Herald trophy for the second successive season. Alex Yanosik of the Miners had a shutout until the ninth Wednesday as Lethbridge notched an easy 10-2 victory.

Yanosik (W) and Toccoli
Sampson (L), Gerlitz and Bentley

Miners defeated Cadomin last year in a bitterly fought six-game series.


FOOTHILLS LEAGUE

Champion captured the pennant in the 1937 Foothills circuit.


CENTRAL ALBERTA

After dropping out of the semi-pro Northern Alberta League early in the second-half of the 1936 schedule because of financial concerns, Wetaskiwin senior baseball was at a low point entering the 1937 season. A team of locals was fielded but was a leagueless group and played only a handful of exhibition games.

(June 11)   In the season opener at Wetaskiwin, Brooksona walked away with the victory by a 6 to 4 margin after trailing in the early going.  G.Avison started for the visitors but Wetaskiwin tallied four runs in the first inning before O.Hill took over mound duties and allowed just one hit in the six innings he worked.  Brooksona rallied with a pair of runs in the sixth and scored four times on five hits in the seventh and final frame. Kraemer's three-bagger was the big blow.  Schneck, on the hill for Wetaskiwin, had a two-hitter for the first five innings but weakened in the latter stages. 

G.Avison, O.Hill (W) (2) and Nowichi
Schneck (L), Cleland (7) and Lundell

(June 13)   Kronfeld fired a three-hitter, striking out 14 Sunday as Wetaskiwin All-Stars dumped Twin Creek 6 to 3.

(June 16)   Ponoka Panthers downed Wetaskiwin Braves 4-2 in the first home game of the season for the Panthers.  The visitors had a bases loaded in the ninth but could manage just one run as Buster Mutch fanned the last two batters to end the game. Braves took the first in the first inning and held Ponoka scoreless until the sixth when the home club erupted for three runs. They added another in the 8th.

Schneck (L), Rattlesnake (6) and Lundell
Mutch (W) and xxx

(June 27)   In an exhibition match at Ponoka, the Panthers continued unbeaten downing Wetaskiwin 7-1.

Rattlesnake (L) and Lundell
C.Lewis (W) and Sweet

(June 29)   Fredericksheim and Wetaskiwin battled for a scoreless tie for six innings Tuesday night but in the seventh, Fredericksheim, helped by costly errors, tallied five times and went on to an 8 to 1 triumph. Olesky and R.Mix combined to hold Wetaskiwin to five hits while whiffing nine. 

Olesky (W), Mix (7) and Palmer
Rattlesnake (L), Kronfeld (7) and Lundell


OTHER ALBERTA

HIGHWAY 12 BASEBALL LEAGUE

Alix
Botha
Castor
Clive
Delburne
Erskine *
Pine Lake
Stettler

*1937 Highway 12 League champion