Loren Broaddus

Loren Broaddus published "Wasn't Any Maybe So--Poems from the Life of Newt Allen" (.406 Press) on May 19, 2026, Newt Allen's 125th birthday. He published an earlier book of poems, "Joe DiMaggio Moves Like Liquid Light" in 2019 (Andrews-McMeel Universal).

Loren lives in Springfield, Missouri, with his wife Marilyn, their two children. He taught history at Kickapoo High School for 18 years and now teaches at Greenwood Laboratory School in Springfield. Previously, he has written two limited edition chapbooks, "Weight" and "The Birthing Tree."

Loren was raised a Kansas City Royals fan since the beginning. His father grew up listening to Harry Caray call St. Louis Cardinals games on the radio, while his mother loved Mickey Mantle and the New York Yankees. Their compromise was becoming Royals' fans. The Royals on the radio was a constant every summer.

His first poetry was published in 2003 by "Spitball--A Literary Baseball Magazine." Writing poetry became a passion after taking a single creative writing class during his junior year in college at Drury University, taught by Jo Van Arkel. From there, he wrote for almost twenty years in data books, on scrap paper, or on the back on green passes, never thinking about publishing.

Connected to baseball's past, Loren's favorite baseball quotes are:

"Why is home plate not called 4th base?" --A. Bartlett Giamatti

"Baseball isn't statistics; it's Joe DiMaggio rounding second." --attributed to Jimmy Breslin by Herb Stein

"Wilbur Rogan was a number one pitcher. Wasn't any maybe so." -- Satchel Paige