The Hearst Sandlot Classic - Introduction: The Esquire's Game - 1944-1946

Chapter 1

All They Need is a Little Encouragement

“All they need is a little encouragement, and they’ll be playing it as well as I ever did.”[1] Those words were spoken by Walter “Rabbit” Maranville in 1949 at Yankee Stadium. By then, the Rabbit was a fixture in the New York area, conducting clinics for youngsters. And he gave those youngsters more than a little encouragement.

As the United States emerged from the Second World War, changes were inevitable and baseball was very important in communities around the country. Sandlot baseball leagues were a common denominator in these towns and cities and the best of the youngsters found their way to All-Star games in the nation’s major league ball parks.

This, primarily, is the story of one such All-Star game that continued for twenty years.

Those twenty years were years of profound change in the United States. Our story begins in the mid-1940’s. Just think of it. No television, no fast-food restaurants, no interstate highway system, limited travel by air, and most people not straying more than 100 miles from their homes. In those days, baseball was the National Pastime and Newspapers and Periodicals informed the masses about the game and its players. The years would be one of profound cultural, social, and economic change.

Back then, each small town had its own newspaper and often more than one. In New York, the newsstands could boast of more than ten newspapers, and it seemed that with each passing hour, new releases with new headlines were being distributed. Big league baseball was played in but ten cities, none further south or west than St. Louis. And minor league baseball more than picked up the slack with small and not so small grandstands dotting the landscape in the far reaches of America.

They were small town heroes - these players. Some started playing baseball at an early age and proceeded through the ranks of Little League to High School to American Legion Ball. Others had little opportunity to play baseball early on because their schools did not field teams. But ultimately they were there. They were there to try out for the opportunity of a lifetime. They tried out in big city neighborhoods and small town playgrounds. Some, from an early age had been chronicled in local newspapers. Some had been seen by large numbers of scouts at venues like Brooklyn’s Parade Grounds.

And the scouts were not only in the cities. The, the ivory hunters, as they were called, searched out talent in the remotest of locations. Yet some players had been seemingly overlooked. Once they came to play in the All-Star game in the big city, they would be noticed.

The selection process for these games was a varied as were the locales. From a series of baseball schools and tryouts culminating in big games at Boston's Fenway Park and San Francisco's Seals Stadium to All-Star Games in Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Oakland, Pittsburgh, San Antonio, and Seattle to, after the second year, a polling of area writers and coaches in Albany, New York, the names came to the forefront, and by rail and later by airplane, the boys were sent on to the biggest adventure of their young lives.

Set against the backdrop of a country emerging from war, and entering into a period of prosperity, the Hearst Sandlot Classic, for 20 years, offered a showcase for young baseball talent. Many of those who participated signed professional contracts and others were able to obtain scholarships to further their education. Everyone who participated gained memories to last a lifetime.

Any history of the Hearst Classic would be lacking a key ingredient if the “Esquire” game were ignored.

Chapter 2

Esquire’s All-American Boys Baseball Game: 1944

Tilden, Nebraska Meets Detroit, Michigan

“It’s an inspiration that no young baseball player can shrug off – a trip to the Polo Grounds in New York – playing under manager Mel Ott (the western pilot) –with every major league scout watching your efforts.” – Chester Nelson, sports editor of the Rocky Mountain News.[2]

The young lives of the men who traveled to participate in these games had been a unique blend of challenges and adventures. Those who played in the early games had been born in the early years of the Depression. They had come of age during the Second World War, and indeed the first of the All-Star games, the Esquire’s All-American Boys’ Baseball Game, was contested while the war was still raging.

