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The Nebraska State League was resurrected in 1928. It was a class "D" league. Minor league
structure during this time included "AA", "A", "B", "C" and "D" leagues.
In 1933 the league contracted to a four team league with Grand Island, McCook and North Platte dropping out and Sioux Falls South Dakota joining the league. The league tried to add a franchise in Council Bluffs but James Beltzer was unsuccessful. The league was in financial difficulty and it looked like they would not finish the season. The St. Louis Cardinals came to the rescue by offering $2,000 to each team. In exchange, they would have the rights to two players from each team or eight players in total. In 1934 the Cardinals had rights to as many players as they wanted. Kenisaw Landis did not like this arrangement and was firmly opposed to the farm systems being set up by the Cardinals. In 1935 he ruled that arrangements like the one the Cards had with the NSL would no longer be allowed. The Cardinals responded by signing 23 of the 52 players in the NSL in 1935. The league reduced maximum salaries to $50.00 per month for players and $200 per month for managers. Admission was also reduced to 35 cents in an attempt to get through the worst of the depression.
The season started on May 15th and closed August 27th. The
St. Louis Cardinals contracted with the league to have first choice of
any players developed in the league. The Cardinals agreed to offer
contracts to at least four players. |
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| Don Gutteridge 1933 Image Courtesy Dan Bretta |
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President: James Beltzer |
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| Standings | Wins--- | Losses- | GB |
| Norfolk Elks | 60 | 45 | -- |
| Beatrice Blues | 60 | 46 | ½ |
| Sioux Falls Canaries | 57 | 49 | 3 ½ |
| Lincoln Links | 34 | 71 | 26 |
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| Playoff:Beatrice 5, Norfolk 4 | |||
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| BA: Don Gutteridge, Lincoln, .360 | |||
| Runs: Larry Getz, Beatrice, 100 | |||
| Hits: Ray Bertram, Norfolk, 152 | |||
| HRs: Howard Moore, Beatrice, 19 | |||
| Stolen Bases: Larry Getz, Beatrice, 55 | |||
| Wins: Wilmer Schroeder, Sioux Falls, 20 | |||
| SOs: Mike Pociask, Beatrice, 195 | |||
| ERA: Stan Conaway, Sioux Falls, 2.43 | |||
Cotton Pippen, the hero of the 1932 playoffs also won a playoff game for Beatrice in 1933. He also had two home runs in the second and sixth innings of the game to help his own cause. Larry Getz led Beatrice in the field, batting .301, scoring 100 runs and batting .309 for the year. Mike Pociask had 195 strikeouts in 238 innings and a 19-6 record for Beatrice.
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Don Gutteridge
was an all star second baseman for
Lincoln. He started the year with Hartford but when that league folded
he caught on with Lincoln in the NSL. The twenty
one year old from Pittsburg Kansas led the league with a .360 batting
average. His contract was purchased by St. Louis before the season was
over. He made his major league debut in 1936 with the Cardinals and
played until 1948 with four different teams. In 1952 he was the manager of
the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, a White Sox farm team, in the Western
League. |
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Don Gutteridge 1944 Play Ball Card -- 1983 TCMA Card as there was no Play Ball Card in 1944 |
Howard Moore, all star at third base for Beatrice hit .349 for the year and was bought by the St. Louis Cardinals before the end of the season.
| 1933 All Star Team | 1933 Batting Averages | 1933 Pitching |
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| Beatrice Blues 1933 | Lincoln Links 1933 | Norfolk Elks 1933 |