Discovering New Research Avenues: SABR and The U.S. Navy Pre-flight School at St. Mary’s

Not much gets under my skin but there are statements, commentaries, actions, etc. that do cause a smirk to break across my face on many occasions. Making blatantly obvious statements, something that I am often guilty of, is one that stirs an eye-roll or a silent chuckle within me. Let the aforementioned preface my master-of-the-obvious suggestion that there is a wealth of (free) resources available for conducting almost any sort of research.  Much of the content published within the articles on Chevrons and Diamonds was discovered utilizing freely-available sources.

“Sometimes, asking for help is the most meaningful example of self-reliance.”

I have reached the end of the Internet without finding the information that I was seeking. In reality, the deeper, more meaningful research data is not accessible without cost. For several years, I have utilized subscription-based resources such as Ancestry.com and Fold3.com with considerable success in discovering details that are not available without paying for them. For my baseball militaria research needs, these two invaluable sites are limited lending insights into armed forces service-specific content while housing very little baseball material. Understanding that with these tools, the end has been reached and I am in need of assistance. After nearly a decade of following my passion baseball history at this level and with the limited available data , I finally joined the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR), opening the doors to some amazing resources.

After a handful of cursory passes through some selected data venues one of my history projects was seemingly launched forward like the ball crushed by Mickey Mantle on September 10, 1960 (at Tiger Stadium). Though I expected to uncover a treasure trove of material, I couldn’t have imagined there would be so much that my project has been stalled as I am forced to set my plan aside and construct a new approach. With each new discovery, new questions and possible streams (requiring investigation) begin to emerge. Heading down each path, I can be led to dead-ends or new discoveries, stemming new paths, all of which require investigation. The scope of this project is facing exponential expansion and creep.

The artwork on the cover of the “History of U.S. Navy Pre-flight School at St. Mary’s California” is very typical of many annuals of the 1940s.

In other research (and more specifically, baseball militaria artifacts) news for Chevrons and Diamonds, a significant artifact surfaced that provides a fantastic glimpse into the West Coast instance of the U.S. Navy’s V-5 flight training program during WWII. Known as Navy Pre-Flight training, the program was an intensified and highly compressed course of instruction that transformed civilians into much-needed naval aviators, filling the seats of all facets of flight in support of combat, patrol and logistics operations across the globe.

An action shot in a game against a Seabees club (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

Though I have been in a dry spell in terms of landing artifacts (being between full-time employment for a lengthy period of time causes one to tighten the belt and cinch up the wallet) for longer than I anticipated (my new gig is going well, by the way), one artifact that landed into the Chevrons and Diamonds archive is one of both military and sports history.  Earlier this year, a small group of photographs arrived into the archive (see: A Pesky Group of Type-1 WWII Navy Baseball Photos) from the estate of legendary Boston Red Sox infielder and WWII U.S. Navy Veteran, (Ensign) Johnny Pesky. The timing of the acquisition of the photographs coincided with the release of Anne Keene’s fantastic book, The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win World War II, in which author Anne Keene shines light on the Navy Pre-flight training program, focusing primarily upon the Chapel Hill unit at the University of North Carolina. Among the trainees were major leaguers Pesky, Ted Williams and Johnny Sain. The artifact that landed most recently was directly from the Navy Pre-flight program but from the opposite side of the country.

Members of the 1943 All-Service League championship team included names such as Evans, Rigney, Niemiec, Perry, Engle, McDowell, Sexton, Wright, Sanborn, Kohler, Cherry, HilkinDelaporte, Navoni, Gonzales, McGinnis, Pellett, Sikes (assistant coach) and Gheringer (coach).

The Chapel Hill Pre-flight varsity baseball team from the 1943 season was packed with stars and was a vastly superior squad in terms of pitching, defense and hitting and utterly dominated the other teams in their league as well as standing tall against major league clubs in exhibition games. On the opposite coast, in the quaint and small Northern California town of Moraga, the Navy Pre-flight School at St. Mary’s College of California was one of the original four schools selected for the program’s pre-flight training (comprised of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Iowa at Iowa City and the University of Georgia). Physical training and fitness were central for flight conditioning of which organized sports, including baseball, were a central element.

In 1944, this team had such players as (Standing, left to right) Dick Hilkin, John Hutchinson, Alwin Tripp, Joe Gonzales, Bill Wright, Bill Priest, Al Niemiec, Ray Scarborough, Bill Rigney, Roy Humrichouse.
Seated (left to right) are: Tim Conway, James Anderson, Dorn Kile, James Goebel, Robert Scott and Willard Lotter.

One of my research projects has been to document the service team baseball leagues that operated in the Northern California area. Landing a vintage book that documents the St. Mary’s baseball team’s performance during the War goes a long way to filling some gaps. Published in 1946 for alumni and faculty of the California pre-flight school, my copy of The History of U.S. Navy Pre-flight School at St. Mary’s California was from the estate of former Stanford University professor, Rixford Snyder. Commissioned as an officer in the Navy, Lieutenant Commander Snyder was an instructor in the area of academics and later served as an analyst on Admiral Chester Nimitz’ staff. The book is rather sizable measuring 12 x 9 inches and featuring 215 pages, it is a very high quality production, rich in professional photography and designed to be like a school annual. The book documents faculty, staff, departments and is dominated by the emphasis on physical training and athletics programs.

