Beisbol y Cerveza, a Dominican Republic AAR

Beisbol y Cerveza Part IX July-December 1939

“So what’s going on in Europe?” Gen. Rafael Trujillo asked from the bar, where he was working on a Rum and Cola. Trujillo Cola was a new business on the island and the result of some “friends” at Coca Cola in Atlanta.
“Ah, smooth,” Trujillo said to himself.
Offering Col. Fernandez a drink, Trujillo sat back down at his desk and propped up his feet.
“Tell me, how is Europe?” queried Trujillo.
“Our observers in Europe have the following reports,” said Fernandez.
Poland-German front-The Axis has pushed as far as Krakow and Cieszyn. The Polish still hold Danzig, but that’s just a matter of time until it falls. Fighting is taking place in Lodz and Torun. So far, the Russians are just massing troops on their border with Poland despite having military access.
“Heaven help those Germans if and when they do break through the eastern side of Poland!” exclaimed Trujillo. “Those troops are going to be tired from fighting the Poles and will be hit by a lot of fresh Russians.”
Albania-The Germans control both provinces of Albania after having been dropped off there. For the most part, the Balkans remain peaceful though.
Western Front-With the exception of the Italians taking Grenoble, nothing has happened. And the Germans seem to be honoring the neutrality of the BeNeLux nations for the time being.
North Africa-Montgomery has been cut off in Darnah by a combined German-Italian force with Germans under Busch advancing from Tobruk. The Brits also have Bardiyah.
East Africa-The Italians have expanded just a bit, taking Dagabur and Khartoum, but haven’t expanded from there. The Commonwealth is building up a force to stop further expansion.
Events following:
July 7-Bulgaria joins Axis. Not a good move, but the Russians are still massing troops on the Polish border and as long as they sit still, there will be no red onslaught...yet.
July 11-Montgomery is defeated in North Africa by the new Desert Fox, General Busch.
July 17-North African front sees an influx of troops from Canada, who take Benghazi via amphibious assault.
July 17-Warsaw falls to the Axis, but the Poles are still fighting hard.
July 20-Magalo falls to the Italians in East Africa. Canada and Australia send troops.
July 24-Turkey grants Bulgaria access. Russia already has access, so this could get sticky if either nation decides to move.
Aug. 1-Lublin falls to the Germans. Romania grants Bulgaria military access.
Aug. 2-Sidi Barrani taken by the Italians.
Aug. 3 Germans annex Poland.
“Laaaaaaaaaadddddiiieees and Gentelmen, It’s time for the main event!” exclaimed Trujillo upon hearing the news.
Indeed, the two major belligerents in the European conflict were now face to face.
It didn’t take long for the Red Tide to sweep West.
Aug. 4 Russians take Lwow and Rowne.
Aug. 8-Russians gather in Grodno and Pinsk.
Aug. 13-USSR decides to get Hungary into the action by grabbing Munkacs in the eastern part of that country.
Aug. 17-Russians absorb Wilno
Aug. 18-Looking to defeat somebody, the Axis powers declare war on Denmark.
Aug. 20-Figuring time is short, the Danes give control of Greenland and Iceland to the United States, which has been quietly amassing a large military force.
Aug. 21-Africa, the British and Canadians have gone as far as Al Aqaylah in the north and have taken Addis Abeba in the East Africa theater.
Sept. 1-The BeNeLux nations enter the Allies. Only a matter of time now...
Sept. 3-Romania realizes it likes its soveignty and grants Russia military access. Like Turkey, it is giving free passes to both sides of the conflict.
Sept. 7-It’s only BeNe now. Luxemberg has fallen to the Germans. And it may just be Be as Arnham has been taken by the Germans in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, the Blitzkrieg of the weak continues as Aarhus is the only Danish province left.
Sept. 10-The Russians swallow up Sandomierz and Bialystok.
“Why are the Germans starting fights in the west when the know they will need every healthy body in the east?” asked Trujillo. “The Western allies weren’t even bombing Germany or making any move on the Continent.”
Sept. 18-Mixed news. Rommel invades Sevastapol while Przemysl goes to the Soviets.
Sept. 24-The Crimson Tide contines to roll west, and I’m not talking about the University of Alabama either. Kosice has just fallen to the Soviets.
Sept. 28-The Reds make a trade, they take Suwalki and relieve the German high command of the responsibility of having to feed, clothe and equip yet another division.
Oct. 1-The situation in the Low Countries is critical. Only Amsterdam remains of European Netherlands.
Oct. 4-Soviets are securing Budapest. Hungary’s capital moves to Bratislava
Oct. 5-Sevastapol retaken by the Russians.
Oct. 6-Brzsc and Bugiem fall to the Soviets.
Oct. 12-Bratislava falls to the Scourage of the Steppe, the Hugarian capital moves to Pecs.
Oct. 13-Szeyed and Lucenek go to the Russians.
Oct. 15-39 Soviet Divisions crush Germans in Lublin. Slavkov also has fallen to the USSR. Only four Hugarian provinces remain.
In Africa, the British Commonwealth controls all coastal provinces in Italian North Africa. In East Africa, Gondar falls to the Allies.
Oct. 24-Ruzomberok falls to USSR.
Oct. 27-More of the Trujillo line between the Dominican Republic and Haiti is completed. The line will serve a double purpose, to repel any invasion from that side of the island and regulate commerce between the nations.
Oct. 30-Nov. 7-Brussels falls to the Germans, but divisions in France retake the Belgium capital only to lose it back.
Nov. 7-Tired of waiting for the 30-minutes-or-it’s-free guarantee, the British Commonwealth lands troops in Napoli.
Nov. 12-BeNeLux is no more, all gone gray.
Nov. 15-The Red Parade continues in the East. Konigsberg, Torun and Elbing in Poland and Veszprem and Slavkov have fallen to the victors from the East in recent days...
Nov. 21-Praha goes to the Soviets, who also kick the Germans out of Memel.
Nov. 26-Hungary becomes part of the Soviet Union as it is annexed.
Dec. 2-Soviets take Horn. The Germans start an offense on the French coast, capturing Lille in heavy fighting.
Dec. 9-Wien goes red. That’s followed by Bydgoszcz Dec. 11.
Dec. 16-The noose closes on the Italians in East Africa. Only Makale, Dagabur, Berbera and Obbia are left under occupation by the Legions of Il Duce.
Dec. 18-The fall of Steten to the Russians cuts off the Germans in Danzig. Klagenfurt has fallen as well and Graz is cut off. And for the first time, a piece of Germany has gone to the invaders. Nurenberg, a favorite place of Hitler, was taken by the Red Army.
Dec. 20-Salzberg has fallen to the USSR. Oppeln falls the next day and Breslau also turns Red.
“This reminds me of a cartoon where the little fish is about to be swallowed by a bigger fish, who in turn has no idea he’s about to be lunch for an even bigger fish,” said Trujillo after looking at the map.
On the Dominican baseball front, there was a major shock as Trujillo’s favored Dragones finished down in the standings. It was the first time since entering the league that El Jefe’s team didn’t win the league title. Needless to say, despite seeing rising attendance, Trujillo was not happy about that. But the team that did win the title was from Ciudad Trujillo, so that wasn’t bad.
The Licey Tigres won the league title in a seven-game series over the surprising Boca Chica Beachcomers. Boca Chica had never wone more than 44 games in a season until a windfall of talent from North America. In the past, the team had consisted of local kids who played with sticks and rocks on the beach before donning uniforms for the season.
Boca Chica has one of the funnest stadiums in the league with center field being open to the beach.
Standings will follow Monday.

