in his wheelhouse

[Alice Faber]

In penance for having forgotten the Pacific Coast League, I did some
searching. Rigney died this February, so there were a lot of obituaries out
there. I couldn't find his complete career (including minor league stops),
because Netscape crashed (twice, on the same page). However, he was a
native Californian (Alameda). He played for the Giants in New York, and was
named manager following Leo Durocher. The only career stop I could find
from near a big river was a post-Giants stint managing the Minnesota Twins.

Gerald Cohen said:
>    This is getting interesting. Alice Faber points out that the NY
>Giants moved to San Francisco in 1958 or 1959. This would explain why
>the manager of the San Francisco Giants, Bill Rigney, was not earlier
>quoted in the S.F. newspaper using the expression.
>
>    However, the absence of the major league team from San Francisco
>did not preclude lively newspaper articles on baseball. The Pacific
>Coast League (1903-1988) was still very much in existence, and
>sportswriters being who they are, I suppose they covered the games
>with considerable interest. (They certainly did so in 1913, the year
>I'm presently concentrating on.)
>
>    So we're back to Bill Rigney. Maybe Don Sparlin is correct after
>all in supposing that whoever introduced "in his wheelhouse" to
>baseball lingo was from a river town like St. Louis or Cincinnati. I
>think it's time for me to check with SABR (Society for American
>Baseball Research) and see what Bill Rigney's background is.
>
>>From: Alice Faber <faber at HASKINS.YALE.EDU>
>>
>>Gerald Cohen said:
>>>      The point is that if baseball "wheelhouse" had more than minimal
>>>currency prior to 1959, that currency would have been reflected in
>>>the sports pages of the San Francisco newspapers. And if it appeared
>>>there, it would have turned up in Tamony's Collection. And prior to
>>>1959 it's not there.
>>
>>Which was the first Giants season in San Francisco, 1958 or 1959? Without
>>checking, I believe it was 1959, in which case there would have been much
>>less coverage of Major League Baseball in San Francisco newspapers prior to
>>1959.
>>--
>>Alice Faber                                       tel. (203) 865-6163
>>Haskins Laboratories                              fax  (203) 865-8963
>>270 Crown St                                   faber at haskins.yale.edu
>>New Haven, CT 06511                               afaber at wesleyan.edu

--
Alice Faber                                       tel. (203) 865-6163
Haskins Laboratories                              fax  (203) 865-8963
270 Crown St                                   faber at haskins.yale.edu
New Haven, CT 06511                               afaber at wesleyan.edu