In 1942, St. Mary’s was just getting started playing only 12 games and posting a modest 8-4 record (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

In Chas Gehringer’s first full season as the St, Mary’s manager, the team dominated their league winning their first championship while posting a 24-5 record (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

1945, St. Mary’s played in two fewer games and still had the same dominance led by Charlie Gehringer, posting a 22-5 record (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

Future Hall of Fame Detroit Tigers second baseman, Lieutenant Commander Charles Gehringer coached the Navy Pre-flight cadets at St. Mary’s from 1943-45 following his last season with the Tigers as their player-coach in 1942 (C&D collection).

Arrived just a day ago, I have only begun to analyze the book’s content regarding the baseball team’s performance. Cross-referencing the names that are listed for each of the four seasons that the school’s baseball teams existed will take some time. Also present are summaries of each season’s schedule and results providing yet another insight into the teams that comprised the leagues in the area. By the time that the pre-flight school was shut down in early 1946, the baseball team had amassed a fantastic record of competition, winning two league titles in 1943 and ’44.  Those teams were led by Lieutenant Commander Charles Gehringer, the former 19-year veteran of the Detroit Tigers who retired following his 1942 season in which he served as a player-coach. The (then) future hall of fame second baseman enlisted into the Navy in January of 1943. Gehringer, a cadet at Navy Pre-flight Chapel Hill himself, was commissioned and assigned to serve as an athletic instructor and command the St. Mary’s baseball team. During his tenure, the St. Mary’s nine dominated the competition with professional ballplayers the likes of Bill Rigney (formerly of the the Pacific Coast League’s Oakland Oaks), Bill “Lefty” Wight from Binghamton (Eastern League)  and Al Niemiec, formerly of the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Athletics and a stalwart second baseman of the two Pacific Coast League clubs, just to name a few. In 1943. Gehringer coached from between the foul lines, playing in 12 games and recapturing his plate prowess with a .354 batting average. By 1945, the St. Mary’s nine was managed by new skipper, Lieutenant Commander Otto Vogel as Gehringer had been reassigned to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida where he took over the controls of the Fliers ballclub.

Following his first few minor league seasons in the Western International League (Spokane, Vancouver and the PCL (Oakland), infielder Bill Rigney joined the Navy’s V-5 flight training program and commenced training at St. Mary’s.

A southpaw St. Mary’s pitcher in his wind-up.

St. Mary’s Catcher (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

Bunting during batting practice (History St. Mary’s Pre-Flight School book, published 1946).

The History of U.S. Navy Pre-flight School at St. Mary’s California will be a much enjoyed and utilized reference book for the foreseeable future and despite the less than desirable condition, it is one that will be a great display piece for future public exhibitions of my baseball militaria collection.

As if I needed additional research pathways to travel, this St. Mary’s book seems to set my research back as much as it has answered questions.

Scoring the 1945 Navy All Star Championship Series

Collecting an entire set or series of anything is a common behavior of those who obsesses over filling in the gaps or holes in collections. Manufacturers of keepsakes devise plans and construct schemes that are fashioned to touch specific nerves of those who are entirely obsessive-compulsive or just possess enough of the “disorder” to trigger exhaustive searches.  Sports card companies created sets that contained upwards of 400 cards (along with checklists) that triggered kids to buy more wax packs in order to compete their sets. In the 1950s and 60s, kids would scour neighborhoods for empty soda bottles seeking to cash in on the deposit refunds in order to buy more packs of cards. Despite efforts such as these, it still proved difficult to compete a set, leading kids to engage in other activities (such as trading with other collectors).

Though I did collect baseball cards, I don’t recall ever having completed the assembling a set but the OCD behavior remains within me.  With my current baseball militaria interest combined with the decade spent researching and documenting artifacts (either collected or relegated to missed opportunities), my knowledge in what exists has grown and I have been documenting various artifacts and effectively creating my own checklists of sorts. As I scan through my (physical) archive of military baseball scorecards and scorebooks, I am amazed not solely by what I have but also by the gaps where there should be additional pieces. Unlike card collecting where there were thousands upon thousands of copies of each card issued, scorecards and programs were printed in very limited numbers and, due to their intended use, were discarded following each game in large percentages.

With WWII’s official end following the signing of the Instrument of Surrender aboard the USS Missouri (BB-63) in Tokyo Bay, leadership across the services worked in earnest to transition the ranks from the role of a fighting a fighting force to one of occupation, peace-keeping and reconstruction. Most of those in uniform were awaiting word of when they would be released and returned to their pre-war lives which included the thousands of former professional ballplayers who were spread across the two principal war theaters.  Three weeks after VJ-Day (September 2, 1945), Navy leadership took advantage of the opportunity to entertain those personnel who were on duty or R&R in the vicinity of the Hawaiian Islands. With so many of the game’s best and brightest stars still serving in the South Pacific and fresh from competition in the service team leagues, Vice Admiral Sherwood Ayerst Taffinder, Commandant of the Fourteenth Naval District along with the commanders of Third (Halsey), Fifth (Spruance) and Seventh (Kinkaid) Fleets conceived an idea to assemble the greats of the game who were still serving in the Pacific on active duty in the Navy.