The Hearst Newspapers were not the first publishing group to sponsor an All-Star baseball game for the youth of America. With most of America being informed of news via newspapers and periodicals, it was not unusual for newspapers and periodicals, seeking to increase circulation, to sponsor baseball events. For three years starting in 1944, Esquire Magazine sponsored All-Star games for 16-17 year old players, using an East-West format with players representing 29 of the 48 states. It was the brainchild of Esquire’s David A. Smart, and in 1944, former New York mayor Jimmy Walker headed the committee sponsoring the game.[3] Walker said, “This is the finest most beneficial thing that has been done for youth in my time, and certainly is one step in the right directions to help combat juvenile delinquency which is sweeping this country. I certainly emphasize this promotion is a gem.”[4] The magazine, notorious for its curvaceous “Vargas Girl” caricatures, was seeking to expand into the sports arena. The first two Esquire All-American Boys Baseball Games were held at the Polo Grounds in New York, before that game was moved to Chicago in 1946. Esquire announced plans to drop its sponsorship in December, 1946.

The game was strongly supported by Organized Baseball, and the league presidents articulated their feelings prior to the 1945 game.

American League President Will Harridge: “Since baseball began, the lifeblood of our national sport has been the interest it always has held for the youth of our country. From the boys who started playing the game in the vacant lots, on the school grounds, and in the farm pasturelands have come the great players baseball has known- and those same boys will continue to build baseball in the years to come. Such an enterprise as the Esquire’s All-American Baseball game, therefore, is a splendid means of furthering the interest of our youth in baseball. With the teams to be selected on a nation-wide basis, thousands of boys will strive and hope, justifiably, for places on the all-star squads.”

National League President Ford Frick: “I particularly like the idea of ‘Living War memorials’ As I understand it the aim is to provide facilities for athletic activity to encourage physical fitness. The name and fame of the game will thus express itself in tangible form and add to the incentive. Boys have played baseball in this country as far back as anybody now alive can remember. They don’t need encouragement to play. In my boyhood, I have seen the urge to play a ballgame, triumph over every obstacle that an inconsiderate world can throw in our way, but I believe that anything any grown-up can do to give the boys better ball fields and more bats and balls and gloves and suits is wonderful.”[5]

Each city went about choosing its own representative. One of the sponsoring newspapers was the Kansas City Star which informed its readers that the top American Legion player would be going to New York. The key men involved in choosing the Kansas City representative were Yankee scout Bill Essick, who served as the commissioner of the American Legion league and Elton Caster, the Legion’s baseball chairman. They took their time evaluating the talent, and ballots were cast by each of the league’s managers. On the evening of June 30, an All-Star game was played at Ruppert Stadium, and on July 2, it was announced that Jim Propst would be heading to New York.[6] Propst pitched three innings in the game in Kansas City and struck out five batters.[7] In New York, Propst shined. In two practice games he was not scored upon and in the big game, he pitched hitless ball in the sixth and seventh innings.[8] The left-hander went on to sign with the Yankees, and at the tender age of 16 pitched a complete game win for their top minor league affiliate in Kansas City in 1944. In all, he spent parts of eight seasons in the minors, mostly at Victoria in the Class-B Western International League.  

The August 7, 1944 Esquire All-American Boys Baseball Game featured 29 boys from as many states and was won 6-0 by the East squad in front of a crowd of 17,803 at the Polo Grounds. The attendance for the Monday afternoon encounter was higher than the 15,299 (13,847 paid) that showed up for a Giants-Phillies doubleheader the prior day. The managers in the game were none other than Connie Mack (East) and Mel Ott (West). Mack’s coaches were Al Simmons and Roy Mack. Ott’s coaches were Carl Hubbell and Bubber Jonard. During their time in New York, the boys got to see five big league games.

In a practice prior to the game, Hubbell pitched batting practice and commented, “We’ll be seeing them again, in major league uniforms. They are the greatest looking bunch of young ballplayers I’ve ever seen gathered in one ball yard.”[9]

And there was more than baseball. The dream itinerary included accommodations at the Hotel New Yorker, complete with meals. On August 3, after a morning practice at the Polo Grounds, the boys spent the afternoon visiting the Statue of Liberty. The following day, after practice, it was off to the Empire State Building where their tour guide was none other than former New York Governor and one-time Presidential candidate Al Smith. That evening, the boys saw the ice show at the Center Theater.[10] 

