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Local resident recalls memories of Nevada Red Sox playing career
Nevada Daily Mail
Some of Nevada resident Bill Perry's fondest memories took place during his playing career with the Nevada Red Sox, a local semi-professional baseball team.
"I was a better fielder than I was a hitter," Perry said.
Perry, who grew up just north of Nevada, in Horton, was a middle infielder for the Red Sox from 1949 until the early '70s.
"It was about the most fun I've had in my life," Perry said. 'I wish I could do it over again."
Perry was away from the team from 1952-53 while serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.
Perry said during the season the team played every Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday, playing home games at Lyons Stadium and traveling extensively.
"We would go down to Oklahoma, Rich Hill, and Fort Scott. And Kansas City had several teams," he said.
Prior to joining Nevada, Perry said he played Ban Johnson Amateur League Baseball for a team in Pittsburg, Kan., in 1947.
While playing for the team in Pittsburg, Perry said he turned down an opportunity to play for the Baxter Springs Whiz Kids.
Had Perry joined the Whiz Kids, he would have been teammates with future New York Yankees superstar, Mickey Mantle, who was only 15 at the time.
To this day, Perry said he regrets the decision to stay in Pittsburg, and not join Baxter Springs.
"I turned them down," Perry said. "I didn't want to go down there because I didn't know anybody. I kind of kicked myself later."
Perry said a Yankees scout discovered Mantle during a Baxter Springs home game.
According to Perry, Mantle launched a home run during the game that still hasn't landed.
"The Yankees scout came by and saw him hit a home run," Perry said. "He said it was the longest ball he'd ever seen hit.
"So he (the scout) called the Yanks, and said he was going to come back here and sign him when he got out of high school."
Mantle went on to hit 536 home runs during his 18-year playing career with the Yankees, including one of the longest recorded home runs in MLB history, a 565-foot blast.
Mantle is regarded as one of the greatest players in Major League Baseball history.
Perry also said he played with former Kansas City Monarchs outfielder, Gene Collins, from 1954-55. Collins at the time was the only black player on the Red Sox roster.
"He was a great guy," Perry said. "He was fun to be around, and was just one of the guys. He was like a cat out there in the outfield. The town kind of adopted him. They really liked him."
Perry said some of his favorite teammates included shortstop Runt Thomas, catcher Bob Gast, and starting pitcher M.C. Harmon.
"M.C. was kind of a legend around here," Perry said. "He was our best hitter."
Perry said he remembers a game where he and Thomas turned five double plays.
"He played short and I was playing second. I remember that more than anything," he said.
Perry said another memorable moment for him came against the Indianapolis Clowns, when he launched a home run. Perry said the Clowns, a Negro American League team, made the trip to Nevada for a game.
"I hit the first pitch off their left-handed pitcher. It went over the left-center field wall," he said.
In looking back on his career, Perry said that the game of baseball "opened a lot of doors for him."
Perry and his brother-in-law opened Bill's Paint and Wallpaper in 1965, which he eventually relocated to Cherry Street in downtown Nevada.
Perry later worked for the U.S. Post Office, retiring in 1991.