NonSports Forum

Net54baseball.com
Welcome to Net54baseball.com. These forums are devoted to both Pre- and Post- war baseball cards and vintage memorabilia, as well as other sports. There is a separate section for Buying, Selling and Trading - the B/S/T area!! If you write anything concerning a person or company your full name needs to be in your post or obtainable from it. . Contact the moderator at leon@net54baseball.com should you have any questions or concerns. When you click on links to eBay on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network. Enjoy!
Net54baseball.com
Net54baseball.com
ebay GSB
T206s on eBay
Babe Ruth Cards on eBay
t206 Ty Cobb on eBay
Ty Cobb Cards on eBay
Lou Gehrig Cards on eBay
Baseball T201-T217 on eBay
Baseball E90-E107 on eBay
T205 Cards on eBay
Baseball Postcards on eBay
Goudey Cards on eBay
Baseball Memorabilia on eBay
Baseball Exhibit Cards on eBay
Baseball Strip Cards on eBay
Baseball Baking Cards on eBay
Sporting News Cards on eBay
Play Ball Cards on eBay
Joe DiMaggio Cards on eBay
Mickey Mantle Cards on eBay
Bowman 1951-1955 on eBay
Football Cards on eBay

Go Back   Net54baseball.com Forums > Net54baseball Main Forum - WWII & Older Baseball Cards > Net54baseball Vintage (WWII & Older) Baseball Cards & New Member Introductions

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 05-26-2018, 01:59 PM
OldOriole OldOriole is offline
D@ve Se@born
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 262
Default Remembering the Baseball Players Who Gave All

Baseball has had a rich tradition of having many of its players serve the country through military service. From Bob Feller and Ted Williams to Christy Mathewson and Ty Cobb. However, given the approaching holiday, I thought I would focus on those major league players who paid the ultimate sacrifice while in the military.

According to SABR 535 baseball players have lost their lives in military service, with 12 having been Major Leaguers. Here are the 12....

Bill Stearnes (1853-1898). Volunteered to serve in the Spanish-American War. Became ill during first landing in Puerto Rico and died months later. Was a pitcher in the National Association.

Tom Burr (1893-1918). Made just one appearance with the Yankees. Killed when his plane collided with another in France.

Harry Chapman (1885-1918). Catcher for the Cubs, later traded to the Cardinals. Joined the US Army after the 1917 season, contracted pneumonia and perished.

Larry Chappell (1890-1918). Outfielder for the White Sox, among others. Left baseball while leading the PCL in batting average. Joined the US Army Medical Corps, contracted influenza and died in San Francisco.

Harry Glenn (1890-1918). Played six games for the St, Louis Cardinals. Left-handed catcher. Drafted into the Army, developed pneumonia and died.

Eddie Grant (1883-1918). Played at Harvard, spent 10 seasons in the Major Leagues - including two with the Giants in the World Series. Retired after the 1915 season, enlisted in 1917. First former Major Leaguer killed in action in WW1 (in France).

Newt Halliday (1896-1918). Had one Major League at bat (a strikeout) with Pittsburgh in 1916. Joined the US Navy in 1917. Contracted tuberculosis and died at age 21.

Ralph Sharman (1895-1918). Played in 13 games with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1917. Joined US Army and drowned in a training exercise.

Bun Troy (1888-1918). Pitcher with one Major League appearance with the Detroit Tigers (against Walter Johnson). Joined the US Army, was shot and killed during the Meuse-Argonne offensive in France, 1918.

Elmer Gedeon (1917-1944). Played five games with the Washington Senators. Drafted into the US Army in 1941. Survived a plane crash during training that year. His plane was shot down in 1944 flying from the UK to France. First Major Leaguer killed in action in WWII.

Harry O'Neill (1917-1945). Catcher who played one game with the Philadelphia Athletics. Enlisted in the Marine Corps after Pearl Harbor. Killed by sniper fire during assault of Iwo Jima.

Bob Neighbors (1917-1952). Appeared in seven games with the St. Louis Browns. Joined the Army Air Force in 1942. Plane was shot down in Korea during a night mission. Only Major Leaguer killed in Korea.

You could also make a case for Christy Mathewson, who enlisted in the Army Chemical Corp in 1918 at age 38. He was accidentally exposed to poisonous gas and struggled with health problems the rest of his life before dying at 45 in 1925.

Don't know how many of these guys had cards, but it would be nice to see a few.

Last edited by OldOriole; 05-26-2018 at 05:07 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 05-26-2018, 02:21 PM
gonzo gonzo is offline
Michael G0nz@lez
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 420
Default Ed Grant

T205 and T332
Attached Images
File Type: jpg T205_Grant.jpg (19.9 KB, 276 views)
File Type: jpg T332_Grant.jpg (14.3 KB, 273 views)
__________________
.
Buying T205s: (larger want list here)
• Also WTB: Christy Mathewson - 1914 Pritchard Stamp

See the Want List for "Successful net54 transactions" list.
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 05-26-2018, 04:56 PM
Jim65's Avatar
Jim65 Jim65 is offline
Jam.es Braci.liano
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 2,277
Default

Love this thread, these guys should always be remembered.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 05-26-2018, 05:02 PM
JollyElm's Avatar
JollyElm JollyElm is offline
D@rrΣn Hu.ghΣs
Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 7,331
Default

Excellent thread!! Thanks for posting it!!
__________________
All the cool kids love my YouTube Channel:
Elm's Adventures in Cardboard Land

https://www.youtube.com/@TheJollyElm

Looking to trade? Here's my bucket:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/152396...57685904801706

“I was such a dangerous hitter I even got intentional walks during batting practice.”
Casey Stengel

Spelling "Yastrzemski" correctly without needing to look it up since the 1980s.