Prior to the first Esquire game, there were festivities that kept the large crowd entertained. Featured were Abbott and Costello, actors Dana Andrews and Jay C. Flippen, baseball clown-prince Al Schacht, and the Gene Krupa Band. The umpires for the game were George Barr of the National League and Bill Grieve of the American League. Red Barber and Harry Wismer broadcast the game over a national radio network.[11] And, the game was televised! Television was in its infancy at the time and the game was filmed that afternoon. It was played on WARD in New York that very evening.[12]

World War II was still very much going on and 500 persons were allowed to see the game free of charge for their efforts in a city-wide drive to collect waste paper. Also participation in the game was limited to 16 and 17-year-olds who had yet to reach the draft age.

Both Ott and Mack shared comments that were included in the scorecards sold for the game.

Ott stated, “The All-American Boys Baseball game is a great contribution in the nation in wartime. This game takes me right back to the days when I was a youngster playing baseball on the corner sandlot. I am very proud that Esquire has invited me to be a manager of one of the All American Boys Baseball teams.”[13]

Mack added, “Please accept my sincere thanks for the appointment to manage the Eastern team in the All American Boys Baseball game sponsored by Esquire. I deem it a privilege to aid such a worthy cause as the “living memorial” fund and will contribute what I can to help the boys and baseball as a whole.”[14]

Arthur Patterson of the New York Herald-Tribune let his readers know that:

“There was plenty of boyish baseball put on display – the uncovered base, the fly ball permitted to drop between two confused outfielders, the wild throws and the many strikeouts – but there were some classy, high quality imitations of major league maneuvers too.”[15] 

Although the East team managed only five hits, they were able to bunch their hits, and take advantage of their opponent’s miscues. Four of their runs were unearned. Chicago was represented by Charlie Perchak whose eye-popping fielding in a practice game caught everyone’s attention. East team manager Connie Mack was impressed enough to name him team captain. In the game itself, it was Perchak’s bat that stood out. He was the hitting star for the East team. He had three hits in the game, drove in the first run of the game in the opening inning, and scored during his team’s three-run fifth inning.[16] He finished second in the MVP balloting. He signed with the Chicago Cubs, but got no further than Class B in four minor league seasons.

Perchak was selected based on his performance in an All-Star Game at Chicago’s Comiskey Park on July 14. Playing in that game, for one participant, had unanticipated repercussions. Albert Plain from Springfield, who was going into his senior year of high school, faced disqualification by the Illinois High School Association. However, the matter was resolved.

At the time of the game, the 81-year-old Mack was in his 51st season of managing. Although he did not participate in the practices in the days leading up to the game (long time scout Ira Thomas put the boys through their paces), and did not meet his team until the day of the game, he didn’t miss a thing. Chip Royal of the Associate Press recounted the goings-on. From the time the East went out for its pre-game activities, Connie never took his eyes off that diamond. He stood up at the top of the steps watching every move his boys, and the boys on the opposition team, made. Once, during the game, catcher Jim Nelson of Birmingham, Alabama thought a third strike had been called on the West team batter and lazily rolled the ball back toward the mound. There was a man on first base at the time. Mr. Mack, once the inning was complete, asked the young man to take a seat beside him and gave the boy a little fatherly talk about his actions with the ball when there are men on base. Nelson probably never forgot that conversation. But when the game was over, there was not a kid that did not receive praise from the manager.[17] As Mack said, “They never missed a sign all day.”[18] Nelson played six seasons of minor league ball, starting at Class-D Opelika in the Georgia-Alabama League. He went on to play in the Tigers farm system. His dream ended at Class-B Durham in 1951.

When outfielders Frank Azzarello of New Orleans and Herb Pollock from Columbus had a miscommunication, allowing a fly ball to land safely between them, Mack had them sit down as he dispensed advice.[19] Azzarello signed with the Red Sox and played three seasons in the low minors. Pollock did not play professionally.

