I Know A Railroad presents...A Tribute To Boston Baseball

"Take Me Out to the Ballgame"
Author: Jack Norworth
Published: 1908

Katie Casey was base ball mad.
Had the fever and had it bad;
Just to root for the home town crew,
Ev'ry sou Katie blew.
On a Saturday, her young beau
Called to see if she'd like to go,
To see a show but Miss Kate said,
"No, I'll tell you what you can do."

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

Katie Casey saw all the games,
Knew the players by their first names;
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Katie Casey knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She made the gang sing this song:

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

Acela #2159, September 2004
No question whatsoever where this crew's loyalty lies!

Our ol' pal, Conductor Larry Solomon with the World Series Trophy on Train #2163 makes it to the major leagues with his photo on the cover of the Boston Red Sox Opening Day Program!!!

Baseball and Railroading have shared history for more than a century and a half.
Two of the first major league ballparks built in the City of Boston could be found adjacent to what is now Ruggles Street Station on Amtrak/MBTA's Southwest Corridor.

HUNTINGTON AVENUE GROUNDS - FIRST HOME OF THE BOSOX

Boston's first World Series win in 1903 - The old Huntington Avenue Grounds, first home to the Boston Red Sox. Here we find the Boston "Pilgrims," later known as the Red Sox, playing Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics in the first World Series.
Note the New York, New Haven and Hartford Roundhouse in the upper left corner. On the opposite side of the New Haven Railroad right of way (now the Southwest Corridor, see old map below right) you'll find the South End Grounds (below left), home of the National Leagues' Boston Beaneaters, who eventually became the beloved Boston Braves.

This photo is cropped view of the "World Series" photo above. You can see the outfield wall and right field grandstand of the "South End Grounds" ball park beyond the car shops.

The South End Grounds - Home of the Boston Braves

Located next to the New Haven's main line into Boston >>>

Gene asks......Hey Yankee's Fans, "Who's your Daddy now?" after the greatest playoff comeback in the history of major league baseball. The Boston Red Sox came back from a 3-0 deficit to win FOUR STRAIGHT to send the Yanks packing.

Conductor Larry Solomon with the
World Series Trophy on board Amtrak #2163.

I'll never forget the phone call I got from Wilson (seen above, the Yankees fan with sunglasses on) after the Yankees won the third straight game in their 2004 series with the BOSOX.
He said......."Who's your Daddy???"
A few days later, I called him back and asked...."Who's your Daddy now???"

Gary Libby turns his Conductor's hat over to Red Sox Legend "El Tiante".....amongst other Red Sox and yes, Yankee's legends on Acela #2159 in the Summer of 2004.

Cy Young Award Winner Jim Lonborg

"Lola" with the Bosox Legends

Janet (a.k.a. Lola) with Red Sox Legends Jim Lonborg, Bob Montgomery and Sam Horn, on the
Red Sox - Yankees Special - Summer 2004. Former Sox catcher Bob Montgomery is a railroad enthusiast and used to visit Conrail's Readville Yard in the off season to hang out with railroad crews.

RAILROADING AND BASEBALL

After fifteen years of searching, I finally was able to acquire the rookie card of old friend and retired Boston Division Conductor Tom Casagrande (see above).
Although Tom pitched for the Philadelphia Phillies, he could have just as easily been signed by the Bo-Sox. That same year, the Red Sox signed BU standout Harry Agganis.

Tom and Harry have been historically regarded as two of the first "bonus babies" signed to major league baseball contracts.
In 1955, Agganis was off to a good start when tragedy struck. On June 2, he was hospitalized with pneumonia after complaining of severe fever and chest pains. Though he rejoined the Red Sox ten days later, he fell ill again in Kansas City on June 27 and was flown back to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he died of a pulmonary embolism at age of 26. Ten thousand mourners attended his wake. A couple of years later Tom Casagrande left major league baseball and went to work for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad as a brakeman in New Haven, CT.

Located over by the B&A's Beacon Park Yards in Allston, Braves Field (a.k.a. The Wigwam) was the home to the heroes of Boston's working class folks,
the Boston Braves.
The "B&A" yards and mainline were located behind the left field scoreboard and wall.
Too the left are two of the most feared pitchers in the National League, Warren Spahn and Johhny Sain.
Spahn & Sain
by Gerald V. Hern ©
Published by the Boston Post (September 14-1948)

First we'll use Spahn, then we'll use Sain,

Then an off day, followed by rain.

Back will come Spahn, followed by Sain,

And followed, we hope, by two days of rain.

HERE ARE SOME ON OUR FAVORITE BOSOX, BOSTON BRAVES AND BASE BALL LINKS!