Images of the AL- NL Navy All Star Championship Series at Furlong Field (source: eBay image).

Images of the AL- NL Navy All Star Championship Series at Furlong Field (source: eBay image).

Images of the AL- NL Navy All Star Championship Series at Furlong Field (source: eBay image).

Beginning on September 26, 1945, the series between the American League and National League All Star players serving within the Navy’s active duty ranks descended upon Furlong Field at the U.S. Army Air Forces base at Hickam Field for a seven-game series. The championship was more of a hybridization of Major League Baseball’s World Series and All-Star Game as the rosters were replete with stars from all levels of baseball including both the major and minor leagues (see: A Pesky Group of Type-1 WWII Navy Baseball Photos).

What is fascinating about the series is the seemingly abundance of a variety of artifacts originating from the games. In recent years, such treasures from the games have ranged from signed baseballs, photographs and ephemera such as ticket stubs, programs and scorecards.

This American vs National League All Stars scorecard was created for the seven-game series in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, played at Furlong Field. It is a single sheet, bi-fold piece, printed on a very rudimentary, inexpensive paper stock. The original owner scored the on field proceedings from game 5 of the series.

Scorekeeping was devised by Henry Chadwick in 1870 to provide a means for statistical analysis of the performance of ball-players.  While the term, “score-keeping” seems to infer management of the overall progress of the number of runs scored by each participating team, the practice is custom method of shorthand that employs a pre-printed grid on which to plot the progression of the game along with the performance of each individual player.  From the early years up to present day, pre-printed scorecards have remained relatively unchanged.

• Baseball Basics: Keeping Score
• Video: Keeping Score – Part I
• Video: Keeping Score – Part II

This program with scorebook example from the same series has a more professional appearance and design and is even more scarce than the rare hand-illustrated scorecard from the same 1945 All Star series (image source: Hunt Auctions).

A present-day scorecard may be purchased at the game for a few dollars, depending upon whether one is visiting a major or minor league ballpark or, as is with my own local minor league team, are given away with paid admission to the game. While most scorecards are disposed of soon after the game, some folks collect them.  A scored (used) card is an historic record of a game, preserving a moment in time for others (who can read scorekeeper’s shorthand) to look back upon. Scorebooks, scorecards and programs are highly collectible, especially when they are attributed to a notable game or series.

With the 1945 Navy All Star Championship series in Hawaii, two different scorecards or scorebooks have surfaced in the last few years that are at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of quality and professional appearance.  One, a blue halftone booklet that features two photos of battleships in action with the title, “Here Comes the Navy” in script across the top.  The booklet was produced specifically for the All Star Baseball Series at Pearl Harbor.  The other piece is more specifically a scorecard that is entirely hand-illustrated (by an unknown, as of yet, “LT Topper, U.S.N.R.”) including the front and rear covers and the inside scoring grid and rosters. The cartoon-like drawings on the front and back covers feature whimsical caricatures of sailor-ballplayers and an umpire, reminiscent of 1930s comic strip characters.

The cover art on this scorecard is hand-illustrated showcasing the popular caricaturization present in the era and commonly seen on newspaper sportspages.

The LT Topper-illustrated scorecard shares its paper medium with several other Pearl-Harbor originated scorecards which is very rough and yellowed with age, indicative of its low-cost to-produce. In the last ten days, three examples of this version have been listed and sold at (online) auction with two of them being scored from the same game. Due to the scarcity of any scorecards from the 1945 Navy All Star series, they tend to garner significant activity from collectors which drives the bidding fairly high ($80-$120), in contrast to major league scorecards from the era (which tend to hover around $30-$60).

Since there were seven games in total, some collectors might be driven to seek out scorecards that were scored for each game from the 1945 Series which could push the total investment (if one is successful in landing the associated card for each) towards $1,000.

The star-power of the rosters of these games far surpassed what was fielded at the major league baseball All Star Game in 1944. The game that was scored on this card was the fifth of the seven game series.

The scorecard provides clarity as to the players who were brought in for the series. In the previous Chevrons and Diamonds article, the rosters (that I published) were an assemblage of names, culled together from news clippings and other accounts.

American League Roster:

1	Johnny Pesky	Boston Red Sox
2	Ned Harris	Detroit Tigers
3	Tom Carey	Boston Red Sox
4	Jack Conway	Cleveland Indians
5	George Staller	Philadelphia Athletics
6	Lumon Harris	Philadelphia Athletics
7	Rollie  Hemsley	New York Yankees
8	Bob Kennedy	Chicago White Sox
9	Al Lyons	New York Yankees
10	Bob Lemon	Cleveland Indians
11	Chet Hadjuk	Chicago White Sox
12	Eddie McGah	Boston Red Sox
13	Harry Hughes	Atlanta
14	Sherry Robertson	Washington Senators
15	Bill Marks	Rochester
16	Barney Lutz	St. Louis Browns
17	Eddie Weiland	Chicago White Sox
18	Hank Feimster	Boston Red Sox
19	Fred Hutchinson	Detroit Tigers
20	“Schoolboy” Rowe	Detroit Tigers	Manager
21	Ken Sears	New York Yankees
22	Jack Phillips	New York Yankees
23	Ted Williams	Boston Red Sox
24	Dick Wakefield	Detroit Tigers
25	Jack Hallett	Pittsburgh Pirates (Chi. White Sox)
26	Mickey McGowan	Texas League (Atlanta Crackers)
27	Warren Delbert		Bat Boy

