SAN FRANCISCO BASEBALL

OLD TIMERS ASSOCIATION

(Established 1941)

FROM THE DUGOUT

October 2016 Edition
_______________________________
Officers

Directors

Rich Murphy (President)

Bill DeMattei

Jim Jarvis

Bob Fife (Vice President)

Dave Longa

Frank Brady

Ken Mooney (Treasurer)

Paul Varni

Nick Poppin

Anthony Boyadzis (Secretary)

Cliff Righetti

Gary B ader (Membership)

Leo Martinez (Health & Welfare)

Joe Marino (Sgt. at Arms)

Rich Ford (Golf Commissioner)

Lou Landini (Newsletter Editor)

Editors Column
This month, lets talk about baseball. This has been a very odd major league season
for Giants fans. Our guys hit the All-Star break with the best record in the National
League and a commanding lead in the standings over the Evil Dodgers. Since the AllStar break, the Giants have been one of the worst teams in Major League Baseball,
and at the time of this writing have lost the NL West crown to the Dodgers but
somehow managed to secure the second wild card spot. Over this bad stretch, the
starting pitching has been pretty decent, but the collapse can be attributed to poor
hitting, some uncharacteristic defensive lapses, and a horrible bullpen. And I do
mean a HORRIBLE bullpen.
Baseball is in principle a simple game based on 90-foot increments. On offense a
team tries to acquire and maintain as many 90-foot increments as possible on its way
around the bases to home plate. On defense a team tries to deny as many of those
90-foot segments as they can to keep offensive journeys from being completed at
home plate. The Giants have been awful in acquiring 90s because of their weak
hitting up and down the line-up, and they have been terrible at advancing runners
and scoring runners, especially with 2 outs. And the bullpen---thats a whole story in
itself. Those guys have stunk up the joint in their efforts to keep runners off base,
and to keep them from scoring late in games, either to help the Giants stay in a close
game or to preserve a lead.
Its time to consider next year. The Giants need to re-tool the bullpen, which means
spending money on a quality closer and top-shelf set-up men. And they need to
invest big bucks in some genuine power hitters, guys who can erase a 3-run deficit
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with one swing of the bat. Yeah, we all know AT&T Park is not a home run paradise,
but opposing teams dont seem to have a whole lot of problems banging balls out.
And, they have to come up with two quality starters to fill the #4 and #5 spots. To do
all this is going to take a lot of money. Will the Giants front office be willing to
spend? Well see.
In the meantime, on the last day of the regular season, the Giants pulled off another
return to post-season play, surprising a lot of people. Lets hope they can battle their
way to another title. Somehow, some way. Time for some even-numbered year magic.
Old Timers vs Alzheimers
Guys, lets keep up the fight!! Remember to kick in a buck or two as you buy your
raffle tickets at our monthly dinners. Every little bit helps in the quest for a cure or
an effective treatment. We have received word from Treasurer Ken Mooney that at
the September dinner, $176 was donated, and at the September Marino Pieretti
Lunch I was given a $100 donation by one of our generous members who insisted on
remaining anonymous. So the September total was $276, which will be forwarded to
the Alzheimers Association by Ken. Men, we are doing great!! Thanks to all who
donated!!
Get Your Newsletter by E-Mail
The number of members who have signed up for e-mail delivery of their monthly
newsletter is 90, and we are hoping for a lot more. We would urge those members
who have e-mail to sign up by sending me a message at insplfl225@hotmail.com and we
will add you to the list. Its a real cost saver for the SFBOTA, and on top of that, you
get the photos in the news in color (in some cases thats not a good thing!).
Important Dates Department..
October 11, 2016---The monthly Dinner at the Irish Cultural Center will commence
with cocktails at 6:00 PM, followed by dinner at 7:00 PM, featuring Pasta with Meat
Sauce. This will be Sponsors Appreciation Night. Lets have a great turn-out to
honor these generous benefactors.
October 19, 2016---The Marino Pieretti Group will convene for its monthly luncheon
at the SSF Elks Club, with refreshments (aka cocktails) at 11:00 and lunch at Noon.
October 21, 2016---Save This Date!!! This is a Biggie!! Its the Annual Spaghetti Feed
and Raffle. The party starts at 6:00 PM with no-host cocktails, with dinner at 7:00
PM, at the Irish Cultural Center. The cost is $30 per person, wine included. Please
send in your reservations by 10/14/16. A flyer with instructions is attached to this
newsletter as it was for the September edition. Again, a special reminder to all
Members: please get your sold ticket stubs and money in to Dave Longa as soon as
you can! Hes getting real nervous now, and when he gets real nervous, he sends out
Emil Ruggiero, a modern day Lucca Brazzi, to collect.
November 8, 2016---The monthly Dinner at the Irish Cultural Center, with cocktails
at 6:00 PM and dinner at 7:00 PM, with turkey being on the menu. I just know that