A bit of delay...

Please excuse the tardiness of the promised standings and additional updates. I've been a bit ill over the last several days and am only now starting to feel like a human being once again
Thanks for your patience and patronage of viewing this AAR. Over 300 views now!
Battleline

1939 Liga Trujillo Standings

1939 Liga Trujillo Standings
Division Oeste
Team W L GB
Licey Tigres 107 39 ---
Escogido 104 42 3
Rio Ozama Bravos 95 51 12
Ciu. Truj. Dragones 94 52 13
BC San Juan 87 59 20
Nuevo Club 82 64 25
Monte Christi 71 75 36
Barahona Hurricanes 64 82 43
CT Conquistadores 52 94 55
Neiba 47 99 60
Azua Azules 35 111 71
Pedernales Bdr Gds 18 128 89

Division Orientale
Team W L GB
Boca Chica 102 44 ---
La Romana Azulejos 97 49 5
Aguilas de Cibao 96 50 6
Estrellas Orientales 92 52 8
El Seibo 83 61 17
Samana 73 73 29
San Pedro Dodgers 71 75 31
Puerto Plata 67 79 35
El Higuey 62 84 40
Santiago 57 89 45
La Romana Rojos 54 92 48
Nagua Navigators 42 104 60

Trujillo Cup-Licey def. Boca Chica, four games to three

Next Update After Christmas...

