'Doc' still as much a local fixture as the game itself

For most of the past half century, John "Doc" Yallaly and amateur baseball in Cape Girardeau have been synonymous.

Yallaly has played, coached and managed.

He served as coach and manager of the Cape Girardeau Senior American Legion team for 40 years, 38 as the head man.

"I felt like I owed the game something," Yallaly said, "and it was something I liked to do."

But did he think he would last 40 years?

"Hell, I didn't think I was going to live 40 years," he said with a laugh, "let alone manage that long. I was cutting a pretty wide swath in those days."

When Yallaly returned from military service in 1956, American Legion manager and boyhood friend Jack Lail asked him to help out as a pitching coach.

"I never threw a ball off the mound in my life," Yallaly said, "but, as a hitter, I figured I knew what you had to do as a pitcher to get a hitter out."

And so it began and two years later, in 1958, he took over as manager.

Nicknamed "Doc" because his father was a veterinarian, Yallaly grew up in south Cape Girardeau and developed a deep love for baseball early.

Now 70, Yallaly's youthful exuberance, home-spun earthiness and zest for life belie his age and are the same character traits that made him a successful field leader.

Not one to rant and rave at his players, a laid-back approach worked for him.

Rules of the game

He had only two rules for his players: be on time and when you cross those lines give it your best.

Laid back, certainly, but not uncaring and never a good loser.

"My heart's been eaten out many times after a game, thinking about what we could have done better to win," he said.

Yallaly guided the American Legion team to a state championship in 1973, a 3-0 win over Springfield Hillcrest behind Trae Hastings' three-hitter.

"I was probably never any happier than after winning that first championship," he said, "because it's such a tough thing to do and that's what you set out to accomplish."

He led his team to another state title and a second-place regional finish in 1994, then took second in the state in '95.

Yallaly not only held the program together for 40 years, he upgraded it.

When he took over the program, he says the St. Louis teams would routinely steamroll teams from Cape Girardeau and he decided he couldn't live with that.

"We started to spend some money on traveling, scheduled more games against better opposition and scouted players. We raised the level of competition, made it more big time," he said.

As expected of a guy whose favorite thing to do on the field was hit, Yallaly loved offense.

"Give me that hitter that comes up there four times a game and puts a good swing on it," Yallaly said. "Hitting is the name of the game. That tater (home run) is the backbone of the game."

Brushing off the praise

In typical Yallaly understatement, he says he never felt like he accounted for many wins as a field manager and managing a baseball team is one of the most overrated jobs in the world.

"I always said if you give me the horses, I'll move the wagons," he said. "The biggest thing in managing is understanding and handling personalities and getting the best out of them."

Baseball was most often a source of joy for Yallaly, but he singles out one incident when he hit rock-bottom.

He began his organized baseball career at Central High School in the mid-1950s. As a senior, Yallaly was declared ineligible after five games because he did what he enjoyed most; he played baseball.

Not realizing he was breaking any rules, he played one Sunday for Gordonville, a semi-pro team in the Perry County League. When word of this got back to Central coach Lou Muegge, Yallaly was suspended for the remainder of the season.

He went on to play amateur baseball for Gordonville and the Jackson Giants, but says the highlight of his playing days was making the team at Fort Gordon, Ga., in 1955.

In the era when the selective service draft was still in effect, it was not unusual for professional ballplayers to stock military teams. Yallaly went up against pros like Wilmer "Vinegar Bend" Mizell, a pitcher with the St. Louis Cardinals, and Billy O'Dell of the Baltimore Orioles.

Only two players on that team hadn't signed a pro contract and Yallaly was one.

"I wanted desperately to make that ballclub," he said.

Yallaly, a line-drive hitter, said he got 10 cuts at the plate in two days of tryouts and hit five out of the ballpark.

"Where that came from, I don't know," he said, pointing to the skies. "It must have come from up there."

Like most youngsters who play the game, Yallaly had dreams of becoming a professional. But those dreams dissolved one summer day at a major league All-Star game in St. Louis.Sitting in the stands next to his brother, George, watching Reds pitcher Ewell "the Whip" Blackwell mow down professional hitters, John, then about 15-years-old, suddenly turned to his brother and said, "If I had to hit off him to make a living, it would be a d*** poor living."

And facing the likes of Mizell and O'Dell in his Army days backed up that opinion. Looking back on it all, Yallaly says there was a lot of time, effort and missed meals involved in his 40 years at the helm of the Legion teams.

Having fun

"But I still have kids come back 30 years later and say that was the most enjoyable time they've had, and that's what it's all about," he said.

Yallaly retired from the Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. in 1985 after about 35 years as a lineman and installer.He spends his retirement years hunting, collecting antiques, gardening and working with several local civic organizations.

Reluctant to impose, but always willing to share his knowledge of the game if asked, Yallaly can be found at many baseball games around the area.

A well-worn sports' cliche states, "It's only a game."

But the lasting friendships, lifelong memories and unforgettable associations with men like John Yallaly are priceless."It's a grand game," said Yallaly. "It was sure good to me."

And you were good to it, Doc.

Larry Lewis is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian.