THE FIGHTING 63RD

Memories Of 1964 THE OTTAWA LEGION HAD NEVER WON A DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP. THAT WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE. JULY 1964 General manager Clair “Shorty” Kreinbrink and first-year Head Coach Gene Stechschulte were optimistic about their teams’ chances in the upcoming District Tournament. Post 63 had just finished the ‘64 regular season with a 9-4 record. Ottawa had solid pitching led by big right-hander Nick Potts. The staff had plenty of strong arms with Keith Walker, Tom Heckman, Dave Ruhe, Larry Cox, and Denny Ladd. Offensively, this team could score runs. 1963 team batting champ Gordon Ridenour was hitting a solid .463. As a team Post 63 put the bat on the ball and hit well in the clutch. The personality of the team was “blue collar”. They worked hard, loved playing baseball, and had a strong distaste for losing. Team chemistry was excellent. The Ottawa Legion had a rich history of great players and teams dating back to 1930. But no team had ever won a District Championship. This 1964 team seemed to be peaking at the right time, they were focused---ready to take their best shot. ON A MISSION Ottawa opened the District Tournament by blasting Defiance 11-0 at Holgate. The ace of the staff, Nick Potts, tossed a two-hitter and struck out 15. Gordie Ridenhour, Larry Brown, Tom Heckman, Don Hamilton, and Nick Potts all had two hits---leading a 12 hit assault. Post 63 then disposed of Wauseon 8-2, with Tom Heckman pitching a four-hitter. Frank Bischoff, the Post 63 shortstop, had two hits and scored three runs to lead the offense. Bischoff, who hit .154 during the regular season, was now red-hot. The next victim of Ottawa’s march was Pioneer, who Post 63 crushed 10-1. This time it was Keith Walker’s turn to pitch a superb game. The Continental “fireballer” opened the game by striking out the side, and went on to strike out at least one batter in every inning. Big Don Hamilton, of Columbus Grove, crashed a homer and a triple. Red hot Frank Bischoff had three more hits. Next on the agenda was the defending District Champs, Pemberville. The game would be played at Ottawa’s Memorial Park. [Located on Pratt Street until 1965 when Sylvania Electric Products purchased the property for an expansion.] The team that won that day would be in the “drivers’ seat” by advancing to the championship game [s] in the winners’ bracket. Nick Potts was sent to the mound for Ottawa while Pemberville countered with their ace, Coe. The game was scoreless until the fourth inning when Ottawa scored four runs. Pemberville cut the lead in half with two in the seventh, but Potts slammed the door after that, sending Post 63 to the championship finals. Ottawa would now wait four days to do battle with the survivor of the losers bracket. That team turned out to be…Pemberville. LONGEST DAY The stage was now set. The District Championship Finals ---Monday, July 20, 1964. Ottawa Post 63 Vs. perennial power Pemberville. If Ottawa could win the first game they would be District Champions for the first time in the teams’ history. Ottawa had been close before, most recently in 1963 when they were denied by Pemberville in the District Finals. Head Coach Gene Stechschulte felt confident. His ace pitcher, Nick Potts was rested-- the finals would be played at home in Ottawa-- and his team was hungry for the title. General Manager Shorty Kreinbrink, an intense competitor, wanted to win a District crown so bad be could taste it. Kreinbrink had been GM since 1956, but had never experienced winning the title. A huge crowd turned out on a hot and muggy evening to witness what would be an unforgettable night of baseball. Pemberville was the home team in the opener and they scored single runs in the first and second innings and two more in the fifth. Ottawa tallied one run in the second, and one in the fourth. Trailing 4-2 in the top of the eighth, Ottawa rallied for two runs to tie the game. GM Shorty Kreinbrink must have wondered “what was going on” when Post 63’s Frank Bischoff launched a long drive that was a sure homerun-- until it hit a light pole in right centerfield and bounced back onto the field, holding Bischoff to a triple. Pemberville came right back to regain the lead in the bottom of the eighth with two more runs. Trailing 6-4 in the top of the ninth, Ottawa’s Tom Heckman delivered a two-out single to drive in Gordie Ridenour and Nick Potts to again tie the game. Potts held Pemberville scoreless in the bottom of the ninth inning sending the game into extra innings. Ottawa did not score in the top of the tenth. Tom Heckman relieved Potts in the bottom of the tenth when the winning run reached