A baseball coach for over forty years, "Rags" led youth teams for the New Orleans Recreation Department, as well as serving as Head Coach at Loyola University of New Orleans. When Loyola dropped athletics in the early 1970s, "Rags" crossed town to begin an Athletic Department at Delgado Community College.
Born on April 13, 1923, "Rags"' baseball career began as a child playing street ball. Shortly after high school, he had signed a professional contract with the Boston Red Sox in 1944, but was lost for a season after he suffered an arm injury during the first week of workouts. The following season, he signed with the Chicago Cubs organization. He was named the Appalachian League's Outstanding Rookie and was selected as a member of the All Star team. His recurring arm injury forced him to retire shortly afterwards, and "Rags" entered coaching.
Following his successful stint at Loyola University, during which the Wolfpack amassed a 234-126 record, Scheuermann was named the Dolphins' founding Head Baseball Coach/Athletic Director in 1974. He quickly got to work in building a strong athletic program, the first junior college athletic program in the state of Louisiana. Through the years, Scheuermann's Delgado teams would go onto to capture eight district championships, as well as a trip to the 1985 Junior College World Series, all while compiling an impressive record of 527-199. "Rags" served as the founding supervisor of Kirsch-Rooney Stadium, a position held from 1957 until his passing in 1997.
The Delgado Community College Baseball program gave hundreds of area athletes the chance to compete at the next level both academically and athletically. Many of "Rags"' players went on to NCAA Division I programs and some to Major League Baseball. As a man who received only a basic education, "Rags" preached the importance of academics, along with the concept of "student-athlete" in which academics always come first. Many of Rags' benchmarks continue to guide the Delgado Athletic Department today.
For forty five years, "Rags" also served as Director of the N.O.R.D. All-American League, which is held each summer at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium prior to the team participating in the All- American Amateur Baseball Association's National Tournament in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Scheuermann served as Manager of the New Orleans franchise at the annual AAABA Tournament in Johnstown, Pennsylvania for 40 years (1951-1991). His New Orleans squads reached the National Championship game 15 times, while compiling an 149-72 record. Scheuermann still holds the record for the longest tenured Manager in AAABA Tournament history.
After retiring as Delgado's Head Coach in 1990, Scheuermann served as the Director of Intramural Sports at the College until his death on April 7, 1997. Scheuermann is a member of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, New Orleans Diamond Club Hall of Fame, the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, and was a member of the Inaugural Class of the All-American Amateur Baseball Association Hall of Fame. "Rags" was often called the "Dean of New Orleans Baseball".
New Orleans television legend Phil Johnson summed up Rags' life in a WWL-TV editorial shortly after his passing: "Rags was an uncommon man, a wise man, and, at his most basic, a kind, decent, and honest man who lived his life for his wife, his family, and for kids…his kids and anybody else's kids who wanted to play the game. He taught them how. It was his gift. It was his life."
In 2003, Delgado Community College honored Scheuermann's years of dedication to Delgado Athletics and baseball in New Orleans by dedicating Kirsch-Rooney Stadium's diamond to his memory, re-naming the diamond "Rags" Scheuermann Field at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium. At Rags' insistence, the stadium retained its Kirsch-Rooney moniker, which honors two local heroes killed in action in World War II. Today, his portrait hangs in the stadium's pressbox, overlooking the field that bears his name.
Appropriately, the annual "Rags" Scheuermann Memorial Tournament opens the Dolphins' season each February.
The Scheuermann Family continues to manage "Rags" Scheuermann Field at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium today, as well as maintaining an active role in supporting Delgado Community College Athletics.