National League:

1	Jerry Lonigro		Bat Boy
2	Ray Hamrick	Philadelphia Phillies
3	Larry Varnell		Coach
4	Ray (Bobby) Coombs	Jersey City (NY Giants)
5	Whitey Platt	Chicago Cubs
6	Wes Livengood	Milwaukee Brewers (Cin. Reds)
7	Hank Schenz	Portsmith Cubs (Chicago Cubs)
8	Charley Gilbert	Chicago Cubs
9	Wimpy Quinn	Los Angeles (Chicago Cubs)
10	Eddie Shokes	Syracuse Chiefs
11	Clyde Shoun	Cincinnati Reds
12	Russ Meers	Chicago Cubs
14	Stan Musial	St. Louis Cardinals
15	Bob Usher	Birmingham Barons
16	Billy Herman	Brooklyn Dodgers	Manager
17	Steve Tramback	Jersey City (NY Giants)
18	Cookie Lavegetto	Brooklyn Dodgers
19	Gil Brack	Brooklyn Dodgers
20	Bob Sheffing	Chicago Cubs
21	Dick West	Cincinnati Reds
22	Lou Tost	Boston Braves
23	Johnnie McCarthy		Coach
24	Ray Lamanno	Cincinnati Reds
25	Hugh Casey	Brooklyn Dodgers
26	Jim Carlin	Philadelphia Phillies
27	Billy Barnacle	Minneapolis Millers
28	Dee Moore	Philadelphia Phillies
29	Aubrey Epps	Pittsburgh Pirates

The task to gather them all is a daunting one and I doubt that there will be any measure of success in focusing on this goal.

A Growing Backlog of Baseball History to Share

Following a considerable run of authoring and publishing weekly articles with a measure of consistency for most of 2018, I have encountered a new, and quite beneficial hurdle in order to continue with my passion with Chevrons and Diamonds. Over the course of the last 17 months, I have endured a significant amount of change to my professional and personal life which, for much of the time, has contributed to my ability to sustain a normal publishing cycle. With the latest round of changes in the last two weeks, the most precious resource – time – needed to author and publish, has been severely and negatively impacted.

Most authors, especially those who find themselves tasked with creating content for a periodical venture, struggle with story ideas and the lack of topics to cover. Oddly, I have a plethora of story ideas and material that I desperately want to cover and because of the audience growth of Chevrons and Diamonds over the last two years, each story that does get published, seemingly opens a door to either greater detail for a particular topic or leads to a tangential discovery. To that point, my article, My First Military Baseball: the “Rammers” of the 36th Field Artillery Group, published in early 2018 led to me being contacted by the grandson of one of the players who signed the ball and the flurry of ensuing conversation and exploration of the player resulted in a follow-up story, Countless Hours of Research and Writing; Why Do I Do This? This is Why. The story of the 36^th Field Artillery baseball and Chuck Emerick is just one example of the rewards of publicly sharing these artifacts.

One of my most favorite additions to my collection surrounded the acquisition of former minor leaguer, Earl Ghelf’s grouping of photos, letters, programs and other artifacts from his time with the 29^th Infantry Division. The subsequent article that I published (European Theater Baseball (the 29th Infantry Division Blue and Grays at Nurnberg)) was just an overview of the contents, predominantly focusing on the team history, Nuremburg Stadium and a cursory focus on Ghelf. In the months since I published, I have been contacted a few times: the first was another collector seeking to purchase the Ghelf group as he managed to land one of his other auction groupings; the second contact was far more substantive and provided me with a wealth of information regarding the unit and team, a few of the players and additional details regarding the 29^th Infantry Division’s leadership and, perhaps the reason why the team was assembled with the talent that they had.

German sporting fields were devoid of proper dugouts which forced teams to set up benches along the baselines. Here, the 29th Infantry Division team awaits the call to take the field (major leaguer, Don Kolloway is seated at center).

What better source is there for research assistance and authoritative insight than from folks in leadership with the Maryland Museum of Military History who are passionate about documenting the storied past of one of their state’s units? For the folks at the Maryland Museum, my collection of Ghelf’s photos were the first images that they had seen that showed any depictions of the 29^th‘s post-VE Day baseball competition. The museum’s collection is quite extensive, including the wartime morning reports, division newsletters, etc. And yet contains no photographs of the baseball team. Upon discovery of this site, one of the board members reached out to me and we began to discuss the baseball team’s history and how best to transfer high resolution scans of the photographs to provide the museum with the imagery.

In a recent conversation with a collector colleague whose interests have led him to venture into baseball militaria (vintage photographs, programs, scorecards and baseballs), we talked about the importance of preserving these artifacts. I mentioned that I not only collect and properly store ephemera and photographs, but I also scan, catalog and share the pieces in my collection. The purpose of sharing the artifacts along with the results of my research are to not only enlighten other collectors but more so to bring to light items that have not seen the light of day in more than a half-century or, in many cases, have never been seen by the interested public. Since I made much of the Ghelf grouping available for the public, folks are gaining visual insights into the games that were otherwise only captured in a few published articles, as told by those who were present.

