Donkey Ball Game at Beal Park Sepember 2, 1966
Third VFW Donkey Ball Game To Be Played Monday Night Members of the Maryville VFW Post take on a team composed of young Maryville men in the “Oldtimer- Youngster” third annual donkey ball game at 8 p. m. Monday night. The VFW Oldtimer team will be made up of Tom “Poagy Bait” Wetuski, manager, John “Big Foot” Stuart. Bud “Sweet Pea” Fannon.
Kennie “PuttPutt” Still, Galen “Sputnik” Watkins, Dick “Jockey” Auffert, Russell “Shorthorn” Baer, Joe “Hop long’ Ferguson, Harold “Tonto” Hascott, Pete “Fireball” Peery, Bernard | “Lover Boy” Zimmerman, and Gene “Foul Ball” Still. Jim “Fireball” Walk will manage the Youngsters. Team members include Larry “Hot Rod” Baldwin, Don “Skinny” Protzman, Roger “Killer” Cornett. Gary “Hoss” Horn, Dave “Ride – ‘Em” Stuart, Ralph “Darling” Garner, 1 Bob “Slu- 9 Foot” Still, Al “‘Go-Go’ Jones. Bob “‘Hot Rod’ Allen.
Virgil “Big Bad” McClain and Lee Roy “Crazy Legs” Reed. Umpire for the night is Lee “Eagle – Eye” Wooten. Ricky “*Clean Up” Suess and Fred “*Polisher” Auffert make up the broom-and-shovel squad. In the donkey game, the rules are as follows: all players except the pitcher, batter, and catcher ride donkeys.
When the batter gets a hit, he must mount his donkey and ride – or at least try – to ride around the bases in proper order while the fielders go after the softball on donkeys. Fielders must ride to within a step of the ball, dismount, and throw the ball after remounting. There are no strikeouts or walks. Proceeds of ticket sales go to the VFW Post’s community programs.