RICHARD ‘DICK’ CALLAHAN -   ’44
BASEBALL
Nicknamed “Smiling Dick”, Callahan is regarded as one of the best pitchers ever to come out of Holy Cross.
Callahan first appeared on the radar of New Orleans baseball in 1941, when he helped his American Legion team advance to the sectionals leading up to the World Series. He had started out the regular season as a batting practice pitcher but wound up becoming the sensation of the Legion baseball season, including an All-Legion Team selection. He led the Holy Cross-based Dunlaps with decisive victories in the state and regional tournaments, but the team was ultimately knocked out in the sectional.

In 1942, Callahan garnered All-Prep and All-City honors for Coach George Digby’s squad that brought home a city championship with a 6-1 victory over Jesuit. Callahan was 9-2 on the mound. The two prep games he lost were both to S.J. Peters 1-0 in extra innings and 2-1 in the state championship. In the city championship game, he beat S.J.Peters 3-2. He was dominant against league opponents, at one point with 38 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. The junior fireballer finished the season with 81 strikeouts and was selected to his second All-Prep team. He followed that by pitching for the Jax White Sox in the summer Audubon Baseball League, in which he went 5-0 in the first round of play.
He went on to pitch on the undefeated 1943 City Baseball Champion team. Callahan was a perfect 8-0 with a high of 18 strikeouts in one game. He struck out 81 batters and pitched 38 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball.
He left for the Navy following the 1943 season, but an old knee injury gave him a medical discharge and returned to New Orleans where he was eligible to play for the Tigers in the spring of 1944.

That spring was a magical one for the Tigers as their ace notched a pair of no-hitters to start the season verses Warren Easton and Fortier. Bidding for a third consecutive no-hit game against powerhouse S.J. Peters, Callahan’s remarkable 22-inning no-hit streak came to an end when he allowed a ninth inning single. Before a record 3,500 fans at Pelican Stadium, Callahan struck out 20 batters and then delivered a 12^th inning sacrifice fly to score Ted Mace and give Holy Cross a 1-0 victory.

The Tigers went on to win 22 consecutive games that included an undefeated run through the 1944 prep season that resulted in Holy Cross’ first state baseball championship.
Callahan struck out 17 batters in a complete game 5-1 victory over rival S.J. Peters in the state championship game. He won his last 17 starts on the mound for the Tigers. In that streak was 26 consecutive hit-less innings.
The teams most interested in him boiled down to the New York Giants, Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox, Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. Callahan’s coach at Holy Cross, George Digby, took charge of his recruiting process, accompanying him on workouts with the interested teams and advising him on contract matters. Digby eventually became a long-time scout for the Red Sox, culminating his career with a plaque in the Red Sox Hall of Fame.

Callahan signed a professional baseball contract with the Boston Red Sox in June of 1944 for $15,000 – the largest bonus ever given at the time for a high school player.

Callahan didn’t go directly to the big-league Red Sox. Instead, they assigned him to their highest minor league level at Louisville, which is uncommon for players right out of high school. However, he was over-matched at Louisville, winning only one game against six losses in nine appearances. His ERA was a whopping 5.86, while his WHIP approached 2.00. The Red Sox demoted him to Class A Scranton, Pennsylvania during the second half of the season, where he began to show his potential by posting a 4-2 record and 2.79 ERA. Local New Orleans sportswriters were critical of Red Sox management for trying to rush Callahan to the majors too soon.