Accorsi and Hurney

If my memory serves me, that was one hell of a fire too. It burned slap to the ground.

I had been to many a game in that old wooden temple to the Church of Baseball and saw some mighty good baseball players. I want to think that the old Hornets baseball team was affiliated with the Minnesota Twins organization. I think Harmon Killebrew played there in old Griffith Park. I can remember Eddie Murray playing there and I believe the Ripkens played there as well, with the O's of course.

 

I can remember the exact sound of the crack of the bat in that place. Mainly the crack of the bat, and the sound of the crowd from the concourse down underneath the stands. And the sound of foul balls hitting on the roof.

 

I know a guy who has one of Ripkens cracked bats, from when he was here as an O. If he got it signed it'd be worth a fortune.

 

I know this is a football place but since the old Hornets and baseball have been invoked . . . here is some history about baseball in Charlotte. Be careful though because it includes the name of a man that Charlotte seems to hate with a passion . . . George Shinn.

http://www.charlotteknights.com/history/history.html

 

And on another note for those that don't know, Accorsi and our fellow poster LHarris were founders of one of NFL's more coveted awards, the Ed Block Courage Award.

http://www.edblock.com/courage_award.htm

Smitty gets this years award.

 

Crockett Park was awesome. I tried to buy beer there when I was four years old (sadly they wouldn't sell it to me).

 

Minnie Mendoza is the name that comes to mind for me at the old ballpark.

Hey Lar, were you and Ernie like the “Turk” of the era or something? Gantt’s article mentions Accorsi and Chamberlain, and I remembered an article I had in my Johnny U. file about Unitas.

Off to San Diego

Former Evening Sun sportswriter Larry Harris, who covered the Colts between 1967 and 1976, said he was the first to inform Unitas that he had been sold by the Colts to the San Diego Chargers in January 1973.

Unitas showed little emotion; he simply took the next plane to San Diego, Harris said.

That type of reaction was normal from Unitas. "You had to know the real Unitas to reach that point," Harris said. "He was John Wayne personified."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...&ctrack=1&cset=true&coll=bal-utility-football


I’ve got another favorite memory of John U. somewhere that was written after his death. I’ll find it and post it for the guys later.

 

I remember getting ice cream,served in the mini baseball helmets there as a kid. I think I still have a Milwaukee Brewers sweatband I got from there too