Independent Baseball Insider: Vol. 11, No. 32, September 19, 2013
By Bob Wirz
Greg Tagert (pictured), who managed Gary and continued his run of 18 consecutive managerial seasons without a losing record, probably would shy away from taking any of the credit for Schaumburg’s success, but Boomers field boss Jamie Bennett, still only 33, cut his leadership teeth under the 50-year-old Tagert as a coach for him for the RailCats starting in ’07 when Tagert’s team won the second of its three titles.
Tagert admits he has had opportunities to move into major league baseball organizations, but nothing “has ever enticed me”, he told The Northwest Indiana Times recently. “The say (I have) in the franchise from the baseball side, that ultimate decision-maker, whether it’s myself or Doug (Simunic) in Fargo or Rick (Forney) in Winnipeg…there’s probably a dozen or so jobs out there that have been fortunate to be in a place to have that autonomy. There has been nothing like that that has been brought to my attention that equals the challenge of this job or the enjoyment and just the overall imprint you get a chance to make.”
Salvi Family Claims the Independent Game’s First Double With Championships in Both Gary and Schaumburg
The last time I wrote extensively about Chicago attorney Pat Salvi was at the end of last season’s college football season when this proud father—plus wife and business partner Lindy—were rightfully popping their parent buttons because they had two sons on the Notre Dame football team.
They have two more reasons to be more than a little boastful now because they have pulled off what is believed to be a first for Independent Baseball. The Salvi-owned Gary (IN) SouthShore RailCats made the American Association playoffs as the wild card, the team outside of the three division champions with the best record. Wichita, KS was the favorite among the four postseason teams because of the way the Wingnuts had broken the league record for victories.
Playing in the same Central Division, the RailCats had to dispose of the always tough North winners, Fargo, ND, then they steamrolled Wichita, winning the last two games on the Wingnuts’ turf.
But that was only the beginning. Another Chicago-area team owned by the Salvi family, the Schaumburg Boomers, became the first team in the 21-year history of the Frontier League to win all six postseason games, sweeping Florence, KY and Lake Erie (Avon, OH). So the Salvi trophy case has two championship mementoes to keep shined.
