The youngest of three softball playing brothers, Stan Norka was born in South Chicago in 1924. He began his playing career at 17, when he was added to the roster of the legendary Joe LaPota Steelers in the Windy City League. Like many players of his era, Stan Norka’s softball career was interrupted when he …
In nominating John McCallum for the Hall of Fame, Tommy Frangella, a 1998 Hall of Fame Umpire inductee, said that McCallum embodied three important characteristics of a great softball player; “His fielding was flawless, his hitting was tremendous and his sportsmanship was beyond reproach.” Born in 1919, John McCallum graduated from Mt. Carmel high school …
John Hechinger began his softball career with St. Viator Grade in 1942 when they made it to the quarter finals in the St. Ignatius tournament. A left fielder who also played first and third, Hechinger had a lifetime batting average over 600, and hit 350 home runs. From 1942 to 1957 Hechinger’s teams won twelve …
With a softball career spanning 40 years, Ken “Kenny” Speirs remembers getting hits off the legendary Lewa Yacillo and Sheik DiNardi. He started his career at Waters Park on the Northwest side of Chicago. He also played at Welles Park, Thillen’s Stadium, Clarendon Park, Chicago and Kedzie, and one year with Fewer Boilers and the …
Great teams consist of many factors – great players, loyal fans, dedicated sponsors, and intelligent managers / coaches who weave often diverse personalities into a unified team capable of winning championships. Pete Mungo’s efforts represent the pinnacle of success as he played and later managed St. Albert the Great’s 16″ softball team from 1960 to …
Eugene Leo played in the Golden Era of softball, primarily on the South and Southwest sides, when every neighborhood had a softball team good enough for pot games. Playing four nights a week with three games on Sunday, like many softball players of this era, Eugene Leo’s career can be divided into two segments – …
Considered by many to be the second best pitcher next to the legendary Lewa Yacilla, Bob Werderitch entered the Windy City league at 17, the youngest player at that time to play major league softball. Batting clean-up for the Immel and Karis team, he led them to a second place finish his first year. He …
Playing for the Bill Rands in the Windy City League at the ripe old age of fifteen, Frank Vodicka began his softball career as the youngest player on that team and possibly in the entire league. Vodicka’s entry into 16-inch softball seemed preordained when he was born directly across from Cornell Square at 50th and …
Imagine a time before television and video recorders, cellular telephones, videotaped replays, and widespread radio coverage of sporting events. Now add to that mix the popularity of local boxing matches, basketball games, and the emergence of 16-inch softball as a spectator sport that sometimes drew more fans than the Chicago Cubs. The task for the …
A great defensive and strong hitting second baseman, Barney Nemec began his softball career from Cornell Park at the age of eighteen, Barney Nemec played with the Fuka Bullets until World War II interrupted his efforts. After his return from the war, Barney played with Stony Tires, Bill Rand’s, Shaw Jewelers (they once beat Fewer …