Another player who caught Mack’s eye (actually they all did) was Jim Winter from Cincinnati. The second baseman was the smallest player on the field. “That Winter boy has got a lot of spunk. H says he’s 16, but I bet he’s not any more than 13. Did you see him slide into that base?” Mack took Winter out of the game in the eighth inning so as to give playing time to John Moskal of Buffalo, New York. Winter was sitting on the bench. He had a splinter under one of his nails and was in a bit of pain. Mack exclaimed, “Goodness Gracious did you have that all the time?” After winter nodded yes, Mack told him to go to the clubhouse and have the splinter removed.[20] Winter did not play professionally.   

In the pre-game festivities, Babe Ruth limped up to the microphone at home plate and said that it mattered little which team won the All-American contest so long as it was played cleanly and hard.[21]

Ruth met with several of the youngsters, one of whom was Joe Fromuth from Reading, Pennsylvania. The lad, who had starred in an American Legion All-Star game at Philadelphia’s Shibe Park earlier that summer asked the Babe if he could tell him a joke. Fromoth went on to explain that runner run faster from first to second than they do from second to third because there is a ‘short stop’ between second and third. Ruth was amused.[22] Fromuth went on to sign with the Red Sox and batted .334 with a league-leading 18 home runs and 103 RBIs in his first year of pro ball with Wellsville in the Class-D Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York League. The next season would be his last as he batted only .194 in 29 games with Class-C Oneonta. He had some difficulty adjusting to the life of a ballplayer. As scout Charlie Wagner who had signed him, noted, “He simply did not want to adhere to the hard-living lifestyle of certain professional athletes. So he returned home, having proved himself as an athlete and as a person of high ethical and moral convictions.” [23]

In those days, Ruth hosted a radio program sponsored by the A. G. Spalding Sporting Goods Company, and, on August 5, he hosted the boys, including Fromuth, on his program. Young Jim Enright of St. Louis asked the Babe how a player could learn to throw a ball harder and faster. Ruth replied, “Constant practice. Your arm won’t come up if you use it only once a week. You must practice hard every day. If you do, I’d say you will be able to throw the ball 20 feet further in a week.”[24] Enright, a second baseman, never did play professional baseball. Leonard Cohen of the New York Post told his readers that the young man, who had just completed his freshman year of high school was also a soccer player and dreamed of going to Notre Dame to study journalism.[25]

Proceeds went to the Community War Memorials Commission that built community recreation facilities with the funds.

At game’s end, the youngsters in the stands mobbed the field to congratulate the players for an outstanding game and it wasn’t until twenty minutes later that the players were able to make their way to the clubhouse.[26]

A crowd of 17,803 watched as the East team shut out the West team 6-0.

Before the game, a photographer snapped a picture of the starting pitchers with the managers, and the photo appeared in the August 17 edition of The Sporting News. A glance at the picture shows the East team’s pitcher wearing number 19. The pitching star of the East team, that number 19, known as “Mr. Zero”, due to his seven shutouts as a high school junior (he had allowed only two runs in 72 innings), overcame a touch of wildness in the first inning when, after striking out the first two batters, he hit the west’s left fielder, Marvin Homan of Cheyenne, Wyoming, in the head with a pitch. Homan, uninjured, went to first base and Billy Pierce proceeded to pitch six scoreless innings for the win, striking out seven and allowing only three hits. He was named the game’s MVP.[27] Along with the award came a four-year college scholarship.

After the game, the 5’ 9” 140-pound Pierce spoke a sentiment that he shared with his teammates. “Gosh, we sure were lucky to have Mr. Mack as our manager. He’s the best there is.”[28] He went on to say, “I’m a senior in high school. My father interested me in baseball very early, as he had been a ballplayer in Grand Rapids in his youth. I was not nervous this afternoon as I’ve pitched several games in Briggs Stadium back home. The Tigers, the Red Sox, and the Phillies have been interested in me. But, my folks and I decided that I’d make up my mind about playing pro ball after I graduated from high school.”[29]

He signed with the Tigers and pitched for them in parts of the 1945 (he pitched 10 games during the season and got a World Series ring) and 1948 seasons before being traded to the White Sox, where he blossomed. In 13 years with Chicago, he went 186-152 with a 3.19 ERA. He was named to seven All-Star teams, and led his league in wins (20 in 1957), strikeouts (186 in 1953) and ERA (1.97 in 1955). At age 35, when it looked like he was slowing down, Pierce was traded to the Giants and his 16-6 record was vital as the Giants won the 1962 National League pennant. As for his number 19, it is one of ten numbers retired by the Chicago White Sox.

