By: Rich Rifkin

Rich Rifkin — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 23:18:59 +0000

I made one mistake above: the ballplayer from Dixon was Ray Rohwer, not Roy. In case you’d like to see what Ray Rohwer looked like, here is a picture I found of him, taken at Pittburgh’s Forbes Field in 1922:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VhFGjm8q08g/ThzWKnlT6PI/AAAAAAAAAe8/Rggsp5hwQHs/s1600/rohwer.jpg

By: Rich Rifkin

Rich Rifkin — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 19:30:10 +0000

For those unfamiliar with local history, Dixon’s Rohwer family produced a great baseball player named Roy Rohwer. Roy was a small, very fast, left-handed outfielder. He played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the major leagues and had a long career in the Pacific Coast League, mostly with the Sacramento Senators (not the Solons).

Mr. Rohwer was born in Dixon in 1895 and was buried in Davis in 1988.

One of Rohwer’s teammates on the Sacramento Senators was the greatest baseball player to ever be born and raised in Davis, Myril Hoag, who was 13 years younger than Roy Rohwer. From 1931-45, Hoag played for the Yankees, WhiteSox, Browns and Indians. He was an All-Star for the St. Louis Browns (a team known today as the Baltimore Orioles). Myril Hoag would have had an even better career but for an accident in the Yankee outfield in which Joe DiMaggio carelessly ran him over and nearly killed Hoag.

A current player in the Oakland A’s system is the grandson of one of Hoag’s brothers. His name is Max Stassi. He is presently a catcher for the Stockton Ports in the California League. Max was born in Woodland and raised in Yuba City.

Comments on: Historical Society hears about German pioneers

By: Rich Rifkin

By: Rich Rifkin