All,
The next update will come in the days following Christmas. Just opened the log I'm keeping in a legal pad and discovered I've only played up until early February, 1940. Lots of fun in the new year! Think flying and (league) expansion!
Battleline

Beisbol y Cerveza Part X January-June 1940

New Year’s Day 1940 was no different than the past three as there was a war going on out in the world. Granted, it was a distant war, far from the shores of the Dominican Republic. But that didn’t mean that someday it wouldn’t get close. After all, both Great Britain and France had holdings nearby and if some Axis nation decided they wanted to chip away at a weak part of those empires . . . then that was something General Trujillo didn’t even want to ponder.
Things were going great with the professional baseball league in the Dominican Republic and things were just about to break to expand beyond the national borders.
Col. Fernandez, Trujillo’s military aide, briefed El Jefe on the situation as of Jan. 1.
In East Africa, the situation is becoming grim for the Italians as they are down to Makale and Obbia. Troops from England and Australia are quickly closing in on those pockets.
In North Africa, Canadian troops are mopping up the coastal provinces. The Brits have decided to let the interior provinces stay green. The Italians aren’t getting anything but sand from there anyway.
The British have a base at Napoli, but the Italians are expected to put the squeeze on them at any moment.
On the Eastern Front, the Germans are cut off in Graz, but are holding the fortress provinces of Winterberg and Neuhaus. A pocket is developing with Radom, Czestochowa, Lodz and Poznan and the USSR has major numerical superiority in Danzig.
On the French front, the Italians have grabbed up Grenoble and the Germans have Lille. The Belgians are still fighting on the continent, although their capital has moved to Leopoldville in Africa. The Netherlands survive from Surabaya in the East Indies.
A major event happened Jan. 4 as the Tac bombers were finally finished! The planes are placed in the control of Major Genral Miranda. Military access is quickly worked out with Haiti Jan. 5, the United States, Jan. 6, the Netherlands Jan. 8 and the United Kingdom Jan. 9. In return, those countries will have representatives in La Liga Trujillo in 1941.
During January, the Tac Bombers fly around the Caribbean to new ports of call. They spend about two weeks in the United States training with the Army Air Corps to learn tactics.
Meanwhile, the war continues in Europe.
On Jan. 22, Poznan is cut off and the Italians re-take Napoli.
On Jan. 25, The Italians surrender in East Africa, closing another threater of the war.
On Jan. 26, Toulon falls to the Italians.
Feb. 8-The Australians land at Tirana. The Aussies already have taken Rhodos and Dodekansos from the Italians.
Feb. 16-The British invade at Napoli again.
Feb. 17-The Germans retake Salzburg.
Feb. 20-Albania belongs to Australia!
Feb. 26-Russians take Graz, same time Klagfurt goes to Germans.
Feb. 28.-Brits pay for dinner at Napoli and retreat.
March 7-German offense nets Wien.
March 9-The British have landed at Siracusa on Sicily.
March 19-Wien goes red againas the Russians seem to have started their spring offensive.
March 23-Those blasted Nationalist Spanish have influenced us!
March 26-Hungry for more pasta, the Brits land at Napoli again.
April 7-Italians retake Napoli.
April 21-Dresden falls to the USSR troops.
April 23-Nurnberg goes to the Soviets.
April 24-Amiens falls to the Germans.
April 26-The Brits invade Siracusa once again.
April 27-French continue to crumble on the northern front as Rouen goes gray.
April 28-Russian offense continues with Neuhaus turning red.
May 1-May Day sees the Russians on parade in Berlin as the German capital moves to Essen without an eyelash being batted.
May 8-After briefly being chased out, the Russians retake Nurnberg.
May 13-Rostock goes red.
May 15-The Brits land an expedition at Lille, behind the German lines.
May 16-Sicily has gone British. The Italians don’t really seem to care.
May 23-Napoli goes back to the Italians.
May 24-Chaumont falls to the Germans.
May 26-The Brits are kicked out of Lille.
June 25-Troyes falls to the Germans.
In February, the San Pedro Brewers win the title of the Dominican Winter League with Ciudad Trujillo occupying second place.
“How are the Germans even still fighthing?” asked Trujillo. “Their capital has been taken by the Soviets and yet they don’t seem to care. They keep pushing west. And the Soviets probably could crush the remaining German resistance, yet they stand in place like a dog who has reached the end of his tether. If I were running that war, we would be talking about how to honor the veterans because it would be over! They had better finish this one up before someone else decides to bite a chunk of someone’s territory.”

