The first organized Little League teams in Effingham County were formed in 1956. The league consisted of four teams: two from Springfield, one from Rincon and one from Guyton. There were very few ball parks available, and the teams played each other at the local school baseball diamonds and sometimes at Moed Stadium just north of Springfield.

The first coaches for the Springfield team were Pat Ingram and Alfred Pevey. The Rincon coach was Byron Glisson Sr. and the Guyton coach was Walter Brown, the pastor of New Providence Baptist Church in Guyton. Pastor Brown had organized a team in Guyton in 1955, but they were not associated with any league and picked sides from their own numbers playing each other or any team anywhere around the area.
Alfred Pevey relayed information that he was a spectator at a high school basketball game and Barry Zettler approached him and inquired why Springfield did not have a little league baseball team. Alfred thought about it and said he would look into it. Alfred later asked his nephew, Barry Pevey, and several of his friends to announce to their classmates that there would be baseball practice on a particular Saturday morning.  

Nine potential players showed up the first day and thirty six showed up for second practice on the following Saturday. Alfred was overwhelmed and realized he needed another coach to help with that many boys. He contacted Pat Ingram and asked if he would coach a team and he agreed. Pat Ingram and Mr. Glisson worked at Union Camp (now International Paper) and Alfred Pevey worked construction at the Union Camp site.  They spoke with each other at work regarding the need for an organized little baseball league in the county since there was nothing for the young people to do during the summer.  

They expressed concern that there were no organized sports available for the youth of the county outside the local school activities. They met with Pastor Brown and organized a league for the four little league teams in the county. They set up the schedule among the four teams and each team played 24 games per season.

They quickly gained support of many parents in the county and the coaches then called on the various businesses in the community soliciting funds to purchase uniforms and equipment. Many businesses would donate $12, which was the price of one baseball uniform, and of course the company name would be printed on the back. The uniforms were made of heavy fabric and provided no relief from the South Georgia heat. The coaches would pass the “hat” around to parents and spectators at baseball games from time to time asking for voluntary contributions to purchase batting helmets, catcher’s equipment, baseballs and bats. All of the equipment was purchased at Stubb’s Hardware in Savannah and they purchased catcher’s equipment and three or four bats for each team.  

The coaches tried to have one new baseball for each game and used the best looking one in the bag for backup. Baseballs were used over and over until they were completely worn out.  

All of the baseball bats were wooden at that time, and aluminum bats were nonexistent.  These wooden bats would sometimes get broken and were repaired with electrical tape and continued to be used in that manner. Sometimes a really badly broken bat would require a few small nails and tape to hold it together.

The players were taken to out of town ballparks by the coaches and any parents willing to carry them in their personal vehicles. There were rarely enough automobiles to haul all of the individual teams with only four or five passengers in the car. Seat belts did not exist and many times the entire team was packed into as few as two cars, and this was in addition to the driver and normally another adult and possibly another child or two. It is noteworthy that these automobiles did not have air conditioning.  

Many times, several of the boys would ride in the trunk of the car with the deck lid open and their feet hanging out of the rear. This was considered the first choice of seating by the young boys. A pickup truck would enable a coach or parent to haul the entire team in one vehicle with everyone crammed into the back. Surprisingly, there were no accidents or injuries suffered by any of the players in this mode of transportation.

The Effingham coaches would occasionally speak with fellow workers who coached little league teams in Chatham County and agreed to play a baseball game against each other. This gave the local players an opportunity to play a different ball team and the opportunity for bragging rights among the coaches at work.

The baseball season would begin in the spring and extend well into the summer. Games were played around 5 p.m. during the summer after the coaches got off work and on Saturdays. Many of the boys would visit each other on the day of a baseball game and play baseball at home most of the day prior to the game and then go to the game.

There were no official umpires in the county and most of the time, one of the spectators would be solicited to umpire the game. There was only one umpire for the entire field and he would normally stand behind the pitcher to call balls and strikes, as well as umpire the bases.  

Dewey Sikes was just a couple of years older than many of the players and would travel to most of the games with the Springfield teams and volunteered to umpire for them. Rodney Jaudon was a middle-aged man and probably the most loyal fan the Springfield teams had. He would come to all the baseball games and would be at the baseball diamond when we met to travel to one of the other towns.  

Mr. Rodney did not drive or own an automobile and would be the first one to climb in the car with the rest of the team for an out of town game. He was naturally welcomed by the coaches and the baseball players and was considered “one of the team.”  

Mr. Rodney had a speech impediment and is well remembered by the Springfield players for holding up three fingers and saying at each inning, “Shree up and shree down” (three up and three down). Another faithful spectator was Steve Burns’ brother Johnny, who was confined to a wheelchair but managed to make it to virtually all of the games.

Some others who played for Springfield but were not members of the original 1957 team include: Curtis Etheridge, Gerald Etheridge, David Fulcher, L.C. “Buddy” Fulcher Jr., Eddie Bridwell, Harry Hodges, Barry Zettler, Bobby Grovenstein, Hermie Colson, Mitchell Weitman, Keith Arnsdorff and Lowell Morgan.  Some who played in 1956 exceeded the age limit to play little league by 1957 and some were of age but played later. A “Pony League” was formed a year or two after little league teams were organized because several of the older boys had nowhere to play due to age limits.

This history of little league was contributed and written by Jerry Freyermuth. Many thanks for his synopsis of the beginning of organized sports in Effingham County. Wow, has it grown from here!  

The seeds planted by the early coaches eventually led to the Effingham County Recreational Department where many organized competitive sports are offered for county residents in all age categories. We salute these early coaches and players and congratulate them as they celebrate their little league reunion.

Thanks to Jerry Freyermuth for writing this article. If anyone from Guyton or Rincon can supply team photographs from 1957, please contact Susan Exley of Historic Effingham Society. If you have comments, photos or information to share contact her at 754-6681 or e-mail: susanexley@historiceffinghamsociety.org