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Way back when, Spanish took the mound

By Commentary Jim Kriek 5 min read

How often have you read something recalling a bygone event, or been reminded of same in conversation, and you ask yourself “has it really been that long since that happened?” As that old song tells us, “the years go by as swiftly as a wink.”

That was no more evident than a few days ago, while digging in the files, flipping a page over, and seeing the story of an event that happened two score plus years ago, and realizing it has indeed been “that long” since it happened.

Truthfully, we were looking for something else, not realizing what was about to unfold.

Go back to this week in 1963. Can you remember where you were and what you were doing? Well, on this particular night, we were in New Castle with the Wooddale team of the old Fay-West League. The Dalers were competing in the State Amateur Baseball Congress Tournament, along with a score of other teams that comprised a very strong, competitive field.

Wooddale was matched with the host city’s Central Barber Shop team, sponsored by Pete (Figo) Carvella, who really was a legendary figure in that city, a barber who really was better known in this end of the state than the governor. People might not be able to tell you who was governor, but just ask them who “that barber” was and everybody knew.

Anyway, Wooddale took the field that night, and faced a young righthander, who was listed in the scorebook as “Spanish, p.” Before the night was over, “Spanish, p” would be for the moment as well known as the man who was sponsoring him.

As the Dalers soon learned, that pitcher was Dan Spanish, who had been an all-state fullback at New Castle High, and would soon be on his way to his freshman year at the University of Kentucky, ironically recruited by Dave Hart of Connellsville, who was then coaching at UK.

Several years would pass before this area again heard of Spanish, and by then he was the new head football coach at Connellsville High School. In his score plus years as Head Falcon, he would lead Connellsville to new football heights, including a WPIAL championship. And had it not been for one disgruntled school board member, plus the four Charlie McCarthys who joined him, Spanish might still be coaching the Falcons.

But on this night, righthanders Spanish and Rodney Tarr hooked up in one of the finest pitching duels any real baseball fan would ever want to watch, with Spanish and Central eventually winning, 1-0.

Wooddale had a strong hitting lineup, but they were no match for the hard throwing Spanish, who set them down on just two hits, both by Bugs Orndorff, a two-out single in the first and a double in the fourth. He didn’t issue a walk, got five on strikes, all swinging, and only three Wooddale runners got as far as second. And he had to be tough, for Tarr ceded just four singles, got 11 Barbers on strikes, six swinging, and other than the one run New Castle scored in the fourth to win the game, they didn’t get a runner past second the rest of the game.

New Castle advanced in the winners bracket, while Wooddale dropped to the losers bracket and continued playing.

In their next outing, the Dalers routed Philadelphia AC, 12-2, as Bill Lessman fastballed a 2-hitter and struck out 13. The winning offense was led by Randy Turley (3B, 2B, 1B), John Sibal (HR, 1B), Bugs Orndorff (3B), Boo Wadsworth three singles, and Karl Hesson two.

Wooddale then collared Ebensburg, 5-0, as Tarr worked a 1-hitter (single in the fourth), and fanned nine. Don Cooper led the offense with a double and two singles, and Hesson, Bob Seder, and John Sibal had two hits.

Then came a game with the second New Castle team in the tournament, and Wooddale won this one, 5-3, as Lessman fired a 5-hitter and fanned seven. Cooper and Sibal led the drive with two hits.

This win got them a rematch with the same Central team that had dropped them into the losers bracket in the first place. But since he had pitched the previous day, the Dalers wouldn’t have to face Spanish again. This time it was the Barbers who got shaved, 5-2, with Bob Brier hitting a double, two singles, and driving in four runs, and Ed Kuhn a homerun and triple. Spanish played first base in this game and hit a homerun.

This win moved Wooddale to the losers bracket finals, just one more win away from playing for the overall tournament championship. But, as we all know, good things often come to an eventual end. And in this case, it was Plumville ousting the Dalers, 9-1. They had only three hits, by Ivan Hominsky, Seder, and Kuhn.

So, it was back home to resume the race for the Fay-West honors they would win later in the summer.

And when Spanish was named head coach at Connellsville, a note arrived in the mail from Figo Carvella reminding that “yes, that’s the same Dan Spanish who shut you guys out on two hits.”

They don’t make men like him anymore.

Jim Kriek is a correspondent for the Herald-Standard

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