1939-40 Winter League Standings

1939-40 Winter League Standings
Team W L GB
San Pedro Brewers 28 14 ---
Ciudad Trujillo 25 17 3
Azucareros del Este 23 19 5
El Higuey Cardinales 21 21 7
San Francisco dM 20 22 8
El Llano Lookouts 19 23 9
La Vega Crawfords 17 25 11
San Juan Rojos 15 27 13

Beisbol y Cerveza Part XI July-December 1940

War continues in Europe with Germany expanding to the west.
July 5-Nancy falls to the Germans. The General stays at the Majestic.
(And every time I hear “Nancy” I keep thinking about “Kelly’s Heroes” and Telly Savalis’ Big Joe trying to find out about the “hotels and broads.”)
July 18-Germans retake Nurnberg.
July 28-German offense retakes Rostock. Italians have pushed as fars as Lyon and Marseilles.
Aug. 4-Yugoslavia opens a new front, joining Axis of Germany, Italy and Bulgaria.
Aug. 11-1a Destructor division (Destroyers) completed. “We have a navy!” exclaimed Trujillo. “Actually, I forgot I had even ordered the vessel until it showed up.”
Aug. 12-Pecs falls to the Yugoslavians.
Aug. 25-Germans retake Berlin, South Africans invade Napoli.
Aug. 30-German offense retakes Szumbathely from Wien.
Sept. 2-Paris falls to the Germans, Nimes to the Italians. French capital relocates to Cayenne in South America. Trust me, it took a bit to find where the capital went!
Sept. 7-Germans take Caen, Italians take Rodez.
Sept. 8-Montpelier to the Italians
Sept. 9-Russians paint Berlin red again.
Sept. 10-Germans take Orleans.
Sept. 12-Cherbourg falls to the German army.
Sept. 14-Rennes goes to the Germans.
Sept. 17-Germans race into LeMans and take Veszpren.
Sept. 18-Soviets ejected from Berlin.
Sept. 21-Soviets win Magdeberg
Sept. 24-French front falling apart. Germans have taken St. Melo, Brest, Lorrient and Dijon. Italians now have Toulouse.
Sept. 25-Germans retake Albania.
Sept. 29-D’ousseant to the Germans.
Sept. 30-USSR grabs Berlin again, Magdeberg to the Germans.
Oct. 5-Nantes and Bourges to the Germans.
Oct. 7-Vichy falls to Germans.
Oct. 13-Cuba turns down invitation to La Liga Trujillo (military access). We’ll try them again later.
Oct. 16-It’s a Greece Fire! Greeks join Axis with Germany, Italy, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria.
Oct. 24-Cholet to Germans, Italians take Augh and Tarbes.
Oct. 27-Netherlands invades Taranto.
Oct. 30-Beograd to the Soviets.
Nov. 1-Soviets knocked out of Berlin again.
Nov. 6-USA goes for FDR again, historical election outcome.
Dec. 1-Japan declares war on Communist China. Action on a new front!
Dec. 5-Austrialia invades Dubrovnik in Southwestern Yugoslavia.
Dec. 6-Realizing they don’t border Communist China, Japan declares war on Nationalist China.
Dec. 15-France update-Bordeaux and Bayonne to Italy, nine provinces left free.
Dec. 25-Japan and Manchukuo enter Axis. War is now Axis (Germany, Italy, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Greece, Japan and Manchukuo) vs. Allies (British Commonwealth, France, Netherlands, Belgium) and Axis vs. Comintern (USSR, Mongolia, Tannu Tuva). Also, Nationalist Spain is at war against the Comintern, but is not part of the Axis. Confused yet? Axis now has the most points. Allies and Comintern are NOT allied!
Dec. 31 update-Only nine French provinces from Rochelle to Strasbourg left free. On the Eastern front, the Russians are as far west as Praha and Dresden with 2 Yugoslavian provinces, Beograd and Novi Sad, also taken.
Australia controls Buvrovnik and Mostar in the southwestern part of Yugoslavia.
Sicily is comfortably under the control of the United Kingdom.
Japan has taken Shanghai.
The Estrellas Orientales have won the Trujillo Cup in six games over the Eastern Division champion Escogido squad.