Pierce, an only child, was a Detroit native and played on the sandlots with a team known as the Owls. His father, a druggist, was one of the team’s sponsors. Billy overcame wildness to become a successful high school pitcher. The school team received a great deal of coverage in the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News, and before long, the scouts took notice. “In 1944, I went to New York for the Esquire amateur all-star game. I had never thought about being a major leaguer – I was taking Latin and physics in anticipation of becoming a doctor – but after going to the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field, I got more of a feeling of what it would be like. The Tigers were my favorite team and I signed with their head scout, Wish Egan, when I was still 17. I finished classes on March 15, joined the Tigers (for spring training), and then came back in June and got my diploma.”[30] The college scholarship and plans for a medical career fell by the wayside.

The game featured a young man from Tilden, Nebraska at the catching position for the West Squad. He was sent east by the Omaha World-Herald, and Floyd Olds and Chip Bowley tallied the votes of the local coaches. The choice was virtually unanimous. Tilden is not exactly a vacation spot, but it does have a city hall (with a roof that leaks), a quaint corner filling station, and a baseball diamond with a sign over it that reads: Tilden Memorial Park. Richie Ashburn Field.[31] Richie Ashburn would return to the Polo Grounds often during his major league career, covering the expansive center field at the old ballpark. In the early 1940’s, Tilden with a population of less than 1,000, had neither a high school nor an American Legion team, and Ashburn ventured to nearby Neligh, Nebraska where he played for coach Harold Cole. Cole said of his young star, “I consider Ashburn the best all-around catcher I’ve had in 14 years, and I’ve had some pretty good ones. He is smart, clean, and a fine sport in addition to being fast, having a fine throwing arm, and being a great hitter.”[32]

The young catcher from Nebraska wore number 1, and was somewhat frustrated that Ott did not include him in the starting lineup, especially as The New York Times had announced that he would be starting. At the last second, Ott inserted Jim Pressley into the lineup and Pressley had troubles behind the plate during the first five innings as the East team built up a 6-0 lead. Observers such as Floyd Olds of the Omaha World-Herald and Ernest Mehl of the Kansas City Star maintained that two wild pitches and a passed ball charged to Pressley could have been handled by Ashburn. Thus, Richie’s performance in the Esquire game fell short of expectations. By the time he entered the game in the sixth inning, the game was out of hand. He played flawlessly behind the plate but went 0-for-2 with the bat. In his first at-bat he lined a ball toward the foul line in left field that was grabbed by Frank Azzarello of New Orleans. With two outs in the ninth, he hit a hard ground ball to shortstop that was converted into a force play for the final out of the contest.[33]

Ashburn signed with the Philadelphia Phillies and never caught a game in the majors. His father Neal encouraged his becoming a catcher so as to facilitate his move to the big leagues. He also encouraged him to hit from the left side so as to take advantage of his speed. At the Esquire Game, East manager Connie Mack suggested that the young man become an outfielder. Not long thereafter, the youngster was moved to the outfield, and, 18 years later, Ashburn finished his Hall-of-Fame playing career back at the Polo Grounds with the 1962 New York Mets. As a major leaguer, Ashburn felt right at home at the Polo Grounds. He first appeared there during his 1948 rookie season. On May 29, in his 30th game of the season, he led off for the Phillies and his inside-the-park homer was the first of his 29 career homers. More than half of those homers (15 to be precise) came at the Polo Grounds, including his final six as a member of the Mets in 1962.

