1929 Vancouver, Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley
1929 BC Interior
1929 Vancouver Island
TRAIL / WEST KOOTENAY
The 1929 senior baseball season in Trail began with the usual high expectations as the locals abandoned West Kootenay League play against arch-rivals Nelson and Rossland to enter into an association of teams referred to as the Kootenay Amateur International League. The four-team circuit featured the Trailites plus three Washington state entries, Colville, Chewelah and Hunters. Trail got off to a poor start in the new loop, dropping their first two contests, one being an 18 to 1 shellacking by Colville whose two best players, ironically, were Trail residents. Trail’s involvement in the league lasted little more than a month and nothing ever appeared in the Kootenay print media on the Canadian side of the border regarding the fate of the league following a June 30 game in the Silver City when Trail fans engaged in roughhousing and verbal jousting with players from the visiting Chewelah WA squad throughout the course of the game.
(May 23) The Trail Times published a short preview of the local team noting the first action was to come tomorrow at Grand Forks in a Victoria Day tournament. The club was thought to be "fairly strong" with Letcher and McTier as the likely battery and Marsters and John Houbregs as relief pitchers. Houbregs was set for first base, Steve Matovich at second, Bill DiPasquale at third, with Dick Drew in the lineup at shortstop. The outfield had Thurston in right, Fred Lauriente in centre and "Scotty" Ross in left. For the league opener against Colville, Reddick, of hockey fame, was scheduled to cover third base with DiPasquale shifting to second.
(May 26) Colville, Washington, embarrassed Trail in the opening game of the Kootenay International Amateur Baseball league Sunday scoring an 18-1 victory. Louis DeMore, formerly of the Trail Sheiks, would have had a shutout except for an error at first base. Irwin Coulter and Lenocher pasted homers for the winners.
DeMore (W) and Lenocher
Marsters (L), Houbregs (6) and McTier
(June 2) At Chewelah, the hometown squad edged Trail 3-2 as Richmond fired a six-hitter for the win. Letcher allowed just five hits in being saddled with the loss. DiPasquale had the only extra base hit, a double.
Letcher (L) and McTier
Richmond (W) and Kuchera
(June 8) Trail notched its first win of the season, an 18-3 lambasting of Hunters, Washington. The visitors took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Kessler slammed a two-bagger and scored on an error, but Trail roared back with six runs in the second frame and coasted to the victory. Letcher and Drew each clouted homers in the second for Trail. Letcher had a chance for another homer in the fourth, but was thrown out at home trying to stretch a triple into a four-bagger.
Gilman, Kessler (2) and McLean
Letcher, Houbregs (4) and
Morrison
(June 16) Trail started fast, with a run in the first inning, but faded as Colville rebounded to down the Canadian squad 7-2. Molisky singled in the opening frame for Trail and came home as Dick Drew slammed a double. Colville came back with two in their half of the first before Trail tied it in the third as Lauriente singled, stole second and scored on McTier's one-bagger. The Americans took the lead with a pair in the fifth and were never headed. Exley and Lou DeMore, in the Colville outfield, robbed Trail of many hits.
Letcher (L), C.Beaulieu and McTier
Spurgeon (W) and Graham
(June 30) Chewelah topped Trail 6-3 Sunday in a Kootenay International Baseball League game at Trail.
(July 7) "Tick" Hall, a Trail native playing for Colville, has been signed by the House of David baseball club. Elmer Hall of Trail, the shortstop's father, made the disclosure upon his return from the game in Colville with the House of David. Colville won the contest 3-0 with Hall having an outstanding game in the field and at the plate. He accounted for all the scoring with two three-baggers.
Rosters :
Chewelah, WA : Brown OF, Chapman OF, Day 3B, Inzden 2B, Jenne 1B, Kuchera C, Ochs OF, Richmond P, Striker SS
Colville, WA : Adams OF, Barens 3B, Bradbury 2B, Coulter Irwin OF, DeMore Lou P/OF, Exley 1B/2B, Exley OF, Gilbert OF, Graham Grover C, Hall "Tick" SS, Harmon OF, Lenocher C/OF, Moss Norman 1B, Roberts 3B, Spurgeon Jimmy P
Hunters, WA : Gilman P/OF, Kessler 2B/P, Hart 1B, Llewllyn OF/2B, McLean C, McLean L. OF, Meline E. OF, Meline G. SS, Pat 3B, Walker OF/1B
Trail : Beaulieu C. P, DiPasquale OF/3B, Drew Dick SS, Houbregs 1B/P/OF, Lauriente Fred OF, Letcher 1B/P, Mackie OF, Marsters P, McTier C, Molisky 2B/1B, Morrison OF/C, Reddick 3B/1B, Ross OF, Rothery INF