Prior to being added to the 29th ID team roster, Ghelf played for the 69th ID team. This photo shows the men seated on the “dugout” bench during their half of an inning.

In nearly a decade of pursuing military baseball artifacts (dominated by vintage photographs), the majority of pieces that have surfaced throughout that time have either been at domestic or Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) locations. Following VE-Day (May 8, 1945), the mission of the American and Allied forces in Europe changed from combat operations to occupation and reconstruction. War was still raging in the Pacific and would continue for four more months and many of the troops in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) would begin to either be sent home or, possibly sent to the Pacific as leaders were preparing for a full-scale invasion force for the Japanese home islands. My theory as to why we do not see photos of ETO baseball leagues and subsequent World Series is that the photographers had already been reassigned or discharge. Combat correspondents, prior to the German surrender, had been embedded within frontline units to document and provide coverage of the action, would have been sent to the PTO to cover the war against Japan.

This press photo shows a game in progress, played by (what appears to be) U.S. Army paratroopers. The original caption read, “Infantrymen enjoy a game of baseball in a field “somewhere in France” during a rest period between action in the front lines, 19 August 1944 (Signal Corps Photo, author’s collection).

 

The importance of the Earl Ghelf group was further underscored following a series of conversations with a professor and passionate baseball historian reached out seeking photographs of ETO World Series games ahead of his presentation regarding Sam Nahem (and his insistence in adding black baseball players to his OISE All Stars roster, leading to the team’s eventual championship in the ETO) at the Baseball Hall of Fame’s Symposium this past May. Sadly, Mr. Ghelf’s personal photographs did not contain any images of the OISE team as he only focused on the unit teams that he was playing for.

It is painfully obvious that I have so many more stories to share in future published articles and so little time with which to give them the proper attention (research, writing, etc.). I am not without motivation to press on with this work – the rewards are substantial for me as more people discover Chevrons and Diamonds.

Countless Hours of Research and Writing; Why Do I Do This? This is Why

Most of my friends either do not know about this site, the research and writing that I conduct for this interest or they don’t understand why I do it. My reasons for not verbally promoting Chevrons and Diamonds or my passion for history surrounding the game (in particular with its connection to the armed forces) is the confirmation that I am wasting my breath when after uttering one or more sentences, eyes glaze over and gazes becomes vacant. Writing about this history is decidedly an outlet for assembling the research and artifacts, establishing the connections and discovering the stories that need to be told even if there isn’t an audience to read it when it is published. Occasionally, the stories are read and someone benefits from these efforts.

Acquired earlier this year for my collection was this 1950s Wilson Official League, baseball, bearing the inscription, “36th FA. GP. 1956 ‘Rammers'” on the sweet spot along with signatures of the team.

Earlier this year, I published an article (see: My First Military Baseball: the “Rammers” of the 36th Field Artillery Group) about finally landing a military baseball for my collection after years of seeking a verifiable piece. The research that I was able to conduct yielded sparse results in that I was unable to identify a single soldier on the ball leaving me incapable of telling a personal story regarding the team members who signed it. All eighteen names (three are illegible) were just signatures on a baseball with the team name, year and the military unit. Though my research had reached the distance that I could attain with the resources at my disposal, I published the article content with the information I had.

Last month, a comment was posted to the “Rammers” baseball article that indicated that the story about the ball had some reach beyond the collecting world, right into a personal connection with a family.

“Mr. VetCollector,

My grandfather played for the Rammers baseball team. My grandfather was Chuck Emerick (one of the questionable signatures). I have a photo of the baseball team in my office as well. My grandfather passed away a few years back and I have been trying to track down some of the players in the photo. I would greatly appreciate the opportunity to talk to you about this signed baseball. I can also send you a photo of the team.”

Without hesitating for a moment, I replied back to the comment and followed that up with an email to its author. Though it took four-and-a-half months, it was worth the wait for such a breakthrough and I awaited a response, hoping for detailed information, not only about Mr. Emerick but perhaps for other team members, as well.

The majority of the articles published on this site focus on veterans who played professional baseball before and/or after their service in the armed forces. It is very simple to peer into the lives of players such as Ted Williams, Joe and Dom DiMaggio, Bob Feller, Johnny Mize or Ted Lyons and analyze any number of personal or professional characteristics of their lives. Professional baseball careers are well documented (especially at the major and upper minor league levels) with statistics and comparative analysis. Baseball enthusiasts, journalists and researchers have even taken the time to research and publish scores of books and write incredibly detailed essays delving into various angles of players. There is a wealth of information available, especially if those players made significant contributions to the game. Considering the countless numbers of players who stepped onto the diamond at any professional level, the volume of information available online is staggering. One of the best baseball statistical sites, Baseball Reference, has very detailed stats for nearly 19,500 people who played in the majors which makes me wonder how many untold thousands are documented in their minor leagues databases.

