A Set to Honor Teddy Ballgame’s Military Service

I am in no hurry to make a return to collecting cardboard – the passion that I had decades ago for this particular hobby is no longer within me. I have never sold or disposed of any of the cards that I previously collected. I still possess all of the 1950s, 60s and 70s cards and I recently retrieved them from my storage location when I was writing an article a few months ago (see: Progression From Cards to Photos; Seeking Imagery of those with Service).

With the direction that my interest in ballplayers who served in the armed forces (including service members who played the game while the served), I have been acquiring artifacts ranging from uniform elements, game equipment, scorecards and programs, baseball-specific medals and awards as well as vintage photographs. Needless to mention, I love the imagery of the game itself.

My baseball roots have lengthy reach – in my youth, I would enjoy the nationally-televised Game of the Week (on Saturday) or the prime-time games televised on Monday Night Baseball (recalling Curt Gowdy‘s broadcasts with part-time announcer, Maury Wills for the NBC offerings and baseball broadcasting legend, Bob Uecker‘s calls leading ABC’s three-man television team), rarely missing a Red Sox or Dodgers game when they were featured. In the absence of local major league baseball, these two highly successful franchises and the players filling their rosters were intriguing to me. Perhaps post-season futility or their propensity to be underdogs to the juggernauts of the Athletics, Reds and Yankees of those eras are what drew me to being a fan of the Los Angeles and Boston teams and those allegiances remain nearly 50 years hence.

My Pesky-estate photograph-find landed three fantastic original type-1 photographs into my collection. Owning a photo with both Pesky and Ted Williams in their Navy baseball uniforms satisfies my desire to possess a well-rounded archive that includes the stars of the game who served and played along side the men who joined who came from other (than sports) walks of life to serve the country.

When I collected cards back in the old days, I wasn’t one for attempting to complete an entire set by a maker (with numbers in some years exceeding 3-400, that challenge can get quite expensive depending upon the set and the ball players’ cards it contains) but would be more inclined to obtain to create my own sub-set (of cards from a specific year and manufacturer) from one of my favorite teams. One such sub-set (my 1956 Topps Brooklyn Dodgers team set) posed a bit of a challenge as it we was filled with stars who were in the prime or just beginning their Hall-of-Fame careers.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #20 – One of my favorites of the set, “1942-On To Naval (Training)” shows Ted seated in a Piper Cub that was snapped during a December 1, 1942 publicity photoshoot at Amherst College with Johnny Pesky.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #21 – Following his MVP-snub in 1941, Williams was awarded a similar award in 1942. This card, “1943-Honors For (Williams),” shows his award and that he was just days away from setting aside his baseball career for Naval Aviator training.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #22 – “1944-Ted Solos” captures William’s first time soloing in an aircraft while in training at his flight school in Amherst, MA.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #23 – Following a lengthy training cycle, Ted received his Naval Aviator’s wings of gold as documented in “1944-Williams Wins (His Wings).”

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #24 – As with his accuracy with batting, Williams excelled in aerial gunnery proficiency setting records at his assigned commands. This card, “1945-Sharpshooter,” focuses on his non-combat achievement.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #25 – Shown in the seat of a F4U Corsair, “1945-Ted Is (Discharged)” brings to a close, William’s WWI service depictions.

Interestingly, my pursuit of cards back in those early collecting years didn’t include many featuring Ted Williams. Even in those days, the “Splendid Splinter” seemed to be in high demand and his cards were expensive. My limited financial means would drive me down the path of least resistance and source only what was (then) affordable. Considering that when I discovered the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams card set, I was at the tail-end of my collecting focus, I managed to acquire a few of the very inexpensive cards that depicted Williams’ military service.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #44 – Heading back to serve, Williams hangs his Red Sox flannels up in this card, “1952-Back To The (Marines).”

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #45 – Called back to active duty, Williams addresses the Fenway faithful in this card, “1952-Farewell To (Baseball?).”

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #46 – Williams is shown drawing his pilot gear in this card titled, “1952-Ready For (Combat).”

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #47 – Titled, “1953-Ted Crash (Lands Jet)”, this card depicts William’s Grumman F9F crash-landing following receipt of enemy ground-small arms fire.

1959 Fleer Ted Williams #48 – Titled, “July 14, 1953-Ted (Returns),” Williams returns from the Korean War in time to throw out the first ball in the ’53 All-star game.

Motivated by the recent string of acquisitions and the emphasis that has unintentionally been centered upon Navy baseball (including within the Pacific Theater), I started to check on availability and the prices of the Williams 80-card set. Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) describes the Williams set as telling “the story of one of the more interesting individuals to ever walk onto the field. From fishing to military duty, the cards cover a variety of subjects.” I zeroed in on the eleven cards that deal specifically with William’s military service (card numbers 20-25 center on his WWII training and service while his return to fight in the Korean War are covered in numbers 44-48).

The eleven-card subset features color-toned black and white images taken from various moments in Williams’ military service on each obverse and a brief, contextual description on the reverse. Of these cards, I already owned numbers 23, 25 and 46. As the cards (in similar, ungraded condition) are relatively inexpensive, I moved ahead with purchasing a few more (20-22, 24, 47, and 48)  in order to get closer to completing this subset. With only two outstanding cards, I am certain that I will have no challenges in landing the final two, thereby concluding my non-return to baseball card collecting.

Learn more about the 1959 Fleer Ted Williams Set:

• PSA Set Registry: The 1959 Fleer Ted Williams Set, A Cardboard Ode to Teddy Ballgame by Kevin Glew
• Fleer Tried to Appease Collectors Looking for 1959 Ted Williams Card #68 By Rich Mueller