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Lumbergh

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Two photos that were in todays Denver Post.

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20080426__20080427_CC12_SP27BBO55YANKS~p2.JPG

Yankees' success had Denver roots

Many pinstripe stars got start with Bears

By Irv Moss

The Denver Post

Article Last Updated: 04/27/2008 12:20:08 AM MDT

Even today, some 50 years after the fact, baseball historian Jay Sanford finds evidence of a lasting association between the area's baseball fans and the New York Yankees.

The association stems from the 1955-58 Denver Bears teams, whose rosters were filled with Triple-A players in the Yankees' farm system.

"Most of the players on those teams would have been in the big leagues if they were in any other organization," Sanford said. "When they got their chance with the Yankees, many became the stars of the game. When somebody tells me they're a Yankees fan, I ask them, 'Why?'

"In most cases, it's not because the Yankees win a lot. It's because of those teams. The younger people say they're Yankee fans because of what their parents told them about those teams."

Denver became the Triple-A affiliate of the Yankees at an important time in the city's baseball history. The 1955 team was the first of Denver's 37 years as a Triple-A, minor-league city. The Bears were in the Single-A Western League from 1947-54, but it wasn't the elevation in level of play that made the four years of affiliation with the Yankees special.

The 1957 Bears won the Junior World Series title, and the 1956 Bears were runners-up. Shortstop Tony Kubek went up to the Yankees in 1957 and was the American League rookie of the year. Second baseman Bobby Richardson was the MVP of the World Series in 1960, as were pitchers Don Larsen in 1956 and Ralph Terry in 1962. Larsen pitched the only perfect game in World Series history in 1956 against the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5.

Manager Ralph Houk moved up from the Bears after the 1957 season and managed the Yankees to World Series titles in 1961 and 1962. From 1956 through 1958, the Yankees reached the World Series each year and won two.

Seven members of those prominent Bears teams are taking part Saturday in a fundraiser for the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) at the Denver Athletic Club. Sanford will open the program that begins at 9 a.m.

Larsen, Terry, pitcher Ryne Duren, catcher Johnny Blanchard, outfielder Norm Siebern and infielders Woodie Held and Herb Plews are scheduled to attend.

Siebern led the American Association in hits at 191, runs with 124, doubles with 45, triples with 15 and batting average at .349 in 1957. His play earned minor-league player of the year honors.

Terry won 13 games in 1956, including a team-high 12 complete games. Duren pitched a no-hitter and led the team in strikeouts in 1957 with 116. Larsen was 9-1 for the Bears and 9-2 for the Yankees in 1955.

Yankee Bears

Jay Sanford's all-Yankee teams in Denver Bears clothing:

Infield: Marv Throneberry, 1B; Bobby Richardson, 2B; Woodie Held, 3B; Tony Kubek, SS; Herb Plews, utility

Outfield: Norm Siebern, Dick Tettelbach, Whitey Herzog, Lou Skizas

Catcher: Johnny Blanchard

Pitchers: Ralph Terry, Ryne Duren, Don Larsen

"Mr. President, call in the National Guard! Send as many men as you can spare! Because we are killing the Patriots! They need emergency help!" - Shannon Sharpe

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20080426__20080427_CC12_SP27BBO55YANKS~p1.JPG

Wow. That's a beautiful jersey. If I lived in Denver, I'd be placing a call to Ebbets Field Flannels right now.

It also looks like it might be the source of our mystery patch:

01d6_1.jpg

Well, until Roxfan lets us know where that patch came from, I'm assuming it's a stab and recreating the Bears' 1963-68 design.

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20080426__20080427_CC12_SP27BBO55YANKS~p1.JPG

Wow. That's a beautiful jersey. If I lived in Denver, I'd be placing a call to Ebbets Field Flannels right now.

It also looks like it might be the source of our mystery patch:

01d6_1.jpg

Well, until Roxfan lets us know where that patch came from, I'm assuming it's a stab and recreating the Bears' 1963-68 design.

A very beautiful jersey it is...seems they went with the Yankees look obviously since they were their affiliate for that time.

"Mr. President, call in the National Guard! Send as many men as you can spare! Because we are killing the Patriots! They need emergency help!" - Shannon Sharpe

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...seems they went with the Yankees look obviously since they were their affiliate for that time.

That raises an important existential question: Is that a Yankees uniform with Tigers lettering, or a Tigers uniform with pinstripes?

20082614447.png
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...seems they went with the Yankees look obviously since they were their affiliate for that time.

That raises an important existential question: Is that a Yankees uniform with Tigers lettering, or a Tigers uniform with pinstripes?

Both.

"Mr. President, call in the National Guard! Send as many men as you can spare! Because we are killing the Patriots! They need emergency help!" - Shannon Sharpe

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  • 1 month later...

In my never ending quest to recreate the uniforms I admired as a youngster, here are a couple of my recent acquisitions. I had Ebbets Field Flannels do a Denver Bears dugout jacket, and Cooperstown Ballcaps do a hat. I have been disappointed before by EFF's historical inaccuracies, but I have to say that I'm satisfied with this one. As for the hat, it was pretty expensive for the quality of the product, but I'm very happy to finally have one with this design.

DenverBearsJacket1med.jpgDenverBearsHat1med.jpg

DenverBearsArtFowler.jpg

1966BroncosMED.jpg64BearsBlasingamelowres-1.jpgKeyeReboundCloseJPG.jpgDUMagnuson.jpg
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Here's a shot of 1965-66 Bears manager Cal Ermer. The bear patch on his left sleeve seems to be similar to the one discussed earlier in this thread, only it would have been in navy and red rather than brown and orange.

65BearsErmerhires.jpg

1966BroncosMED.jpg64BearsBlasingamelowres-1.jpgKeyeReboundCloseJPG.jpgDUMagnuson.jpg
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Is the "v' in Denver on your jacket the same as the one on the authentic one? From the angle of your picture they look different.

Yes, I think the v, the second e and the r are all slightly off. The two white stripes on the cuffs should be a little closer together, also. In general, though, I still like the jacket a lot. It's lightweight cotton twill and the color is a very nice deep red.

1966BroncosMED.jpg64BearsBlasingamelowres-1.jpgKeyeReboundCloseJPG.jpgDUMagnuson.jpg
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  • 1 month later...
Very cool. So where did the nickname "Bears" come from? Is it exclusively from the presence of large ursine mammals in the vicinity, or does it reference something else?

This is what I found from www.baseball-reference.com

The Bears name was first used because of the fame of Teddy Roosevelt, then serving as vice president of the USA.

"Mr. President, call in the National Guard! Send as many men as you can spare! Because we are killing the Patriots! They need emergency help!" - Shannon Sharpe

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