Terry Snow was a formidable fixture in Maine baseball circles at many levels in the late 1950’s through the early 1970’s.
Snow, a power hitting outfielder and left handed pitcher, who is remembered by some as a crafty junkballer, and by others as a hard thrower, was a standout at many levels.
He led Greely High School to division titles in 1960, 1961 and 1962 with some solid hitting in the number 3 and 4 spots and a near-perfect 15-1 pitching record. During this time, he played American Legion ball with a consolidated suburban team based in Falmouth in 1960 and 1961.
Maine Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Curry, another effective lefthander from South Portland and in Snow’s era, remembers Snow both for offensive and defensive reasons.
“Terry could pitch, and Terry could hit. Not many guys were in his class as far as doing the job both ways”, said Curry, who went on to pitch at the University of Maine, Orono, in the mid- to late- 1960’s.
Greely High ten underclassman Artie Doyle says Snow would attract a large number of Cumberland and Yarmouth school children to games whenever the teams played at the Yarmouth field near the town library. “I still remember a ball Terry hit onto the roof of the library in deep right field. I am sure nobody else has done that. Just a mammoth blast”, Doyle said.
Snow played Little League baseball as part of a new Freeport Little League that was organized by parent boosters there from 1952 through 1956. He went on the next two years to play Pony League baseball in Cumberland. He recalls one of his teams those two years going to the state finals. “All I remember is we lost!” jokes Snow, who is a practicing lawyer of 35 years in Cumberland. He lives in Cumberland with his wife, Diane, and their two daughters.
Local baseball fans got their first inkling that this Snow kid might have some ability when he moved on to play Babe Ruth Baseball in Cumberland from 1958 through 1959. Again, the team lost in the state finals. “This was the second time we had lost in the states,” he recalls. “This time, though, we lost to a team that Joe Ferris pitched for, so at least we felt better about losing to someone of his ability.” Snow would go on to compete at different levels with Ferris, a Hall of Famer, whose primary fame is being the MVP for UMO in the 1964 College World Series. Ferris is also a lawyer, Snow noted.
In 1964, Snow left the family farm in Cumberland and enrolled in Springfield College. He attended for two years and then began service in the Navy in Viet Nam. He spent parts of 1962 through 1965 in the service.
After getting out of the military, Snow played one year of professional baseball in the Provincial League in Canada. At that point, Snow decided to go on to other pursuits in life, such as law school, marriage and fatherhood.
One of his compatriots, Bo McFarland of Scarborough High and Bowdoin, was surprised. “Terry could play. This guy could play ball,” recalls McFarland, also a member of the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame. “I thought he would keep playing. Terry had gotten into a car accident a few years earlier, and I think that affected him somewhat. But he was one of the best around, both as a hitter and a pitcher.”
In 1970, Snow returned to life in the Portland Twilight League, a league he had played in as a college student during the sum of 1964. He served as player-coach for the Yarmouth entry in the league, back in the days of “town ball”. “We just had a blast,” Snow said. “Just a bunch of guys, some pretty fair ballplayers, who wanted to play because they liked to play baseball.” Snow added that perhaps there was a social aspect to the summer baseball games often played at Portland’s Deering Oaks. “I could tell you some stories,” he chuckled.
Waldoboro native and USM graduate, Jim Graffam, calls Snow a throwback. “Things were different back then,” recalls Graffam, who went on to coach at St. Joseph’s and Westbrook College. “Town ball was a big deal. These guys would travel all over the state and play—they’d play anyone and anywhere—Ellsworth, Millinocket, The County, Biddeford, Waldoboro, Washington County. You name it.” Graffam mentioned that Snow and others have had their exploits publicized in a book about town ball by author Jim Baumer.
After Snow’s playing days were over, he moved onto the next logical step—coach and local booster. “I did what everybody does,” he recalls of the 1970’s and 1980’s in Cumberland. “Coach, umpire and town booster. I had a lot of fun. Everybody has to pitch in and help. That’s the way it has always been.”
From Legacy Page
Terry N. Snow, 75, Nov. 6, 1943 - April 9, 2019
Terry was the first to be inducted into the Greely Baseball Hall of Fame and in 2008, was inducted into the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame. He played baseball at Springfield College, and during those summers, he played for the Yarmouth Townies where he was known as a power hitting outfielder and formidable left-handed pitcher. The summer after graduating in 1966, he played professional baseball for the Provincial League in Canada.