Researching the 1956 36th Field Artillery Group baseball and a few of my other artifacts, it becomes readily apparent that while there were some impressive athletes who plied their trade on the military diamond, these men didn’t earn a dime in the professional game but still had considerable impact within their communities and their families. As I was soon to learn over the course of my conversation with Emerick’s grandson and my ensuing research, the talent for the major leagues was apparent to major league scouts and Charles’ athletic skills and knowledge was not lost on the man’s high school classmates, teammates or coaches, either. After exchanging a few introductory conversational emails with Emerick’s grandson, we moved our dialogue to the telephone and spoke for quite awhile about “Chuck” and what could have been had Mr. Emerick moved forward with his emerging baseball career right after high school.

Along the right side of this panel shows the signature of Charles (Chuckles) Emerick who set aside a chance at a professional baseball career and joined the army.

Charles E. Emerick was born in 1935 and raised in the small town of Geneseo, Illinois. which is approximately 30 miles due east of Davenport, Iowa on Interstate 80. In Geneseo, Chuck (also known by many as “Chuckles”) excelled in athletics, lettering in track, basketball and football. Mr. Emerick’s grandson, Josh Birmingham, told me that his family knew very little about their patriarch’s sports and military experiences, “My uncle (my grandfather’s son) told me he never talked about playing or his time in the service.” Chuck’s generation wasn’t much for self-promotion or regaling people with grand stories. Even my own grandfather didn’t share details about his WWII service. Most of what I learned about my grandfather was from my grandmother, my own research and through one of his shipmates. Mr. Birmingham’s comment wasn’t a shock at all. Men who were raised during this era were no-nonsense and were instilled with such work ethics that regardless of what they did or achieved, it was part of their character which to them was unremarkable.

While it is uncertain if this photo is showing the 1954 or 1955 Rammers team, it does show that it is signed by all members of the 36th FA GP squad, except for one – Charles “Chuckles” Emerick, 2nd row, far left (image source: Joshua Birmingham).

Charles Emerick enlisted into the U. S. Army in 1954 soon after graduating from high school. After completing training, Mr. Emerick was assigned to the 36th Field Artillery Group under the V Corps Artillery, part of the Seventh Army. The 36th’s base (Babenhausen Kaserne which was closed in 2007) was located near Babenhausen, Hesse which is approximately 35 kilometers southeast of Frankfort, Germany. While stationed at Babenhausen, Emerick’s athletic experience and abilities were obviously discovered by his command resulting in his assignments to the 36th’s teams. Just one year removed from the 1953 armistice that brought about the cessation of open combat on the Korean Peninsula, it might have been a source of discomfort for Chuck in light of the potential for him to be serving alongside combat veterans. “Some of my family believed he kept quiet about his time in the service because he was embarrassed.” Mr. Birmingham continued his thoughts about his grandfather, “He was embarrassed because all he did was play sports while in the Army.”

And play sports, Chuck Emerick certainly did. Joshua noted, “He played both baseball and football while in Germany.” Besides the team photo of the Rammers baseball team, Birmingham said, “We have his football picture as well.” Not unlike my own time in uniform, GIs will do nearly anything to avoid the boring, mundane and dirty jobs that come with serving in the armed forces. “My uncle said he did ask him why he played baseball in Germany,” continued Josh, “he told him it was because it got him out of doing guard duty or working a night shift.” At Geneseo High School, Chuck Emerick was the captain of his football team and was a force on the school’s basketball and track teams, participating in all four years with each during his high school career. Peering into The Sphinx, the school’s annual, one can find no mention of a baseball team within its pages leaving one to assume that Emerick’s baseball skills were developed within little league or with other local sports leagues. Though football was clearly the sport in which he excelled, Chuck was no slouch on the diamond and, though no research as of yet supports this, his baseball talents were noticed by his superiors in his chain of command.

Framed neatly with the Rammers team photo is the letter inviting Charles Emerick to a workout with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field (image source: Joshua Birmingham).

When Chuck Emerick’s grandson sent me the team photo of the Rammers, he also included views of the document and envelope that was framed with the image. Mr. Birmingham mentioned that while Chuck was still in high school, his baseball talents were observed by professionals. “In 1954 the Chicago Cubs saw him play in high school and asked him to go to Wrigley Field for tryout camp.” Birmingham continued, “He was only 17 or 18 when he tried out. He traveled to Chicago by himself and tried out the summer of 1954.” Mr. Emerick’s workout at Wrigley must have had mixed reception with team management as his skills were good enough to warrant an offer to sign but showed indications of lingering pain. Joshua, speaking about his grandfather’s potential pro baseball career wrote, “Unfortunately, he suffered a shoulder injury in football so they were hesitant on signing him.” Being a diehard fan of Chicago’s National League team, Emerick’s dream of playing Cubs was laser-focused on that one club. Mr. Birmingham spoke of his grandfather’s sole desire play at Wrigley, “They (the Cubs organization) asked him to play for one of their farm league teams to see how his shoulder would hold up, but he didn’t want to do that.”

Showing Emerick’s tryout invitation from the Cubs organization with a handwritten not from the teams scout. The envelope is displayed beneath the invitation (image source: Joshua Birmingham).