Overpaying yesterday is simply underpaying tomorrow.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 05-26-2018, 05:10 PM
OldOriole OldOriole is offline
D@ve Se@born
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 262
Default Gonzo

Gonzo,

Nice pair of T-cards. Thank you.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 05-25-2020, 10:41 AM
OldOriole OldOriole is offline
D@ve Se@born
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 262
Default Bump

Just thought this deserved a bump today....
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 05-25-2020, 11:26 AM
GeoPoto's Avatar
GeoPoto GeoPoto is online now
Ge0rge Tr0end1e
Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: Saint Helena Island, SC
Posts: 1,403
Default Don't forget Cecil Travis

How about a past Washington SS who had his almost certain HoF career truncated by the call to duty?

Everybody on this forumn knows 1941 saw Joe DiMaggio hit safely in 56 consecutive games (get stopped and then hit in 16 more!) and Ted Williams go 6 for 8 on the last day to hit .406 for the season (only .002 below DiMaggio’s average during his 56-game streak!). But how many know who led the AL in hits that year?

It was Washington SS Cecil Travis, who was halfway to the HoF at the end of the 1941 season. But duty beckoned and like many ball players he joined the armed forces that winter. Although he spent most of the war playing BB for military teams, he shipped out to the ETO in time for the Battle of the Bulge, during which he earned a Bronze Star and suffered frost bite so bad an operation was required to save his feet.
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427300
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427338
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427353
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427366
He eventually returned to the Senators while still only 31 years old, but the physical trauma suffered in Europe had robbed him of his ability to excel and his career quickly petered out. Despite hitting less than .250 in parts of three seasons before his retirement (following "Cecil Travis Night” in 1947 at Griffith Stadium with General Dwight Eisenhower in attendance), his career .314 batting average is still the best by a SS in AL history and third in MLB history (behind Honus Wagner and Arky Vaughan).

So, as you enjoy Memorial Day, remember to raise a glass to what might have been for Cecil Travis, who protected democracy instead of the 4-5 hole and discarded the second half of a HoF career in the process.
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427274
https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1590427288
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 05-25-2020, 12:21 PM
Mark's Avatar
Mark Mark is offline
M@rk Lu7z
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: out west
Posts: 1,195
Default

a drink in honor of Cecil Travis, and the others? Will do!
__________________
Seeking older Pirates bats.
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 05-25-2020, 12:43 PM
Exhibitman's Avatar
Exhibitman Exhibitman is offline
Ad@m W@r$h@w
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Beautiful Downtown Burbank
Posts: 13,042
Default

Jeff Dickson was an American boxing promoter in Europe in the interwar period, elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2000. This British 1930s RPPC shows him with fellow HOFers Thil and Brown. In 1943, Capt. Jeff Dickson was killed in action over Germany while serving in the U.S. Air Force during World War II.

__________________
Read my blog; it will make all your dreams come true.

https://adamstevenwarshaw.substack.com/

Or not...
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 05-25-2020, 03:51 PM
phlflyer1's Avatar
phlflyer1 phlflyer1 is offline
Scott M.
Member
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 345
Default

Here's another of Eddie Grants cards.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg PC760_Rose_Postcard_Grant_SGC20_Front_Small.jpg (77.6 KB, 96 views)
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 05-25-2020, 04:32 PM
billyb's Avatar
billyb billyb is offline
Bill Boyd
Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Gladwin, Mi, (God's country)
Posts: 1,074
Default

George,
Thank you for bringing Cecil Travis profile to light. Great story. May he RIP knowing there are more fans that now know about his story. Thank You.
__________________
Norm Cash message to his pitchers, the day after one of his evenings on the town. "If you can hold em till the seventh, I'll be ready"
Reply With Quote
Reply



Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
I gave up and started a new set 1968 Topps HOF Yankees Postwar Baseball Cards Forum (Pre-1980) 5 08-12-2016 10:33 PM
Pitchers Who GAVE UP Hit #3000.... leftygrove10 Net54baseball Vintage (WWII & Older) Baseball Cards & New Member Introductions 1 07-10-2011 04:46 AM
Remembering Ray Chapman. Archive Net54baseball Vintage (WWII & Older) Baseball Cards & New Member Introductions 9 08-31-2005 01:02 PM
Cleveland Players- You Gave Me The List Archive Net54baseball Vintage (WWII & Older) Baseball Cards & New Member Introductions 0 08-27-2004 04:16 PM
The Seller's handle gave me suspicions! Archive Net54baseball Vintage (WWII & Older) Baseball Cards & New Member Introductions 0 06-19-2002 02:33 AM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 06:21 AM.


ebay GSB