This small scrapbook contains clippings from 1943-53 about the softball and baseball activities of Harland Coffman.The clippings describe softball games played in the Topeka Junior High Softball League and baseball games played by American Legion teams. Also included are clippings about the Topeka Decker Oilers semi-pro baseball team. Coffman was a lifelong Topekan who played high school, American Legion, semi-pro, and minor league baseball in his youth and young adulthood. He pitched for several minor league teams between 1948 and 1953. In the 158 minor league games for which his statistics are available, he achieved an overall record of 62-46, with an ERA of 3.19. In 1952, Coffman participated in the St. Louis Cardinals' spring training camp, but did not make the team roster in the regular season. His professional playing days ended when he suffered an arm injury and opted not to have surgery recommended by doctors to extend his baseball career. After his minor league career, Coffman played several years with the Topeka Decker Oilers, a team managed by his father, A.L. 'Pooch' Coffman. In the late 1940s and 1950s, the Decker Oilers were a perennial contender for the state semi-pro baseball title, competing each year in the state tournament held in Wichita. Digital reproduction of the scrapbook was accomplished through a joint project sponsored by the Kansas Historical Society and the Shawnee County Baseball Hall of Fame.
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