some Members, in keeping with the spirit of Thanksgiving, will oil themselves up
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during the cocktail hour with another type of turkey---Wild Turkey! (Special Note--this is Election Day, and well be able to tell whose favored candidate lost by the
number of empty shot glasses on the table.)
November 9, 2016---The Annual Dante Benedetti Dinner at the South SF Elks Lodge.
More info to follow from the promotors of that event.
November 16, 2016---The Marino Pieretti Group will gather for its monthly poetry
reading and luncheon at the ever-popular Nicks Restaurant in Pacifica, with attitude
adjustments at 11:00 AM and lunch at 12:00 Noon.
Golf News---Upcoming Events
October 17, 2016, tee times beginning at 9:00 AM---Sunnyvale Golf Course in, you got
it, Sunnyvale. This is event #2 in the competition for the club championship.
November 14,2016, tee times beginning at 9:00 AM---Santa Teresa GC in San Jose
and is the final event in the chase for the club championship.
Results for the Closest to the Hole at San Jose Muni
Hole 4: Forward Tees---(1) Ed Grech 99 (2) Emil Picchi 144
Back Tees-------(1) Victor Cipparron 910 (2) Rick Valdes 163
Hole 7: Forward Tees---(1) Nick Cannuli 332 (2) Rich Brostrom 339
Back Tees------- (1) Victor Cipparron 46 (2) Nobody
Hole 12: Forward Tees---(1) Al Morrison 81 (2) Gary Bader 811
Back Tees--------(1) Dean Asimos 122 (2) Paul Navarro 159
Hole 17: Forward Tees---(1) Leo Martinez 246 (2) Nobody
Back Tees--------(1) Dean Asimos 109 (2) Ken Mooney 169
In Memoriam
We sadly must announce the passing of a wonderful man and super Old Timer, Terry
Roach. As a Membership, we extend our deepest condolences to Terrys Family and
Friends for their profound loss. Godspeed, Terry, from all of us in the SFBOTA.
On the Mend
Im sorry to note a lengthy list of our Members on the DL this month. Bob Martinez,
Rich Blackburn, Bill Kennaugh, Charlie Silvera, Clarence Grider, Don Collopy, Jerry
Big Sully Sullivan, Denis Devlin and Hal Fox---All these great guys are spending
time in the Trainers Room, and the Old Timers wish each and every one of these
honorable Members a speedy and complete recovery.
Larry Nissim is recovering from major surgery and is getting better and stronger by
the day. Larry expects to be back in the line-up again soon. He is one very tough
guy, a trait we see over and over among our fellow Old Timers! Keep on battling,
Larry!
A Repeat of a Special Note from Leo Martinez: Jim Perry is on the DL and is at
Laguna Honda Home. Jim would be brightened up with cards and letters addressed to
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him at Laguna Honda Home, 375 Laguna Honda Blvd, Building 1 North, Room 133A,
San Francisco, Calif. 94116.
You Know Youre an Old Timer When
you have to buy Super-Sized alphabet soup.
---you look at the painting The Last Supper and see yourself in the background as
one of the waiters.
---you see an attractive woman and start calculating if you could be her grandfather.
---you know you still got it but you dont know what to do with it.
Overheard
In 1987, the Pope came to San Francisco and was staying at the Fairmont Hotel. One
night he was invited to the Archbishops mansion for dinner, so he goes down to the
limousine and he asks the chauffer Can I drive? The guy says Hey, youre the
Boss, you wanna drive, you drive and slides over to the passenger side. As the limo
is heading west on California Street, it pulls alongside Bobby Mitchells car, and
Bobby looks over and sees the Pope behind the wheel. A few minutes later, Bobby
meets his pal Nick Poppin for dinner, and he tells Nick I just saw the most powerful
man in the world on California Street tonight! Nick asks, Oh yeah? Who was it?
Bobby looks Nick dead in the eye and says I have no idea, but hes so powerful that
he has the Pope as his driver! Nick hurt his neck from shaking his head in disbelief.
Baseball Trivia
(Last Months Questions & Answers)
---How many home run titles did slugger Roger Maris win? (Believe it or not, only 1)
---Which pitcher had the most wins in Dodger history?
A) Don Drysdale B) Sandy Koufax C) Don Sutton (Believe it or not, Don Sutton)
This Months Questions
---Who was the only pitcher to lead the National League in strikeouts 3 times during
the 1980s?
---Who was the only major leaguer who played at least 500 games for the Astros,
Expos, Mets and Tigers?
Special Event Notification
Repeated from Last Months Issue: The 2016 Balboa HS Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame
and Hall of Merit Awards Luncheon will take place on Saturday, November 5, 2016.
We usually do not advertise in great detail those functions that are not SFBOTA
sponsored events, but we are gladly making an exception in this case because three
outstanding Old Timers are being honored that day, Nick Poppin (Athletics Hall of
Fame), Bob Volkert (Athletics Hall of Fame---Special Recognition), and Bill Magidson
(Hall of Merit). This memorable event will be held at Patio Espanol, 2850 Alemany
Blvd., San Francisco, no-host cocktails at 11:30 AM, with lunch to follow at 12:30.
The cost is $40. Make your check payable to Balboa Alumni, and send it to P.O. Box
4

