News
A collector’s search for his father’s baseball past
Jim Caruthers is a man on a mission to fill in his father John's missing baseball history.
You might be wondering why Caruthers doesn't know about it. Did his dad pass away at a young age? Were they estranged?
No, and no. An ultimatum by his father-in-law made John Caruthers give up on his baseball dream and focus on being a father. In doing so he became reluctant to talk about his baseball career, probably to avoid thinking about “what might have been.”
John Caruthers passed away in 2016 at the age of 82. A few years later his step-sister found a scrapbook he kept of his career but never shared. She gave it to Jim. It was the first time he'd ever seen it.
He was fascinated with some of his dad’s feats and accolades but there were many gaps and missing years and pieces to the story. Jim wanted to fill in as much of that as he could and honor his father's past.
Where to start? Internet searches, calling the schools his father attended, reaching out to people who knew John for a while. He started with his high school and discovered his dad got a full scholarship to play baseball for SMU in 1951. John played freshman ball for the SMU Colts.
He also discovered a teammate whose name sounded very familiar — Lamar Hunt. Yep, that Lamar Hunt, who in later years would go on to found the AFL, MLS and later what many knew him for — his ownership of the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs, which the Hunt family still owns.
He also discovered that in 1953 his father led the South Western Conference in batting with a .447 average and that SMU shared the conference title with the Texas Longhorns. His SMU years were definitely interesting as Jim also discovered his dad crossed paths with two future NFL Hall of Famers in Raymond Berry and Forrest Gregg.
John Caruthers left SMU to play for the Alpine Texas Cowboys, where he teamed with future Detroit Tiger Norm Cash. He then wound up being one of Cash’s coaches the next season at Sul Ross College.
In January of 1954 John signed a minor league contract with the Terre Haute Phillies and started his professional career with the Salt Lake Bees. He then moved to the Reidsville (N.C.) Phillies, where he once again had a famous teammate in future MLB player and manager Dallas Green.
The 1955 season was a pivotal year for John as he was drafted into the service and became a father for the first time to Jim's older brother. John came home from serving his country in 1957. When the father-in-law ultimatum came, it was time to be a full-time dad.
Jim Caruthers has begun to collect some of the cards of players his dad played with or crossed paths with. He regularly attends the Dallas Card Show and has started to collect autographed photos of hobby personalities he enjoys meeting. He has started a wall for his father where he puts up articles, photos and mementos from his father's career.
He was recently a guest on my “Sports Card Nation” podcast and his story of chasing down his father's baseball history was inspiring. He's put a ton of hours into this endeavor and it's still ongoing.
He is not done. If you think you have additional information on John Caruthers or just want to see what Jim is up to you can reach him through Instagram at @papajimjourney.
His story is a great example of a son's love for his father and his perseverance and quest for knowledge and history.
— John Newman is a collector, dealer and the host of the Sports Card Nation podcast. Catch his Hobby Quick Hits on Monday and his guest interviews on Friday on your favorite podcast platform. You can reach him at sportscardnationpc@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ sportscardnati1
John Newman is the host of the Sports Card Nation podcast
