This photograph from 1953 features the five Coffman family members who played for the Topeka Decker Oilers semi-pro baseball team. Pictured are (l to r): Vern "Pooch" Coffman, Burton "Burt" Coffman, Abe "Junior" Coffman, Ed Coffman, and Harland Coffman. Vern, Junior, and Ed were brothers; Harland and Burt were Vern's sons. During the late 1940s and 1950s, the Decker Oiler team was a perennial contender for the state semi-pro title, competing each year in the state tournament held in Wichita. The team won the state championship in 1948, placed second in three consecutive years (1950-1952), and finished third in 1955 and 1957. Vern was the team's long-time manager, Ed was an outfielder, and the others were pitchers. Junior, Harland, and Burt all played in the minor leagues as well. Harland's minor league career was the longest?he compiled a 62-46 record while pitching for several minor league teams between 1948 and 1952. His best year was 1948, when he went 18-5 for the Independence (Kansas) Yankees, had a 1.94 ERA, and pitched a 7-inning no-hitter. Junior Coffman played with the Topeka Owls in 1946 and also pitched a no-hitter in a Western Association game against the Leavenworth team. Burt Coffman was a pitcher for the Carthage Cubs of the Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League in 1951. This photograph was likely taken when the team was in Wichita for the state tournament; it was published in the Wichita Beacon on July 19, 1953. Digital reproduction of the photograph was accomplished through a joint project sponsored by the Kansas Historical Society and the Shawnee County Baseball Hall of Fame.
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