Rosedales team members sought

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/10/2014 (4236 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame announced its induction class for 2015 at joint media conferences in Winnipeg and Brandon on Oct. 28.

In a category this columnist labels “about time” but which the HOF calls special, the Rosedales organization that made a major impact on the Winnipeg baseball scene from 1945 through 1950 will be recognized.

During that period, the West End-based Rosedales won the Greater Winnipeg Junior Baseball League championship four times and reached the final the other two seasons. The juvenile team formed in 1946 won the city that year and again in 1948 and 1950. The midgets formed in 1947 won city championships in 1948 and 1950. Rosedales also fielded a bantam team from 1948-50. The organization’s final season was 1950.

Finding the Rosedales after all this time will be a problem. Catcher Bruce Hudson, who played from 1946 through 1950, is the Rosedales contact and he has asked Memories of Sport for help in tracking down team members or their families.

As per the HOF policy, any team member or family member who wishes to represent a Rosedale, and who purchases a banquet ticket, will be honoured at the induction.
Readers with information should call Hudson at 204-256-5165 or contact this columnist.

Unfortunately since the spring of 2013, juniors Fred Dunsmore, Kenny Little, Ken Nicol, Milt Swindlehurst, Don Reid, Roy McMeekin, George Burke, Don Bridge and Murray Brown, juvenile pitcher John Robertson and midget coach Ray Frost have died.

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Pitchers dominate the list of 2015 Baseball HOF inductees.

Art Penning pitched minor ball in St. James and for the senior Elmwood Giants. Kevin Booker was a top hitter and pitcher who played for provincial championship teams from peewee through senior. The two Winnipeggers also played college ball at Mayville State.

John Melnick was an outstanding pitcher with the junior St. Boniface Legionaires and the senior Native Sons in the 1970s. Ross Lynd pitched 11 seasons in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League with Binscarth Orioles and McAuley Blazers. Russ Reid’s bat and arm helped Brandon teams win several provincial championships and a Canadian junior title in the 1960s.

Player-manager Ken Pringle led Boissevain Centennials to six South West League titles in the 1990s. Mr. Baseball in Plumas, Tom Yandeau, will be inducted for his 32 seasons as a power hitter with the Pirates of the Santa Clara League and his volunteer work.

Winston Smith’s 30 years of volunteering includes coaching in Winnipeg South and serving in various roles for Baseball Manitoba, the Western Canada Baseball Association and Baseball Canada.  

The 2003-2008 Stonewall Blue Jays that represented Manitoba five times in the Western Canada senior championships will be honoured as a major team. The 1964-1969 Steinbach Millers; that won the La Verendrye League championship three times; and the Baldur Regals that won the Border West Senior AA League title six years in row from 2006 to 2011 will enter the HOF in the small community category.

The 19th induction banquet will be held at the home of the Hall of Fame in Morden, Man., on June 6, 2015.

Memories of Sport appears every second week in the Canstar Community News weeklies. Kent Morgan can be contacted at 204-489-6641 or email: sportsmemories@canstarnews.com