31866, SF, CA 94131. Please respond quickly. Any questions? Contact Emily Powell,
Balboa Alumni President Emeritus, at 650-851-8101, or e-mail her at
emilybalboa@comcast.net We will have flyers available at both the October dinner and
Marino Pieretti Lunch.
Words of Wisdom
From Will Rogers: We could certainly slow the aging process down if it had to work
it way through Congress.
Rogues Gallery

In Memory of our Brother Old Timer

Terry Roach---loved, respected and
missed by all

The attendees at the Annual

Tony Gomez Past Presidents
Luncheon at Nicks on Sept. 29--A truly great photo of a lot of
great guys!

Before seasickness set in, some of the

Marino Pieretti Day on the Bay hearty
sailors enjoy some lubricant to keep the
gyros functioning during the Sept. 14
marine adventure.

Does it get any better than this??? Taken

during the Day on the Bay cruise!!

A view of AT&T Park from the Bay side---rumor

has it that Ken Mooney and Rich Ford were diving
for balls that made it into the drink during BP!
None of the other guys on board would give them
up.

Final thought: it is strongly suggested

that you dont ask people How stupid
can you be? They might take that as a
challenge!!

Thank You Once Again and Always to Our Loyal Sponsors

DEE MURATORE, MURATORE GENERAL CONTRACTOR & CABINET MAKER

2825 Phelps St, SF 94124; 415-826-1220; www.muratorecorp.com
DENNIS DICKEY, 1st CHOICE MORTGAGE AND REALTYJohn Le
1553 Second Street, Napa 94559 707-252-2400 dennis@realtorcite.com
ROB FIFE, 729 SOLUTIONS
1618 Sullivan Ave, Suite 535, Daly City 94115 650-755-7049
GERI CAMPANA, AL GRAF BAIL BONDS
859 Bryant St, SF 94013 415-431-3333
ERNEST CHUCKAYALA, AYALA REAL ESTATE
532 Castro Street, SF 94114 415-861-0704 ecayala@aol.com
KRIS KIMBALL. BRADLEY REAL ESTATE
563 San Pedro Cove, San Rafael 94901 415-706-4100
ROGER MINHANDO, CHALET BASQUE RESTAURANT
405 No. San Pedro Rd, San Rafael 94901 415-479-1070 chaletbasque@hotmail.com
LOREN A. KERTZ, CHARLES SCHWAB CO.
403 Corte Madera Town Center, Corte Madera 94925 415-945-6408 loren.a.kertz@schwab.com
JOE MARINO, COLUMBUS CAF
562 Green St, SF 94133 415-326-3088
FRANK J. PISA BARBER SHOP
5 Civic Center Lane, Millbrae 94030 650-697-0736
PAUL NAVARRO, LUCETIS RESTAURANT
109 W. 25th Avenue, San Mateo 94403 650-574-1256 or 650-458-6550

