John H. Greene throws a One Hopper to Home Plate in 1965
Which got me thinking about these things so I called John Greene, on the tennis team with me in high school who had some worthy outtings as a Little Leaguer to compare notes and get some names right on this and that team of 65.
And he came up with this story. He's on the All star team in Centerfield playing Union and Tommy Briitain later to anchor the Wofford Terriers football team as the Center and later than that chair the search committee for their Trustees and name the current President is in Right field, then the Methodist Preacher's boy. Danny Parker is pitchin and Chic Rogers is the manager of the squad. They're playing Union.
Danny is about done in the 5th inning when the bases are loaded and long fly to Center. One Hopper and John, a lefty catches it on bounce and flings the runner out at home. Robb Sartor didn't even have to tag him.
So Chic Rogers the manager says that boy's got an arm get him on the mound now to relieve Parker.
So Greene comes in with the bases still loaded, got a good curve and can get the ball over the plate. He gets it over the plate where boy connects and gets it out to right where it goes between Brittain's legs. He spasms finds the ball and flings it to first base, and Robb is in the middle of hell breaking loose and JOhn is watchin all this chaos cause five minutes before then he's in an idyll with a good view out in Center. Greene is not covering Sartor behind home plate.
Rob is flummoxed with the bad cutoff at first and after one run scores places pitch and catch with Greene who's still on the mound while all four runs score and Chic Rogers is cussin every father and mother in Cherokee County who conceived this squad of pretenders and this and that and yet to come.
PS All this happened at the same location where 25 years earlier Shoeless Joe Jackson came over from Greenvile from the liquor store for an exhibition and hit a home run in Irene Park that to this day is still floating up in the air across the North Carolina line toward the Blue Ridge Parkway!