During his time in the majors Ashburn was notorious for hitting foul balls. On one occasion, as legend has it, he was playing with the Chicago Cubs. This was in 1960. Cubs’ pitcher Jim Brewer saw his wife walking in the stands towards to concession stands for a hot dog. Brewer pointed his wife out in the stands and asked Ashburn to slap a foul fall in her direction. Sure enough, the foul ball landed directly on Mrs. Brewer’s derriere.

At the end of each season during his career, Rich looked forward to returning to Tilden. There, he and his wife, Herbie, built what was then the finest house in town and raised their children, who Rich remembers had "a lot of the same teachers in school that I did." Although the cost of living in Tilden was low, and he did not have to work during the off-season, he was a substitute teacher, coached and did some basketball refereeing. Ed Cram remembers that during the winter Rich would walk downtown and "visit with every old fellow he knew." Ashburn found the pace of his old hometown to be soothing.[34]

In addition to Ashburn and Pierce, Ervin Palica and Virgil Jester made it to the majors, and 19 of the 29 participants in the game went on to play professionally. In the picture below, Palica is at the extreme left and Jester is second from the left. That is manager Mel Ott in the middle and next to him his catcher Jim Presley. At the extreme right is Vic Picetti.

Jester, the starting pitcher for the West team in the Esquire game, and pitched in very bad luck never strayed far from his Colorado home. In the game in New York, he was the starting pitcher for the West squad and, of the six runs he allowed, only one was earned. He signed with the Braves organization in 1947. Most of his career was spent in the minor leagues, where his record was 70-60 in nine seasons, including a career best of 13-6 in 1951 with the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association. That season, he worked almost exclusively in relief. During one three day span, from June 23 through June 25, he appeared in three consecutive games, going five innings, two innings, and four and two-thirds innings, respectively. Manager Charlie Grimm stated, after the June 25 game, “I’m lucky to have a guy like Jester. But he’s only human. He can’t keep on relieving every day as he has since Saturday (June 23). I wish he’d ask me for a day off to go fishing or something. I’d have to give it to him. He’s certainly earned a day of rest.”[35]

After the 1951 season, the Brewers advanced to the Junior World Series where they took on the Montreal Royals of the International league. Jester saved his best for last. In the sixth and final game, after the Royals had taken a 10-2 lead, the Brewers came back to win 13-10 as ace reliever Jester, in the words of Red Thisted, “took over in the sixth and simply overpowered the Royals with his hard high one and sneaky curve, allowing just one hit in four frames to win the biggest game of the long campaign.”[36]

Jester reached the majors in 1952 and went 3-5 in 19 games for the Braves. His final win, a complete game 11-3 triumph over Brooklyn was the last game ever played by the Boston Braves. He was with the Milwaukee Braves briefly in 1953, appearing in only two games without a decision before being sent back to the minors.

Palica hailed from Los Angeles and was the son of Austrian immigrants. Indeed, the family name was Pavliecivich. He had completed his sophomore year of high school in 1944 when he was selected to play in the game at the Polo Grounds. He was accompanied to the game by reporter Braven Dyer, who had selected him for the honor. His coach, Wayne Sloss, said, “Not only is Erv a fine boy, but his whole life is baseball and the day will come when you’ll be mighty proud of your selection.”[37] Arriving a day late, Palica did not do well in the practices before the game and entered the game late.[38] He pitched the final inning for the West team and despite two wild pitches, did not allow the opposition to score. He was signed by Tom Downey of the Dodgers in 1945 and played professional ball through 1963. His best season was 1950, when he went 13-8 for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Palica came from a baseball family. He was the youngest of three brothers to play professionally. Oldest brother Ambrose “Bull” Palica pitched 14 seasons in the minors and had a 163-99 record. Alex, who was a year and a half older than Erv, pitched five minor league seasons and was 47-48. Erv’s son Wayne was signed by the Twins in 1979 and pitched four minor league seasons and Erv’s nephew John, an outfielder, also signed with the Twins and batted .267 in five minor league seasons. After baseball, Erv became a longshoreman and died in 1982. 