In the 1950s, the life of a minor league player even at the highest level was arduous with endless road trips aboard buses after lengthy games, double-headers and for little pay. The odds of making it to the majors is slim at best. “From what my family said he was really hurt that he didn’t make the team.” Mr. Birmingham wrote. “Someone approached him afterwards about trying out for the Cardinals because they had some sort of connections with them. He told them ‘if I’m not good enough for the Cubs then I won’t be good enough for the Cardinals.'” Rather than toiling away in the minor leagues, possibly at a C or D league level, Charles Emerick enlisted into the U.S. Army and was soon after wearing the flannels of his artillery unit and competing against other service teams throughout Western Europe.

After a serving and playing ball for a few years in the army, Charles Emerick was discharged and returned to Geneseo, Illinois, where he lived a full life, marrying his wife, Beverly and raising their family together and serving in his community. Joshua Birmingham wrote of his grandfather’s love for his wife, “I know he knew Morse Code. He would tap on my grandmother’s leg “I Love You” in Morse Code while at church or in public.”

Mr. Emerick worked in law enforcement with the Geneseo Police Department, and with the Geneseo Telephone Company before embarking on a 31-year career with the Geneseo Municipal Light Plant, retiring in 1994. In the 1954 senior class copy of The Sphinx, the “prophecy,” a 25-year look into the future finds “Coach Chuck Emerick eyeing a Big Ten Conference title and a trip (with his team) to the Rose Bowl.” Coach Emerick didn’t land the high-level collegiate job with any Big Ten Conference schools but one can certainly imagine the positive impact this man had on the youth of his hometown. According to his 2014 obituary, “Chuck was one of the four original coaches of Geneseo Youth Football. He also coached Little League baseball.”

It was rewarding as a collector and a caretaker of history to be able to learn about “Chuckles” Emerick and to have his grandson share a sampling of the character of this man with me. I can imagine that seeing this baseball and catching a glimpse of his grandfather’s autograph along with the rest of the 1956 Rammer team’s signatures was exciting as it spurred him into action in an attempt to pull together as much of his grandfather’s baseball story as possible. He was able to get his family to recall details and stories and begin to reflect upon the man who never drew comparisons to himself or his experiences. Joshua summed up how special his grandfather truly was, “It’s kind of sad that he would feel embarrassed about his time in the service and not thinking he was good enough for the major league. However, he excelled being a father and grandfather. He could have easily held his baseball career over our heads or boasted about his talent. But, he never did that. He had a way of making you feel special no matter what you did. It’s cool to tell people he went to Wrigley Field to try out for the Cubs and show them the letter.”

Unbeknownst to Joshua Birmingham, his uncle inherited (from his father, Mr. Emerick) a 1955-dated Rammers team-signed baseball in his possession – though it lacked his grandfather’s autograph (image source: Joshua Birmingham).

Mr. Birmingham’s activities in getting his family together yielded another discovery. His uncle (his mother’s brother) revealed that he too had an autographed baseball from the Rammers team. Aside from the presence of different signatures than are present on my ball, one signature is missing; that of a truly great man, Charles “Chuckles” Emerick. People of great character are seemingly more challenging to find among the men that surround us. Charles Emerick was certainly such a man. Aside from his remarkable accomplishments on the baseball diamond that were worthy enough to garner major league interest, Mr. Birmingham knew what was most important about his grandfather, “I am more impressed about how he served the Lord. And that’s what makes me most proud of him.”

If I am asked again why I take the time with this ongoing project and the effort that it takes to bring these stories to light, I will direct them here, to learn about people like Charles Emerick and a grandson’s love for his grandfather.

Marines Baseball: The Many. The Pricey.

The late summer of 2018 has been quite a boon for baseball militaria collectors with a spate of listings for Marines baseball jerseys flooding the market. In a typical year, one might see four to five Marine Corps baseball jerseys listed at auction and attaining reasonable selling prices (upwards of $100) when the right buyer comes along. In a decade of watching sales and searching for military baseball jerseys, it is readily apparent that the Marines were the preeminent provider of (beautiful) baseball uniforms for their teams.

Aside from the Marines’ dominance of the vintage baseball uniform market in the preceding 10 year-span, the market took an unprecedented turn during the last three weeks with a massive wave of jerseys hitting the proverbial baseball collector market beaches. It didn’t occur to me until today (when I decided to document the barrage with this article) as I began to consider adding one of the new varieties to the Chevrons and Diamonds Archive of Military Baseball Uniforms that I took notice of the several listings that I needed search through.  As I write this article, there are five active listings of USMC baseball jerseys dating from World War II to the mid-1950s. In addition to the five listings, another listing closed less than a week ago that featured the aforementioned new Marines jersey variation; a post-Korean War white wool flannel jersey that is trimmed in navy blue.

If you have read any of my articles regarding my jersey collection or that covered the first baseball military piece that I acquired, you should have a fairly decent understanding of what are, according to my research, the most commonly available military baseball uniform. My informed and educated opinion is that these uniforms have to be have been produced in considerable numbers to have survived seven-plus decades in such great numbers. Perhaps another factor that could have contributed to the Marines jerseys availability is that leadership allowed the USMC ball players keep their uniforms while the other service branches required them to be returned to the command.

