Gary Bedingfield’s Baseball Volume 4, Issue 29 in Wartime Baseball Feb/Mar 2010 www.baseballinwartime.com [email protected] www.baseballinwartime.com in Wartime baseballinwartime.blogspot.com Professional Baseball Players Who Died in World War II elcome to I had anticipated a polite round of applause but what occurred the latest was a thunderous standing ovation. Not for me, of course, but issue of the for the ballplayers. The moment left me without words and full Baseball in of emotion. I had no idea the crowd would respond in such a WWartime e-Newsletter. positive and enthusiastic way. For many years, I had been an With the growth of the ardent admirer of players like Harry O’Neill and Billy Hebert, Baseball in Wartime young men who had given everything in the service of their Blog—which features beloved country, but were virtually unknown by the baseball daily updates and now community. At that moment, I knew the stories of these four has in excess of 180 men had touched at the heartstrings of America, but that was entries—I have decided just the tip of the iceberg. In all, a staggering 133 former to produce the professional players died during World War II and their stories newsletter on a bi- needed to be told. The foundations of this book had been laid. monthly basis. This issue The next task was to discover as much as possible about focuses on the 133 these men - no easy task considering they all died more than former professional 60 years ago. Memories of some have been kept alive by players who lost their surviving family members (to whom I am hugely indebted), lives during WWII. while others had few or no relatives to keep the flame burning. Hopefully, one day, I spent many long hours tracking down family members, baseball will do friends and former teammates. I contacted libraries, local something to collectively historical societies and small town newspapers, making Cpl. Ardys Keller. remember the sacrifice countless transatlantic telephone calls in my quest to discover Catcher, St. Louis Browns organization. they made. In the Killed in action, France, Sept. 29, 1944 meantime, here is some who these men were. information on them and This project has been immensely challenging, often details on the book I have recently written—Baseball’s Dead of emotionally troubling but always highly rewarding. Have I World War II. included every professional baseball player who died during World War II? Probably not. There is no definitive list to go by. I can clearly trace the origin of this book to a standing ovation Organized baseball appears to have been unable to keep track in New Orleans, Louisiana, in November 2007. As the founder of their alumni that died during the war, and every list you find and editor of baseballinwartime.com, I was invited to give a varies drastically depending on the source. The deaths of many keynote speech at the “When Baseball Went to War” were reported in The Sporting News and that was a good conference held at the National World War II Museum. It was starting point (although The Sporting News also reported the a huge honor for me to be in the company of former major deaths of some, who, in fact, did not die). But the deaths of league players like Bob Feller, Johnny Pesky, Jerry Coleman, others were never reported in the weekly sports tabloid and I Lou Brissie and Morrie Martin, all of whom were World War II had to search local newspapers for more names. Therefore, veterans and heroes of mine. what you will find in this book are the biographies of 127 My speech focused on ballplayers who made the ultimate former professional baseball players who died serving their sacrifice during the war - a subject I was passionate about country between 1940 and 1946. and felt was not only poignant but also shamefully overlooked I hope you will enjoy reading Baseball's Dead of World War II for many years. I am the first to admit I am not a gifted public as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you get to experience even a speaker. I did my best to tell the story of four players, and just tiny part of the emotional journey I took, then it has been hoped I would do them justice. Towards the end of the speech, I asked the audience to participate in a round of worthwhile. applause as a way of honoring and remembering all the ballplayers who lost their lives in military service more than 60 years ago. It was intended as a mark of respect, a way to Gary Bedingfield—Glasgow, Scotland say thank you, and I hoped the crowd would be willing to Founder and editor of Baseball in Wartime [email protected] participate. What followed left me speechless. Ebbets Field Flannels is the finest manufacturer of vintage historically- inspired athletic clothing. www.ebbets.com Volume 4, Issue 29 Baseball in Wartime Newsletter Page 2 Baseball’s Dead of World War II leaguers would serve in effects of the war on many of the the military. These surviving players and their baseball players-turned-warriors' careers. stories were diverse, but they all shared a love of Constituting the heart of the book are baseball and, very often, the 127 mini-biographies of the players an unironic patriotism. who lost their lives in the war. Whenever Many players were just possible, Bedingfield provides personal out of high school when details that give a sense of the players' they started playing personalities. He did a lot of research professional baseball, and draws quotes from the players and not much older themselves, their loved ones, news when they joined the reports, and comrades. military. A few major- leaguers who were Some of the stories give insight into life famous before the war as a baseball player. Paul Mellblom, for are well remembered for example, wrote a letter to his mother their wartime service to during spring training about the sunburn this day. But this book's he suffered after his cap was stolen; focus is on preserving since his team did not have enough the memory of the 125 money to replace his cap, he had to do minor-league and two without one. Other stories are touching major-league players and tragic, with sons or younger siblings who died during the war describing the last time they saw their and are all but forgotten loved ones alive. today. Sprinkled throughout are wonderful The first 25 pages of nuggets about baseball in the '305 and Bedingfield's book are a '405, especially minor-league baseball. well-written introduction Two players in the book played for the to baseball's cultural House of David religious. barnstorming importance in the late club. The team would warm up with a '30s and during the war, and a game of pepper, an exercise in which a Review by Drew Ames in America in description of the war's impact on batter hits the ball toward a group of WWII (April 2010) professional baseball. The introduction fielders gathered close around him and touches on the baseball careers and the fielder who catches it throws it back Americans take professional sports very military service of pre-war baseball stars quickly to be batted again. The seriously. Only major events or national like Bob Feller, Hank Greenberg, and Ted barnstormers gradually turned their tragedies interrupt the sports seasons' Williams, as well as players who would pepper into a crowd-pleasing juggling normal flow. For example, the terrorist become famous after the war, like Yogi act. attacks on September 11, 200], Berra, who as a navy gunner's mate took prompted Major League Baseball to part in the Normandy Invasion. But true Bedingfield succeeds by combining clear postpone games immediately afterward. to the book's theme, the intro then writing, interesting baseball history, and A greater though somewhat less- focuses on the progression of the war combat narratives to make Baseball's remembered impact was felt by the and the resulting wartime deaths of Dead of World War II one of the most minor leagues, as various member ballplayers. compelling, memorable, and enjoyable leagues cancelled their playoffs that World War II histories I have read in a year for the first time since World War II. The first deaths were from stateside while. The diversity of the players' stories Gary Bedingfield's Baseball's Dead of car and airplane accidents, but as the and the rich historical detail make this a World War II is a compact but war progressed, more players died in pleasurable read both for baseball fans comprehensive book that revisits the combat. Not surprisingly, many died in and history buffs. last time a national crisis had a the big battles such as the Normandy profound impact on professional Invasion, the Battle of the Bulge, and the baseball. Battle of Okinawa. Two died along with nearly 800 other soldiers of the 66th In the early '40s, major-league teams Infantry Division on the troopship filled their ballparks on a daily basis, and Leopoldville, which was torpedoed barely nearly 5,000 minor-league players-in five miles from its destination in France. 287 teams spread over 43 leagues- (The military classified the details of the competed to make it to the big leagues. Leopoldville's loss until 1996.) The By the end of the war, more than 500 introduction concludes with an major-leaguers and 4,000 minor- acknowledgment of the devastating Billy Southworth, Jr. Volume 4, Issue 29 Baseball in Wartime Newsletter Page 3 Baseball’s Dead of World War II A review by baseball historian Bill Swank Normandy and died attacking German On January 25, 1945, Sgt.