1940 Liga Trujillo Standings

1940 Liga Trujillo Standings
Division Oeste
Team W L GB
Escogido 111 35 ---
Monte Christi 104 42 7
Ciu. Truj. Dragones 100 46 11
Licey Tigres 100 46 11
Nuevo Club 96 50 15
Rio Ozama Bravos 87 59 24
Neiba 62 84 49
BC San Juan 60 86 51
CT Conquistadores 53 93 58
Azua Azules 38 108 73
Barahona Hurricanes 24 122 87
Pedernales Bdr Gds 12 130 95

Division Orientale
Team W L GB
Estrellas Orientales 114 32 ---
San Pedro Dodgers 110 36 4
Puerto Plata 108 38 6
La Romana Azulejos 102 44 12
Boca Chica 100 46 14
El Seibo 96 50 18
Aguilas de Cibao 96 50 18
El Higuey 58 88 56
Samana 42 104 72
La Romana Rojos 40 106 74
Santiago 20 126 94
Nagua Navigators 19 127 95

Trujillo Cup-Estrellas Orientales def. Escogido, four games to two.

Beisbol y Cerveza Part XII Expansion of La Liga Trujillo

The Trujillo Baseball League has become the envy of the Caribbean with big and small towns fielding teams for the past five years. But with new treaties in place, the league will be expanding beyond the borders of the Dominican Republic for the 1941 season.
“Military Access” treaties with the United Kingdom, United States, Netherlands and Haiti (and I can tell you that Cuba grants access Jan. 2, 1941) have allowed the island systems of the Caribbean to be eligible to have teams in the 1941 Liga Trujillo.
If things go well, representatives from Mexico and Venezuela have expressed interest in being in the next expansion, should the proper treaties be in place.
The league will consist of four divisions of 10 teams each. Divisions will be Geographical in nature. Teams not invited to the Liga Trujillo will be in the top minor league. The leagues will be re-evaluated during every off-season with strong teams in the lower leagues potentially being elevated to the top league. The last Ciudad Trujillo team to join the league, the Conquistadores, are being placed in the minor league to help attendance there and to serve as a farm club for Licey, Escogido and the Dragones.
The plan for 1941 goes as follows:
Dominican League
Dominican Eastern Division
Estrellas Orientales
San Pedro Dodgers
Puerto Plata Piratos
La Romana Azulejos
Boca Chica Beachcomers
Aguilas de Cibao
Santiago Senators
El Higuey Honchos
El Seibo Snakes
Nagua Navigators

Dominican Western Division
Licey Tigres
Escogido Leones
Ciudad Trujillo Dragones
Rio Ozama Bravos
Monte Christi
Nuevo Club
Barahona Hurricanes
BC San Juan
Neiba Night Hawks
Pedernales Border Guards
Notes-The Border Guards will get help from the league to be more competitive. Had just been army troops in the past.

International League
Western Division
Havana Sugar Kings
Kingston Crickets
Bimini Barracudas
Nassau Nemos
Miami Gators
Key West Conchs
Marathon Mariners
Cienfuegos Cubanos
Camaguey Verdes
Port-Au-Prince Princes

Eastern Division
San Juan (Puerto Rico) Saints
Ponce Padres
Curacao Dutchmen
Port of Spain Islanders
Antigua Angels
St. Thomas Tommies
Grenada Grenades
St. Croix Crusaders
Nevis Sharks
St. Maarten Mullets

The full-league schedule will consist of eight games against other teams in the division (72 total games), four games against teams in the other division of the “league” (40 additional games) and two games against each of the teams in the other league (40 more games). That will mean each team will have a 152-game regular season. Division winners will meet in a best-of-seven series within their “league” with league champions meeting in a best-of-seven series to determine the winner of the Trujillo Cup.

Edited Jan. 9-Got my directions mixed up and had to switch the International Division names around.

2 Coats-Thanks for the interest. It's always nice when one of the VIPs takes a notice in an AAR!
The importance of the leagues is that they are like the National and American Leagues in Major League Baseball. Perhaps a better term would be conferences, such as in American Football. The leagues are under the same management (Dominican Republic Baseball, or as I've called it, La Liga Trujillo) but are separate to determine "league champions" to meet in the Trujillo Cup Series to determine the champion of the Caribbean.
I'm really starting to get into the baseball aspect and might actually try to sim the series before the AAR comes to an end using a dedicted baseball sim and contemporary players from both the Major Leagues and Negro Leagues.

