The San Luis Obispo Blues began in 1946 when founding manager Sandy Leguina gathered a group of WWII vets coming home to San Luis Obispo, who wanted to play baseball. He added a few younger players and began the season as the San Luis Obispo Merchants playing against semi-pro and town teams from throughout California.

It was only a few weeks later that George Baker, sports editor of the Telegram-Tribune newspaper, commented in a column that any team worth anything should be called something more colorful than the “Merchants.” He offered the name “Blues” and said that if no one else could suggest a better name, he would start calling them that. He referenced that their uniforms had blue lettering and blue stockings and declared that any objections should be addressed to his desk, "else in the future we will" use the new name.

So his article on the Blues, June 30, 1946, game with the Los Angeles Cubs, a highly regarded semipro team, was headlined "Blues to Meet LA Cubs". That, incidentally, was a contest won by the Blues, 8-1. The team developed land near Mission San Luis Obispo that was owned by the Catholic diocese as its home field. Located adjacent to where Mission College Prep now sits, that site is now used by MCP high school as the home field for its athletic program.

There are still a handful of players from the late 40's and early 50's that reside in the Central Coast area, and can be spotted occasionally at home games of the Blues, including Eddie Angelo, Jerry Hurley, Hal Martin, Dick Morrow, Ron Rodenberger, Charles "Doc" Seger, and Jim Zanoli.

The Blues became directly connected to the roots of Little League, Babe Ruth, youth baseball, and the American Legion baseball programs in San Luis Obispo when, during the 1950s and 1960s, it was Leguina, Joe Navoni, and other members of the team who provided the organizational leadership, coaches, and other resources for the various leagues and teams.

Many men who have gone on to play, or manage in Major League Baseball have played for the SLO Blues over the years, including Cy Young Award (AL 1967), All-Star, and MVP Pitcher Jim Lonborg (Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, and MIlwaukee Brewers); pitcher, and later coach Chuck Estrada (Baltimore Orioles, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, and Toronto Blue Jays); pitcher and later interim manager and coach Mel Queen (Cincinatti Reds, California Angels, and Toronto Blue Jays); pitcher and All-Star Brian Fuentes (Seattle Mariners, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Minnesota Twins, and Oakland A's). Past Blues Head Coaches with MLB experience include Casey Candaele (2001), an infielder and outfielder (Houston Astros, Montreal Expos, and Cleveland Indians), and Roy Howell (1999) a third baseman and AL All-Star (Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, and Milwaukee Brewers).

Those in the visitors dugout vs. the Blues have included Hall of fame pitcher Leroy "Satchell" Paige (Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns, and Kansas City Athletics); infielder and later manager and coach Joe Amalfitano (New York and San Francisco Giants, Houston Colt .45's, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers); infielder Rocky Bridges (Cincinatti Reds, Washington Senators, Detroit Tigers, Brooklyn Dodgers, California Angels, Cleveland Indians, and St. Louis Cardinals); second baseman Jim Lefebvre (Los Angeles Dodgers); pitcher Tom Morgan (New York Yankees, California Angels, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Athletics, and Washington Senators); and first baseman Tom Hutton (Philadelphia Phillies, Montreal Expos, Toronto Blue Jays, and Los Angeles Dodgers).

* Words and music by B.G. DeSylva, Lew Brown, and Ray Henderson.

Recorded by Frank Sinatra, 1952.

Materials developed as part of the History and Archives Program of the San Luis Obispo Blues Baseball club are published as “works in progress” and are subject to revision as new or previously unknown historical documents or statistical records become available and accepted as being creditable. We are always in search of publications, first- or second-hand reports, and other information that can be used to verify materials that are already part of the Blues H/A Program collection or can be used to create new H/A documents and/or records. Anyone wishing to donate or otherwise provide materials for use in the H/AP is invited to contact Don McCaleb, historian for the SLO Blues,805-540-0748 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it