If George Lindgren’s old softball hat could only talk, it would probably tell a lot of stories.
But then Lindgren and others of his generation who watched and played fast pitch softball in Scandia have plenty of stories of their own.
“There was a whole lot of talk about softball back then,†said Lindgren, who some have identified as the biggest Scandia softball fan ever.
Scandia has a rich history with the sport, dating back to the post-World War II era and a team formed in 1946 by Les Benson and Stan Sandquist.
In the late 1960s and ‘70s, Scandia fast pitch was not to be missed. During that time period, the town produced numerous state and national tournament-winning teams.
In fast pitch softball, having a good pitcher meant having a good team, and the key to much of Scandia’s success in those days was the fact that Scandia had a few good pitchers — Jim Lindberg and Wayne Erickson, a 1984 inductee to the Minnesota Softball Hall of Fame, to name a few.
“A team depended on pitching talent,†said Greg Benson, who played for about 12 years during the ‘60s and ‘70s.
A good fast pitch softball game, then, meant 2-1 or 1-0 scores. No-hitters were fairly common — they certainly weren’t the anomaly they have become in the modern era of million dollar baseball salaries and deep pitching crews.
In 1976, for instance, Lindberg pitched a 25-inning game that ended with a 2-1 score. According to a 1966 tournament program, Erickson averaged 12 strikeouts per game during the 1963 season, more than half the batters he faced during the seven-inning contests.
Near the ends of some of those close games, Scandia’s pitching was really something to watch, Lindgren said.
“When the going got tough, they really put the smoke on ‘er then,†Lindgren said with his trademark chuckle.
Scandia had its share of clutch hitters, too, Lindgren said.
“They could get ahold of one that would make you wonder if the ball would ever come down,†he said.
Scandia’s softball team gave the town a reputation, one that followed its players.
It wasn’t uncommon for players to introduce themselves as being from Scandia, only to have someone mention the softball team, Benson said.
“Everywhere you went, that would happen,†he said.
Lindberg agreed.
“Scandia got on the map then, because of it,†Lindberg said.
But Scandia softball was probably best known as a source of local culture and community pride, Lindberg said.
“We used to have some scrappy games, I tell ya,†Lindgren said.
Players used to drive around the former township with a speaker mounted to the roof of their vehicle, announcing the game and encouraging people to attend, and having a crowd of 300-400 people attend a weeknight game was not uncommon. Admission cost 25 cents.
“Back then, it’s what you did for recreation,†Lindberg said. “Once you got a taste of it, it was really hard to stop.â€
Community pride in the team was evident all around. Business owners in the area competed for top billing as sponsors of the team, and some companies would even find work for good softball players.
“If you knew how to play, they’d find a spot for you,†Benson said.
Once, when the team lost to a team from Marine on St. Croix, the owners of Meisters Bar & Grill flew a black flag from the building.
Though there were a lot of sponsors, the team was often supported financially by residents. The team and fans held more than a few fundraisers, some of which were perhaps as fun as the games themselves.
One such event, an old-fashioned “smoker,†cooked up by Lindgren and a few others, involved lots of cigars, poker, blackjack, dice and slots — “the same as Las Vegas,†Lindgren said.
“That second year, we really made the money,†Lindgren said. “We had fun with all those activities.â€
Scandia’s lighted softball field, which still today is a cultural centerpiece for the town, was a busy place in that era.
Fast pitch softball once had its following worldwide. It was the era of Eddie Feigner, and his Harlem Globetrotter-esque four-man softball team called “The King and His Court.†Feigner often pitched from second base, sometimes even from center field, to give his opponents a chance. He was unrivaled in the sport and traveled the world with his act.
“I watched (Feigner) when he came to St. Paul one year,†Benson said. “He was pretty tough.â€
The Scandia team traveled all over as well, often making trips to Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada to play in tournaments.
Yet those days are gone. Worldwide, the game still plugs on, but it is almost gone from the American landscape. Lindberg and Benson believe that young pitchers simply weren’t willing to learn fast-pitch pitching and baseball pitching both. The game faced competition from other methods of recreation as well. Some purists even argue that, while still popular today, slow pitch softball contributed to the game’s demise.
Notable fast pitch softball teams in the United States today are largely comprised of well-paid players from New Zealand, Lindberg said.
“It hasn’t quite died in Canada like it has here,†Benson said.
Lindberg, Benson and Lindgren all agree that the culture that fast pitch softball once brought to Scandia is missing today.
“That was a different time,†Lindberg said. “Softball was it then. … That icon is gone. And it really was an icon.â€
For Lindgren, a noted coffee drinker in Scandia, conversations about the game are what he misses most.
“We talked ball, played ball, kidded each other,†Lindgren said.
Citing a recent exhibition held during the last Taco Daze, Lindberg believes there is still an interest in softball in Scandia, though. He believes the game could be revived with the right efforts.
At the very least, the team’s fan base is still ready. Lindgren still has his hat.
“If there was a team today in Scandia, people would go,†Lindberg said.