Jack Lindsey

One of the West team players, shortstop Jack Lindsey, made his way from Dallas, Texas to New York by rail, accompanied by Lewis Cox of the Dallas Times-Herald. During their week in New York, the players met with former New York Governor Al Smith, saw “Oklahoma”, and appeared on Babe Ruth’s radio program that was sponsored by A. G. Spalding. Each of the players received a baseball autographed by Babe Ruth. Lindsey, after the game, was taken on a road trip by the New York Giants. The Giants made him an offer, but he decided to go to the University of Texas. He was scouted by Wid Matthews of the Dodgers while playing at the University of Texas. After a year of college, he signed with the Dodgers’ Montreal farm club, but before joining the Dodgers went into the Navy.

He was released from the Navy late in 1946 and went to his first training camp was in 1947. The team was training in Havana that year and he played on a squad with Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Chuck Connors, Gene Mauch, and George Shuba. His path to the majors was blocked by Pee Wee Reese, and he played in the minors through 1954, getting as far as Class AAA. His best AAA season was at Montreal in 1950 when he batted .263. Jack remembers there being 26 farm clubs in the Dodger organization at the time. He was a part of a Fort Worth team in 1951 that set an outfield assist record with Gino Cimoli, Frank Brown, and Bill Sharman gunning down runners. After his playing days, Lindsey went into the insurance business. At age 87 in 2014, he was “still golfing, still dancing, and having a good time.”

Vic Picetti

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that on August 2, 1944 at 10:13 AM that Vic Picetti had smashed out his first double in a practice session at the Polo Grounds, and predicted stardom for the youngster from the Rincon Hill section of San Francisco, who had attended Mission High School.[39]

To select its representative, the San Francisco Chronicle sponsored an All-Star game featuring 30 of the area’s finest players. Picetti had come out on top. Bill Leiser of the Chronicle, who oversaw the balloting of the 14 judges summed up his feelings about Picetti. “The dumbest judge of baseball talent, merely noting his conduct on the field, his flawless handling of all chances, his presence in the right place at all times, his full game without a sign of a bobble or a wrong play, and his two sound doubles in four trips, would know that as a high school kid, he’s a champion.”[40]

Vic was not only the West team’s first baseman, but also served as a correspondent of sorts for the San Francisco Chronicle. He was accompanied on the trip by Leiser of the Chronicle (who referred to himself as Picetti’s bat boy) and Leiser used his column on August 11 to convey Picetti’s thoughts as he was heading home by train after the trip East. Picetti became friendly with several of the players including Virgil Jester, Roger Brown of Minneapolis, Leo Reming of Boston, Herb Pollock from Columbus, Ohio, and Pat Wohlers from Portland, Oregon. “It seemed I had known them for years. They were all fine ball players and fine friends. The best part of the trip was meeting them and going around with them in New York.” And there was one other player with whom the West team players became friendly. Although only 18-years-old, Cal McLish was already in the big leagues pitching with the Dodgers.[41] He had signed with the Dodgers fresh out of high school and since many players were in the military, he went straight to the Dodgers. Two weeks after the Esquire’s Game, McLish was in the Army. 

Picetti went on to write that he, “almost missed the game on Monday. We were ready to leave the hotel for the Polo Grounds. I had forgotten some of my equipment and hurried back to my room to get it. I told the man in charge of our trip, but probably he didn’t hear me. When I got back downstairs, everybody was gone. I started out alone but didn’t know how to go in the subway. Instead of going to the Polo Grounds, I was going to Ebbets Field in Brooklyn. I asked people about it and finally got turned around. I had to change trains four or five times, and I just got there before game time.”[42]

Within a week, Picetti signed with the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League and played parts of three seasons of minor league ball. In 1944 and the first part of 1945, he played for his hero, Dolph Camilli, who had been a star first baseman in the National League for the 11 years and was the MVP with the Dodgers in 1941. In 1944, with a squad laded with left handed first baseman, on August 22, Vic was given the position and the others were relegated to the outfield or dugout.[43] In 1945, Vic put together a 13 game hitting streak early in the season batted .282 for the Oaks. On April 26, readers of The Sporting News got a glimpse of Picetti in a feature article. The 17-year-old was still in high school at the time, and war or no war, he was considered the most promising young player on the West Coast. During his hitting streak he batted .407 (22-for 54).[44] Although he slugged 46 extra-base hits in 1945, only one was a home run. It came, along with three singles, in a May 15 win over Sacramento. That homer would be his only PCL four-bagger. Oakland finished at 90-93 in 1945 and looking to rebuild brought in manager Casey Stengel for the 1946 season.

