1956 Shreveport Sports Roster
Team Record: 69-85
Finished 7th in the TL
Manager: Mel McGaha (69-85)
Location: Shreveport, Louisiana
Ballpark: SPAR Stadium
Attendance: 88,943, Avg. 1,155
The Shreveport Sports of the Texas League ended the 1956 season with a record of 69 wins and 85 losses, finishing seventh in the TL.
The Sports scored 761 runs and allowed 832 runs. Ken Guettler crushed 62 homers for Shreveport, while Les Peden walloped 15 or more as well. Ken Guettler drove in 143 runs. Ev Joyner topped all regular batters by connecting at a .344 clip. Dave Newkirk led the squad with 12 wins and a team-best 3.34 ERA, best among pitchers with enough qualifying appearances.
Fred Martin, Tommy Fine, Walt Craddock, Ray Yochim, Bill Miller, Dale Coogan and Les Peden were all players from the 1956 Shreveport Sports who played in the Majors during their careers.
Mel McGaha served as manager.Click on column headings to sort.
| Player | Bats | Throws | Birth Date | Height | Weight | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ivan Abromowitz | R | R | May 18, 1930 | 6'0" | 190 | |
| James Ackeret | R | R | May 5, 1925 | 6'2" | 195 | |
| Jim Barnhardt | R | R | September 17, 1927 | 6'0" | 170 | Easton, PA US |
| Charles Bogan | R | L | November 12, 1934 | 6'2" | 185 | Fayetteville, AR US |
| Dan Bumgardner | L | L | May 3, 1935 | 6'3" | 200 | Heflin, LA US |
| Irving Carlson | R | R | December 1, 1926 | 5'10" | 175 | |
| John Coddington | R | R | July 9, 1935 | 6'0" | 175 | |
| Dale Coogan | L | L | August 14, 1930 | 6'1" | 190 | Los Angeles, CA US |
| Walt Craddock | R | L | March 25, 1932 | 5'11" | 176 | Pax, WV US |
| Carroll Dial | R | R | October 20, 1925 | 5'10" | 160 | Altus, OK US |
| Benjamin Dye | L | R | 6'0" | 180 | Hartwood, VA US | |
| Billy Faulk | L | L | March 12, 1931 | 6'3" | 210 | |
| Tommy Fine | S | R | October 10, 1914 | 6'0" | 180 | Cleburne, TX US |
| Jack Fuller | L | R | 5'11" | 165 | ||
| Bill George | L | L | August 12, 1927 | 6'0" | 180 | Summit, NJ US |
| Ken Guettler | R | May 29, 1927 | 6'0" | 200 | ||
| Pete Hamman | R | R | June 25, 1930 | 5'8" | 170 | Independence, KS US |
| Russell Harris | R | R | 5'10" | 175 | ||
| Jack Hollis | R | R | January 28, 1928 | 5'10" | 175 | Charlotte, NC US |
| J. W. Jones | R | R | 6'0" | 200 | ||
| Ev Joyner | L | R | September 9, 1926 | 6'2" | 188 | |
| Ray Knoblauch | R | R | January 26, 1928 | 6'0" | 185 | Bay City, MI US |
| John Lee | L | R | 6'3" | 170 | ||
| Michael Lutz | R | R | August 29, 1927 | 6'1" | 208 | |
| Billy Lynn | L | R | October 20, 1927 | 5'9" | 160 | |
| Fred Martin | R | R | June 27, 1915 | 6'1" | 185 | Williams, OK US |
| Mel McGaha | R | R | September 26, 1926 | 6'2" | 198 | Bastrop, LA US |
| Bill Miller | L | L | July 26, 1927 | 6'0" | 175 | Minersville, PA US |
| Dave Newkirk | R | R | July 13, 1931 | 6'3" | 195 | Blackwell, OK US |
| Claude Northrup | ||||||
| William Parsons | L | R | 6'1" | 180 | ||
| Les Peden | R | R | September 17, 1923 | 6'1" | 212 | Azle, TX US |
| Gale Pringle | R | R | January 20, 1922 | 6'2" | 180 | Hollis, OK US |
| Ed Richardson | L | R | May 24, 1933 | 5'9" | 165 | |
| Rac Slider | L | R | December 23, 1933 | 5'8" | 160 | Simms, TX US |
| Fred Stegall | R | R | 6'0" | 185 | ||
| Dick Waibel | L | R | March 13, 1931 | 6'1" | 198 | Hillsboro, OR US |
| Jack Wilkinson | R | R | October 4, 1926 | 5'10" | 170 | |
| Ray Yochim | R | R | July 19, 1922 | 6'1" | 170 | New Orleans, LA US |
Average attendance is based upon the number of actual home dates where known (most leagues from 1992 and later). Where the number of home dates is not known, the average is calculated using half the team's total games.
