John Krehbiel Sr., the founder of Molex in Lisle, IL, always had a passion for employee morale because he believed that employee engagement was vital to Molex’s success. So he started company picnics, social activities, and he created a profit sharing plan, long before other companies even considered it in the 1950s. Mr. Krehbiel believed
Mike Marchinski was born and raised on the North Side of Chicago. As a child of the 50’s and 60’s, two things were inevitable: Mike was a long – suffering Cub fan, and he spent every leisure moment playing 16-inch softball. Mike’s first venture into organized ball came as an eighth grader playing for Our
Matt Gillen graduated from Oaklawn Community High School in 1971. He then attended St. Francis University where he played baseball and basketball. After leaving St. Francis, he had tryouts with the Baltimore Orioles, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Kansas City Royals. He started playing sixteen-inch softball after college when he played in a game with
In the summer of 1969, three friends – Hilde Diaz, John “Sweet Daddy” Wojtasik, and Ron “Orca” Michalowicz – recruited their neighborhood friends from Summit to form a sixteen-inch softball team called the Argo Sinners. That year they began playing in the Bedford Park and Summit Park leagues. Like most new teams in their first
Lisa Pugh grew up at Cabrini Green, an inner city housing project on Chicago’s North Side. She was the seventh child of nine (one brother and eight sisters). When she was ten, she began playing baseball with the neighborhood boys. They called her a tomboy but they changed their tune when she struck out some
Born in 1919, Lee Sutter played pickup games with his three brothers in Gage Park on Chicago’s Southwest Side. He then joined Tony’s Tigers in the Nightingale League. Because he was 6’3’ and had big hands, he was a commanding presence at first base. His softball career was interrupted by World War II. He served
LeRoy “Bobcat Lee” Sutter Read More »
Justin Fortuna’s softball career spanned forty years. He played with the Bobcats at Clarendon, Kosciusko, and Kelly Parks. He was a member of the Dr. Carlucci Bobcats when they won the ASA World Championship from 1969 to 1972. He was instrumental in coordinating the North Side Bobcats with Eddie Zolna’s (HOF) South Side Bobcats in
Jim Giblin attended St. Mel High School where he played both football and basketball. In 1960, his family moved to Oak Park, so Jim attended Oak Park and River Forest High School. He later attended Wright Junior College in Chicago. He started playing sixteen-inch softball in the late ‘60s with the Rascals in Oak Park
James Tencza has been involved in sixteen-inch softball as a player and coach for forty-five years. He started playing softball in 1964 at McKinley Park on Chicago’s South Side. He also played at Mark White Park (now McGuane Park). He started out playing centerfield but switched to shortstop after a knee injury. After his fifth
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Grant Park has been the host site for sixteen – inch softball in Chicago for over eight decades. The game fosters camaraderie amongst co-workers; it’s an outlet from work and competition and has driven the players of all ages and professions to step on the field to play the game they love. Chicago style softball
