The composer who should have played baseball - answer

[Pedro Saavedra]

I came across a problem in a checkers book. I know nothing about the composer, but his name would be more appropriate for a baseball star.

Interestingly, some forty years after the book where I saw it was published, a pool checkers player of the same name won one of the lower divisions of the pool checkers national (yes, I googled the name and checkers) but I doubt it would be the same person.

I pose it as a trivia question, but hope somebody can enlighten me about the man.

[Pedro Saavedra]

Knowing nothing about the man, it is hard to give a hint, but in the well known book where I found the problem, no other problem gives a first and last name for the problemist, except for this one. The problem is preceded by one by R.J. Nicholson and followed by one by W.J. Wood.

Of course, I am assuming that the name given is the composer's real name, which I am not totally certain of, given that it could have been a baseball slugger's nickname.

[Pedro Saavedra]

Nobody seems to recall the name of the problemist whose name suggests a baseball slugger. Well, I found it in Riesman's Pioneer. Now all you have to do it look it up (and tell me what you know about the man).

[Bob Murr]

Oh yes, the great Homer King, wasn't his real name Babe Ruth?

I still yearn for another Christy Matthewson.

This is a neat little problem, reminds me of Willie Ryan's basic ideas in the front of his "Tricks, Traps and Shots. Similar to #5, same idea different setting.

[Pedro Saavedra]

Do you know anything about the composer? I looked him up, and there was a pool checkers player by that name who won a lower section in the 1982 Pool Checkers national, but I doubt it would be the same person.

I also wonder why he is the only composer where first and last name were listed in Riesman's book. Unless indeed "Homer King" was an alias or some other H. Kings was a well-known problemist.

[Bob Murr]

I had never heard of him before and find no games or other problems credited to him. Perhaps Richard Fortman could share some information about him?

On second thought, maybe Babe Ruth was a closet checker player and used this alias.