Grand Island in 1923 finished 3 and 1/2 games out of first place. They were a light hitting team by NSL standards finishing 5th in a 6 team league. They were 1st in fielding and and had two outstanding pitchers to keep them competitive.
The team played at Delwood Park and the field was near the intersection of South Locust and South Pine. The manager was Louis McDonald.
Roster:
Madsen was a regular at first base and averaged .255.
Lafayette Fresco "Tommy" Thompson had a .290 average in 131 games. His contract was bought by Omaha at the end of the year. He spent the 1924 season with Omaha then was sold to Pittsburg in the Natioonal League. He played for Pittsburg, the New York Giants, Philadelphia and Brooklyn during his 9 year major league career. He then managed for five different minor league clubs.
Buser played 124 games at the hot corner in 1923 and averaged .303.
Leonard Metz was the regular short stop for Grand Island in 1923. He led the team with a .311 average. He was sold for $2,500 to Philadelphia (N) at the end of the season. The Superior Colorado native made his debut in September for the Phillies. He also had a cup of coffee with the Phillies in 1924 and 1925. After four years in the Pacific Coast League he returned to the midwest and played in the Western League in 1930 and 1931.
Roy Luebbe played 63 games at catcher in 1923. He barely met the Mendoza line with a .200 average. He was owned by Omaha and St. Louis. He had a cup of coffee with the Yankees in 1925.
Outfield:
R. O'Reilly averaged .271 while tending the garden for
127
games.
Richard Brookhaus averaged .256. He played in the NSL in 1923 and the Tri State League in 1924. He returned to the NSL in 1931 and played though the 1937 season.
Rolf also played in the outfield for Grand Island.
Henry Buser played in 126 games and averaged .300.
Chester Goebel played in 23 games.
Ed Madsen played in 89 games and averaged .254.
Harry Curzon played for Grand Island and Lincoln in 1923. he averaged .228 in 27 games.
Pitchers:
E.Shupe was the leading pitcher for Grand Island.
He was 18-7 for the year. He also played a number of games in the outfield
and averaged .287 with the wagon tongue.
Hoetker was 12-11.
Wilford Shupe managed a 14-13 record for the Champions in 1923. He was sold to Syracuse at the end of the season. After a 2 game stint with Syracuse he was back with Grand Island in 1924. When the league folded he was picked up by Des Moines in the Western League. He played for Lincon in 1925, and Omaha in 1930.
R. Peterson managed a 6-6 record.
Albert Hoetker was 12-11 in 31 games.
Rolf was 12-13 as a pitcher and played a number of games in the outfield for the Champions.
Farriswas 2-5 in 13 games
Irwin was 0-1 and Burdan was 0-1.
W. Naegeli was 12-12 pitching for Grand Island and Hastings.