Perhaps one of the most common military jerseys, this WWII jersey features the standard color-matched button on the letter “I.” Seller: abramsantiques

The two auction listings (above and below this paragraph) show how each seller is competing for buyers who haven’t done their homework in terms of pricing trends for these 1943-44 (road gray) wool flannel jerseys. These WWII jerseys are somewhat easy to discern from the other USMC baseball jerseys due to the telltale features (see: 1943-44 Road Gray Marines Jersey); the easiest to spot is the color matched button centered over the “I” in the M A R I N E S athletic lettering on the chest. In the listing above, the jersey has featured a buy-it-now price of $299.99 with a willingness to entertain best offers (though I suspect offers submitted in the jersey’s realistic value-range would be automatically rejected).  The second of the pair is undercutting the previous listing by trimming $45 off the price yet still seeking to overcharge his potential buyers by more than $150.00. Though both jerseys seem to be in good condition, the first one seems to be the better choice of two these but mine (which included the matching trousers), which was far less expensive, would still be my best option.

Two WWII Marines road gray wool flannel jerseys for sale simultaneously by two seperate sellers? Proving that there is an abundance of this jersey type, the price should reflect the saturated market. Seller: hubnret

The stamp markings read: “Property of MWSG-27 Spec. Serv.” This jersey was most-lkely used by personnel from the Marine Wing Support Group 27 at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina and was issued by the War Department’s Special Services group (source: eBay image).

For the second time in a decade of searching a lightweight cotton duck (canvas material) Marines baseball jersey – red with gold lettering and trim – has surfaced. I found my jersey about six years ago (see: 1944-1945 Marines Jersey – Red Cotton) and last year, I was able to locate the matching ball cap. Priced at $150-100 lower than the two gray wool jerseys, this red cotton version from WWII is still overpriced. Due to it being a bit more scarce than its gray counterparts, one could theorize that it should garner more collector interest and thus, a higher price. What sets this jersey apart from my example is the presence of a stamped marking from the command where the jersey was used.

This is just the second cotton duck Marines jersey to surface in a decade and priced about $70 too high, this would be a great piece to for any baseball militaria collector. Seller: sportsnut5

The last two jersey items that were listed in the past few weeks originate from the mid to late 1950s. The first of the two is one that has probably tripped up a few sellers and buyers due to its similarities shared with the road gray WWII versions. However, a closer look reveals that the colors of the fabric and trim are about all that are common between the two. The seller of this particular jersey was one of those who did not discern the differences and originally listed it as a World War II-era flannel (despite having a real one to compare this one against – see above) prompting me to reach out to the seller in an effort to correct the misidentification. As with the seller’s WWII jersey, this one is overpriced by $180-200 as it is fairly common.

This seller has two Marines jerseys for sale at the same time and both of them are considerably overpriced. Buyers should expect to pay $50-75 for this flannel. Seller: abramsantiques

The second of the 1950s-era jerseys is the one that I wished I was able to obtain due to its uniqueness. White wool flannel with navy blue rayon trim, the pattern of the jersey differs slightly from the road gray jersey (above) of the same era. Both jerseys of this era have shorter sleeve length, wide rayon soutache surrounding the sleeves, collar and on the placket. Similar to my 1943-44 white Marines jersey, M A R I N E S is spelled out in blue athletic felt (aligned to avoid the button holes, eliminating the color-matched button) blocked letters that are slightly larger and wider than the WWII jerseys.

One of the most interesting jerseys to come to market in the last year, this 1950s white (with blue trim) was worth overpaying to the auction winner (it sold for double its value). Seller: burski

Not to be outdone within the realm of ridiculously overpriced vintage jerseys and saving the “best” for last, this 1943-44 road gray Marines jersey is the chart-topper of the lot being sold online. The seller was adept at including a descent sampling of photographs that reveal the heavy game-use wear as indicated by the stains and roughed-up material. The garment is in tact and lacks damage (no moth holes or tears) but paying close attention to the soutache and the athletic lettering, one can see that this particular uniform top is not worth overpaying to acquire, especially considering the other two examples listed earlier in this article. Keep in mind that this particular jersey is of the “Vintage RARE” variety (so rare that the actual size tag varies from the auction listing title) making this jersey THE one to pursue. A reasonable valuation of this item is more realistic in the $40-50 price range however, I can imagine that this seller will find a buyer who is not willing to perform due diligence before clicking the Buy It Now button.

What makes this jersey and its $450 buy-it-now price tag a worthy and manageable investment is the wonderful eBay payment plan (only $41 for 12 months which includes a $42 fee!) and the seller might even fly out and hand-deliver it to your door for that exorbitant shipping charge! Seller: ngamus4

Six jerseys being sold within an online auction isn’t an earth shattering occurrence (there are thousands for sale at any given time), however this gathering of vintage baseball militaria is a first. Two of these jerseys will be added to the our Archive of Military Baseball Uniforms to ensure that they are documented in greater detail (than in this article) and to provide collectors with a point of reference for future research and due diligence. Seeing a such a gathering of vintage jerseys in contrast to the availability of their professional game worn counterparts reminds me of the Marine Corps’ long-standing marketing slogan, “The Few. The Proud. ” In comparison to the availability of vintage game worn baseball uniforms from the other service branches, the Marines are experiencing a massive show of force.