base. Pemberville’s Coughey had led off the inning with a hit and was sacrificed to second base. He then advanced to third on a balk. After Heckman retired the next hitter for the second out, an Ottawa infielder threw away a ground ball and Coughey reached home with the winning run. Ottawa had committed a total of six errors in the game. All of Pemberville’s seven runs were unearned. Ottawa had let it slip away-- they would have one more chance, in game two. SNAKE BIT? At this point, Post 63 General Manager Shorty Kreinbrink had to be wondering if another District Title was going to pass him by. Would this day add to eight frustrating years of “what ifs” and “might have beens”? Post 63 had to regroup. Pemberville now had the momentum, and Ottawa had used their ace pitcher in game one. Stechschulte sent the reliable Keith Walker to the mound in the “winner take all” game two. Pemberville countered with Homen, and he blew through the Ottawa hitters with ease through the first six innings. Meanwhile, Pemberville scored single runs in the second and fourth innings. Pemberville led 2-0 after 6 ½ innings, and hopes were fading fast for Ottawa. Then, in the bottom of the seventh inning, Ottawa scored a run without a hit. Bischoff was hit by a pitch to lead off. He stole second base and came around to score when Pemberville booted a grounder hit by Denny Potts. Walker held Pemberville scoreless in the top of the eighth, so Post 63 came to bat in the bottom of the eighth trailing 2-1. THE HIT It was now after midnight and the crowd grew even larger as second shift let out at the Sylvania plant. Time was running out for Ottawa--it was now or never. Keith Walker led off the bottom of the eighth with a single. After a pop out, Tom Heckman lashed another single. The next batter struck out but Don Hamilton was hit by a pitch to load the bases. So, with two outs and the bases loaded, Ottawa shortstop Frank Bischoff stepped up to the plate. Bischoff had hit for a polite .154 batting average during the regular season but had been on a tear during tournament. The drama and anticipation had worked the crowd into a frenzy. Walker led off third, Heckman danced off second, and Hamilton inched off first base-- Pemberville’s pitcher Homen went into his motion, and as the crowd and Post 63 bench grew silent-- Homen delivered the pitch. Bischoff swung and ripped a single to the outfield. Walker trotted home and Heckman streaked around third base and raced home with the lead run to the absolute thrill of the Ottawa dugout and fans. Walker held Pemberville scoreless in the top of the ninth, and it was over. Ottawa 3, Pemberville 2. It had taken 19 innings, and over six hours to do it. But Ottawa had gotten “over the top” for the first time. It was a courageous team effort with several outstanding individual performances. ON TO ATHENS Ottawa Legion advanced to the American Legion State Tournament in Athens, Ohio. In their first game they defeated Ravenna 18-7, pounding out 18 hits, including two homeruns by Larry Cox and one “tremendous” four-bagger by Don Hamilton. The next day the Post 63 underdogs outfought highly regarded Lima 2-1 in 14 innings. Nick Potts pitched the first 12 innings for Ottawa allowing only one run and striking out 10. Tom Heckman relieved Potts in the 13th and was credited with the win. Lima’s ace pitcher Steve Arlin (who would go on to have a fine career in the Major Leagues) relieved Bob Allen in the 13th inning. Ottawa pushed across a run in the 14th inning to pin the loss on Arlin. Post 63 then ran into the defending state champ Ashtabula and took a 22-3 spanking. Ottawa was then knocked out of the double-elimination tournament by Cincinnati Budde Post, 15-4. Post 63 came home with a 2-2 record and was the most talked about team in the tournament among major league scouts. In fact, the National Association of Baseball Scouts named Ottawa’s stellar catcher, Larry Cox, and pitcher Nick Potts to the all-tournament first team. Cox would go on the have a fine career as a player, and later as a coach, in the Major Leagues. TRADITION BEGINS After years of being close, Post 63 had broken through to establish a new tradition. In 1965, Pemberville regained the District Crown. However, in 1966, Kreinbrink and Stechschulte again took Ottawa to Athens. Shorty Kreinbrink liked the taste of victory. Between 1964 and 1989, GM Shorty Kreinbrink would win nine District Championships. Dave Kersh, Post 63 Historian SOURCE 1964 Putnam County Sentinel Articles THANKS TO Putnam County Library Larry Brown Tom Heckman Gene Stechschulte Note: The preceding article was written in 1999 to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the 1964 season.