Unfortunately, I've had a small problem with the game. The dreaded December 13, 1941 bug has come up in the game. I'm playing under 1.05c (that's the version that shows up when I start the game) with the tweak pack installed. I was under the impression that was supposed to fix the Dec. 13, 1941 problem. I tried to open the save game file under the editor, figuring if I just moved the date past Dec. 13, it would pick right up again. Unfortunately, the editor crashes when I try to open that file. Unfortunately, I don't have a cd burner on my laptop, so the 8-plus meg file is sort of stuck there. If you've got any ideas on how I might be able to fix the problem, I'm all ears

Thanks,
Battleline

Robert-Thanks for the encouragement! Again, it always is nice when somebody gives positive feedback
2 Coats-I found that when I applied one of the patches, I don't know which one, it didn't unzip the files to the correct locations. I cross-checked that with my desktop computer. As I tried to move the files into the correct places manually, that didn't work either. I ended up solving the problem by e-mailing the save-game file from my laptop to my desktop and restarting it there. It did go past the December 13 date (with some interesting AI moves!). I'm going to resume it this week. Thanks.
Battleline

Just to get everyone up to speed on where things currently stand.
The game has been played up to Dec. 9, 1941.
The first time I tried it, I got up to the dreaded Dec. 13, 1941 freeze. I lost back to Oct. 12 when I had to revert to the last save.
The next time I managed to save the game on Dec. 9, 1941, so that information was saved, but it still locked up on Dec. 13, 1941.
I found the problem was that one of the patches didn't send the files to the correct locations. I suspect it might have had something to do with the fact that I was still using pkunzip rather than winzip. At any rate, the version on the laptop became unusable after my meddling around to try to place the files in the correct locations. I moved the saved game file and e-mailed it to myself. I brought it over to my desktop computer, which has all of the 1.05c files correctly patched (I ran a test with the saved game file I e-mailed and it ran past Dec. 13, so it will work).
The game is continuing on a HP Pavillion computer with a Pentium III 733 processor.
As soon as I can write up more of the AAR, I'll post it.
Thanks,
Battleline

Goals for this AAR

I'm getting ready to write my next set of world events. I can write Chapter XIII January-June, 1941. I'm also considering creating a real Trujillo Cup playoff series (or even the League Championship Series for both the Dominican and International Leagues and then the Copa Trujillo). I would be using contemporary players borrowed from Major League Baseball stats from around that time and from a Negro Leagues database I have. Now inventing the Dominican and other Caribbean players who would have never played beyond this league might be a little daunting, but I've got some ideas. I will be using Tom Tippett's Diamond Mind Baseball (Version 8). It's a good simulation and easy to transfer data from the game to text files. I also found an interesting book over the weekend for anyone who is interested in doing a similar theme. The book is called "Duty, Honor, Victory America's Athletes in World War II by Gary Bloomfield. (The Lyons Press, 2003). The book has some general details wrong (such as Hellcats at Coral Sea or the B-17 Liberator), but has good information on where America's professional and collegiate athletes served during WWII. I bought mine in the St. Louis area, but hopefully your local library will have a copy. Good reference for a jock-based AAR.
Battleline

2 Coats-Good Point! Jocks and reference don't usually go together!
But if you were doing something about baseball or football (American AAR, hmm, maybe a future AAR idea, I've got the simulation platforms for those games), it's not a bad reference point. Or if you wanted to write from a personal perspective of the troops within an American AAR, such as one that might take in, say the European invasion where you could have your scene's character working on a rocket ship with Yogi Berra or on a landing craft with Negro Leagues player Leon Day. It's interesting reading that includes athletes from many different sports from baseball to football to wrestling to golf to boxing. I can rarely pass up a book on WWII!
Thanks,
Battleline

2 Coats-That's OK. There are a bunch of sports I have trouble understanding as well. Watched Cricket on television a few weeks ago and I still don't have a clue to the rules!
You should see how far some people go in their study of baseball statistics. There is a group devoted to baseball reseach (SABR) with worldwide membership. Several years ago at the convention in San Francisco, one of my roommates in the hotel was from Germany.
I'll keep my explanation of what's happening at an understandable level.
Again, Thanks for the interest!
Battleline