lucetis.com

GREG RIGHETTI, MARIN LOCK & SAFE

808 Third St, San Rafael 94901 415-456-4346 marinlockandsafe@gmail.com
MARK BENEDETTI INSURANCE
199 California Dr, Suite 702,Millbrae 94030 650-697-2044 mbinsuru@hotmail.com
NICK DUTTO, METROPOLITAN ELECTRICAL CONSTRUCTION, INC.
2400 Third St, SF 94107 415-642-3002 ndutto@metroelectric.com
CHUCK GUST, NICKS SEASHORE RESTAURANT
100 Rockaway Avenue, Pacifica 94044 650-359-3900 www.nicksrestaurant.net
RAY McDONALD, PERSONAL AWARDS CO.
1842 E. 3rd Avenue, San Mateo 94401 650-558-0860 pawards@pacbell.net
DANIEL E. COLLINS, PORTSMOUTH FINANCIAL SERVICES
250 Montgomery St, Suite 200, SF 94104 415-543-8500 or 800-443-2227 toll free
TOM LaTORRE, SABELLA & LaTORRE SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
#3 Fishermans Wharf, SF 94133 415-673-2824
SAN FRANCISCO FIREFIGHTERS TOY PROGRAM

Leo Martinez, Al McCarthy, Vince Tudoni. Rich Blackburn, Skip McKinney, George Schnapp,
Jim McCoy, Art Citron, Dan Jacobsmeyer, Brian Kearney, Ray Molinari
TOM CREEDIN, SCOMAS RESTAURANT
Pier 47, Fishermans Wharf, SF 94133 415-771-4383
MARLENE VOGELSANG, SOCIETY for AMERICAN BASEBALL RESEARCH (SABR)
510-589-8523 mvogelsang@sbcglobal.net
THOMAS J. BRANDI, THE BRANDI LAW FIRM
354 Pine St, 3rd Floor, SF 94104 415-989-1800 tjb@brandilaw.com
DAVE LONGA,
THE MARINO PIERETTI GROUP
TERESA MOORE, THE UNITED IRISH CULTURAL CENTER
2700-45th Avenue, SF 94116 415-661-2494 UICCBanquets@yahoo.com
JAR OF GOLD
Fellow Old Timers Jim Jarvis & Ernie Golding
THE GRIDER FAMILY
RETIRED SAN FRANCISCO FIREFIGHTERS
Nick Cannuli, Bill DeMattei, Mel Canevaro, Jim OConnor, Don Dennehy, Bob Moser,
Milt Panagotacos, Mike Pera, Jack Bonnici, Roger Bross, Frank Kelly
DANIEL DUGGAN, DUGGANS SERRA MORTUARY
500 Westlake Av, Daly City 94014 650-756-4500 dan@duggansserra.com
TABLE 6 (TRUCK)
Hank Sanchez, Al McCarthy, Art Citron, Jim OConnor, Larry Lawson, Jim Dowd, George Schnapp
ALUMNI of MISSION HIGH SCHOOL
Vince Belli, Eddie Gutierrez, Joe Blea, Steve Riordan, Terry Roach
THE BALL TEAM
The Late Frank Strazzullo, The Late John Alameda, Mike Bagdon, Rich Ford, Con Maloney, Billy Jones,
Art White, Ken Mooney and Big Sully
THE 1956 BIG 8 CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP BASEBALL TEAM
Bob Bandetini, Glen Buckowatz, Ron Castro, Ken Dito, Russ Fadelf, Roger Ferrari, Lew Flores,
Fred Glosser, Blair LeMire, John McCarthy, Larry Nielsen, Larry Nissim, Jim Poppin,
Fred Quinn, Ray Waruman, Frank Cic Williams, Vince Bud Williams
ANONYMOUS DONOR
Thanks Old Timers---Your Monthly Newsletter Is A Great Read
DR. PAUL NIDERMAN, DDS, DENTAL CARE SF, HIGH TECH COSMETIC DENTISTRY
2310 Judah St @ 28th Av, SF 94122 415-564-8330 contact@dentalsf.com