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Home , John Sevcik, Missouri Tigers, Sonny Siebert

Five Alumni Seek Professional Glory

BY Series that would be my biggest Indians, and now with the Baltimore RONALD G. BLISS thrill." Orioles. At Cleveland, O'Donoghue's Now with the , the roommate was his Mizzou teammate, For five former University of Mis­ chances loom brighter. Boston won Sonny Siebert. Baltimore assigned souri students, the road to the major the pennant in 1967 and has a tre­ O'Donoghue to their triple A farm leagues has been paved with the mendous hitting team-something club, Rochester, at the beginning of glory of winning the World Series, that Siebert never had at Cleveland. the current season, but baseball ex· pitching no hitters, playing on pen­ perts are looking for O'Donoghue to nant contenders and sharing the be back in the major leagues soon. nostalgia of the and O'Donoghue's biggest baseball the legendary Casey Stengel. thrill was in 1967. "I pitched a one­ The road for Mike Shannon has hitter against the and been smooth. With the St. Louis retired the last 25 men in a row. I Cardinals for six years, he's one of gave up a in the second ." the rising stars of the National For Dennis Musgraves, former League. Mizzou pitching star who once heard Sports Illustrated says of Shan­ the cheers at Shea Stadium in New non, "There were those who thought, York, the road back has been filled. with all due deference to superstars with long bus rides from minor league Gibson, Flood and Brock, that the towns, two arm operations, pitching most valuable Cardinal last year was in relief, and learning a new style Mike Shannon, who hit conspicuous­ of pitching. Once, Dennis Musgraves ly well in the clutch and was inspired was called a blazer, a man with a Den.. I. M.....-. at third base." tremendous fast ball, but that is gone Shannon was an outstanding fresh­ loss record. He injured his arm now and Dennis must resort to cun· pitching against the Chicago Cuba man quarterback at the University of ning and slow curves. in 1957 and as one coach late in August, followed. by two pain­ Musgraves signed. a baseball con· ful ann operations. remarked, "could throw the ball a tract with the New York Mets in country mile." Bill Callahan, sports The battery mate of Musgraves and 1964 after the College World Series. captain of the in publicity director at Mizzou remem· 50 .....,.5i .... " His bonus was reported to be 1964, John Sevcik, has also found bers Mike best, "as a real strong Siebert has been bothered by a sore $100,000, still the largest ever paid runner who could really execute the the road of professional baseball one shoulder in recent years. "I never set to an athlete by the Meta. of glory and some frustration. He option play." Shannon didn't play any goals at the first of the season," At Missouri that year he posted a freshman baseball at Missouri, but played. on the pen­ he said," but if I have any. I'm hop-­ 6·1 record during the 1964 season, nant winners, the , impressed coach during ing I can play the whole season including a no-hitter against Kansas spring football practice. but had to face the frustration of without getting hurt. In the past, I've State and a pair of 2·hitters. His playing with a major league team "I had Mike during spring practice had a lot of arm trouble. I'd just like earned average was a sensational of 1958," said Devine. "I didn't think loaded with outstanding . to pitch as many as possible 0.36. For John, who spent the 1965 sea· too much of him at the first of prac· and take my chances." tice, but he developed tremendously son with the Twins, the steps back Even with his arm trouble, Sonny's have been slowed by an outstanding at the close of spring ball. Mike was major league record has been impres­ potentially as great a football player crop of catchers in the Twins organ· sive. Last season he won 12 games ization. John has been climbing from as I've ever had at Missouri. He and lost 10 with an outstanding ERA really developed." class A to triple A, one step from of 2.97. He has a career record of 61 the major leagues. This year, he has Later that spring Shannon signed wins against 47 losses with an earned. a $40,000 bonus contract with the been assigned. to the triple A farm run average of 2.75, one of t he best club of the Twins, Denver. Last Cardinals and played with Albany in ERA averages in the major leagues. the Georgia-Florida league where he year, Sevcik hit a respectable .260 In both 1965 and 1966 he won 16 at Charlotte, the class A fann club batted .322. He spent the next four games while losing only 8. In 1966 years climbing up the Cardinal chain of the Twins and caught in almost he missed most of the last month of 100 games. and first arrived in the major leagues the season after injuring his back in in 1962. He played ten games that John and his identical twin, Jim, a one·inning, 1.() loss to the Washing. year as an outfielder. lettered. three years in baseball, lead­ ton Senators. ing the Tigers to three Big Eight Siebert was an all·around star at baseball championships and carried Bayless High in St. Louis and went Mizzou to a second place finish in on to become an outstanding basket­ the 1964 College World Series. These ball player at the University of Mis· remarkable twins also won three let­ souri before signing with the Indians ters each in football, both playing as an infielder-outfielder. Sonny's end. Both John and Jim signed. base­ father, Wilfred, wl-s a promising ball contracts with the Minnesota semipro until he hurt his arm Twins following graduation. Jim has John O·Donoghu. on the eve of a tryout with the old since retired from baseball, and is St. Louis Browns. That experience Musgraves hurt his arm in 1965, now living in Chicago working in the caused Sonny's father to ban him his first year with the Mets, pitching marketing division of a trucking firm. from pitching and the ban stuck until against the Chicago Cubs. Since then, Last fall John began work on his Sonny was at Mizzou. he has tried. to climb back up the master's degree in advertising at the At Missouri Sonny was outstand· minor league ladder to the major University and helped coach the ing both as a and baseball leagues. He has been a relief pitcher freshman football team. player. In 1958 he played first base with the Memphis Blues, a A and hit .368 and helped carry the farm club of the Mets. With the Blues Tigers to a second place finish in the last year, he pitched in over 50 games College World Series, losing only to in relief. Southern California and Ron Fairly, The future doesn't look gloomy now of the Los Angeles Dodgers, in for this former Mizzou star. He is 12 innings. still young and is scheduled to pitch Since then, Shannon has been One of the young of that this year for the Tidewater, Va. steadily improving both as a fielder brilliant 1958 Missouri baseball team Tides, the triple A farm club of the and a rising star. Last year, Shan· is now the veteran major league Meta, one short step from the major non slammed out 15 home runs and pitcher ... John O'Donoghue of the leagues. drove in 79 runs for the pennant . Musgraves said he has learned. winning Cardinals. O'Donoghue was an outstanding more about pitching since he injured For Sonny Siebert, former Mizzou hurler for the Tigers that year, even his arm, but doesn't think he throws basketball and baseball star, big· as a sophomore. And it was he who as well as he did in college. "But league life has consisted of five sea· suffered the heart·breaking loss to now, 1 guess I'm a little smarter," sons with the . Southern California in the College he said, "and try to move the ball Siebert has thrilled at pitching a World Series. He pitched. two years around more and work on the hitters no·hitter in the major leagues and at Mizzou and in his senior year a little more. I think I do that better at appearing in the All·Star classic. signed with the old Kansas City now." "I just hope one of these days we Athletics. In O'Donoghue's major Musgraves pitched one full year in can get to the World Series," he said, league career, he has pitched for the the major leagues with the Meta and "and if 1 ever get into the World Kansas City A's the Cleveland hurled in 17 innings without a won· 6