By The Numbers: Yogi Berra And Other True MLB Heroes
Posted By richards on July 30, 2012
By Father Gabe Costa More Columns
Mr. Ray Aumack has written for By The Numbers in the past. Ray is a man for all seasons. Enjoy!
Ray Aumack: We use the word hero very easily and far too lightly. Yes, in a secondary way it can refer to someone who is admired for outstanding qualities or achievements. So we speak of Olympic heroes, Yankee heroes, heroes of our rinks and fields. We speak of heroes of stage and screen, heroes of stories we read, heroes of the political spectrum such as the stories of those celebrated by John F. Kennedy in his book, Profiles in Courage.
When I write of heroes in this article, I am writing of those who committed acts of remarkable bravery and have shown admirable strength of character and great courage. While I respect and honor those who do remarkable things, I am talking about major league baseball players who entered World War II. The crack of a bat, the cheer of a crowd is a great sound but hardly compares to the roar of a cannon, the sharp crack of automatic weapons, the destructive force of land mines and other explosive weapons, the screams of the wounded, and the last gasps of the dying. I remember one African American veteran of WWII who served in combat in Italy telling me that the movies are really stupid. You just do not outrun a firing machine gun.
In 1941 the United States entered WWII on two fronts, in Europe and in the Pacific. More than 500 major and minor league baseball players eventually answered the call to defend our country. Some had relatively normal lives playing baseball on military teams for the entertainment of the troops or for propaganda purposes. Others saw the blood and guts of combat where men suffered horrific wounds and many others died.
Hank Bauer, New York Yankees
Henry Albert Bauer, a native of East St. Louis, played twelve major league seasons with the New York Yankees. He then played two more seasons with Kansas City and wound up as a manager. A month after Pearl Harbor, Bauer enlisted in the Marines. Despite a bout with malaria on Guadalcanal he participated in the battles of Guadalcanal, Guam, and Okinawa earning eleven Campaign Ribbons, two Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts, the last from shrapnel wounds serious enough for him to be treated in the United States after thirty-two months of intense combat. In his last battle, as a Lieutenant he commanded a platoon of 64 Marines to repel a Japanese counter attack on Okinawa. The effort was successful but only six of his platoon survived. Bauers wounds were severe enough to take him out of the war to be treated in the United States. After recovering he joined the pipe fitters union but met a scout who signed him to a minor league contract. The signing bonus was $250 and the monthly salary was $175.
He was brought up to the Yankees in 1948. He had a great career with All Star Game honors three times and played on seven World Series championship teams.
Bauer greatly appreciated his baseball career. He is said to have remarked that there was no sense to worrying about losing a couple of years to military service. After all, many lives and careers ended on the battlefield. He was lucky to have what he had.
He wore a ferocious demeanor on his face like that of the stereotypical marine warrior poster. He was tall and muscular. Rocky Marciano, the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world was once a guest in the Yankees locker room. Bauer walked through the room with his shower towel wrapped around him. Good Lord, remarked Marciano as he marveled at Bauers physique, He should be the heavyweight champion.
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By The Numbers: Yogi Berra And Other True MLB Heroes
