Underdogs

Underdogs

It was one of many independent leagues of the early 50’s.  More often than not, they were around large towns and cities, particularly those with big industrial plants. The post-war economy was good, there was a renewed interest in the Great American Pastime, so if you had a glove and a little ability, you could play baseball.

Players were generally not paid, but there were perks. If you made the team, time was allotted in your schedule for practices and for games. Team picnics and end-of-the-season parties were offered, and local merchants weren’t beyond offering discounts, and otherwise recognizing players from teams they supported. No one played just for those little benefits.  It was all about a love of the game and being part of it.

For the 1951 season a group of guys from a local steel plant decided to organize a team. A team had dropped out of their local league at the end of the 1950 season, and they’d fill that spot. They dubbed themselves the Steel Dogs, since their plant, which had once been part of the Andrew Carnegie steel works, produced iron and steel. Their team logo was a dog perched on a steel I-beam.

When they approached the league commissioner about joining, he welcomed their request, but cautioned them against setting any serious expectations for their first season, or for several seasons for that matter. He told them that most of the teams had been part of the league for decades. Undaunted, they organized, registered, and began practicing.  The plant provided some startup funds for equipment and uniforms, and by opening day they were ready to go.

Two of the guys had played a little college baseball, several had high school playing experiences, and a few had played on military teams during the war. They were excited for the season to begin. As one of them told a reporter from the local paper when asked how he thought their season would go, “It’s spring and it’s just nice to be playing again.”

The way the league was set up they played nine games a month, May through August, with a championship series over Labor Day. There were ten teams in the league, so you played a round each month. Their season started out slow. By the end of May, they were 1 and 8; which earned them the nickname “Underdogs.” They got razed, and in their it’s-just-great-to-be-playing attitude, they took it good naturedly.  

By the end of June, they were 7 and 11, and by the end of July they were 14 and 13, one game over .500. The “Underdog” chatter stopped. The team manager, who was one of the turn foremen in the mill, told them at their first game in August, that they had out played their nickname.  He then said, “Let’s just keep playing as we have been and see where things end up.” 

Taking his advice that’s exactly what they did. By the end of August, they were a very respectable 22 and 14, finishing fourth.  In the first playoff game, they played the second-place finisher and won. The first-place team played the third-place team, and as expected the first-place team won handily. For the final game, the Steel Dogs faced the first-place finisher, on Labor Day. Some “Underdog” comments could be heard as the two teams warmed up. 

By the end of eight innings, the game was scoreless. The first-place team, the Hammer Hawks from a tool manufacturing plant, didn’t score in the top of the ninth. The Steel Dogs had one last chance. A walk and a passed ball put a runner on second. A flyout to deep right advanced that runner to third. The next batter lined one right back to the pitcher for a second out. One of only two lefties on the team came to the plate.  He laid a gentle bunt down the first base line. By inches he beat it out, and the runner from third scored.  The Steel Dogs took it all!

At the picnic that followed, the commissioner presented the trophy to the Steel Dogs. 

Handing the trophy to the team manager, the commissioner said, “This is a surprise; we thought your team was clearly an underdog from the start. How’d you do it?”

“Oh, lots of reasons, but maybe the biggest is that we never saw ourselves as underdogs, so we never played like we were.”  That drew a well-deserved round of applause! 

Whether in baseball or any life endeavor, be cautions viewing yourself as an underdog. Doing so, may provide an explanation if you don’t do well, but it can also create a state of mind that will weaken your resolve, allowing you to unwittingly accept mediocrity before you even begin.