After starting 1946 with Oakland, and playing seven games for new manager Stengel, Picetti was reassigned to the Spokane Indians in the Class-B Western International League. He was still young, and Oakland was looking to move veteran Les Scarcella from the outfield to make room for Wally Westlake, who was returning from service during World War II. Scarcella (.332) and Westlake (.315) would be the Oaks’ leading batters as they finished second with a 111-72 record.

I am the shadow sinister called Fate ... I am the Master Umpire, and I call the plays the way I see them. I have raised my arm, and nine grand boys are out.- Spokane Indians memorial program, 1946

Vic was playing well for Spokane and batting .285 after 57 games. The team’s bus was traveling from Spokane and was four miles west of the summit of Snoqualmie Pass Highway in the Cascade Mountains 50 miles east of Seattle on June 24 at about 7:30 PM en route to the team’s next game in Bremerton, Washington. A drizzly rain was falling, the driver lost control of the vehicle and it went over the side of a mountain, falling 300 feet on the muddy terrain and bursting into flames. Investigations revealed that the bus driver had swerved to elude an oncoming car that was traveling in the wrong lane. Manager Mel Cole, whose charred ruins were taken from the bus, and eight of his players perished. Six men were dead at the scene, one died en route to the hospital, and two players perished at area hospitals, George Lyden, who had playd briefly with the Dodgers, died 16 hours after the crash, and Chris Hartje died Wednesday evening. His wife had flown up from San Francisco to be by his bedside. Pitched Dick Powers, in his third minor league season, was seriously injured and would never play baseball again.[45]

Rescuers were frustrated as they descended on the scene. One of those who tried was a truck driver named Nelson Allen. “When I got to the bottom, I saw two bodies sprawled near the wreck. They were on fire but I got them away and put the flames out. They were both dead. I’ll never forget trying to save those two guys, but found I was too late.”[46]

Outfielder Levi McCormack was one of the survivors. He remembered, “I saw the headlights coming toward us on the wrong side of the road. The road was slippery. Our driver applied his breaks. We swerved across the road into the guardrail. We went through. We went down. I’ve never heard such hell. I don’t know why we didn’t smash the other driver. It might have been better.” Ben Geraghty, an infielder, remembered that “we either tried to miss it (the oncoming car) or skidded. I don’t know. I went out a window too quick to tell.” Geraghty was slow in recovering from his wounds. Although he was named the team manager, he was not at the helm when Spokane returned to action on July 4, losing a doubleheader to Yakima in front of a welcoming throng of 3,478. SABR biographer Rory Costello tells us “In the disaster’s aftermath, he developed unusual psychological gifts, rooted in his trauma. ‘This deepened perception was what made Ben Geraghty a great manager and a great man,’ (Pat) Jordan wrote (in A False Spring). But the cost was high. To remain a manager, he had to do what scared him most – continued to ride buses. To cope with his deep-seated fears, Geraghty constantly self-medicated with beer. Thus, his health slowly ruined. A heart attack killed him in 1963, aged just 50.”[47]

Gus Hallbourg, one of the team’s pitchers, according to news accounts said that he was knocked unconscious as the bus fell, and regained his senses in time to dive through a window to safety from the inferno inside the vehicle.[48]

Sixty years after the crash, writer Howie Stalwick recounted the details of the accident.

The bus began skidding, slamming into the guardrail, demolishing concrete posts holding cables in place. Suddenly, the bus hurtled into hell, flipping again and again and again down the mountain. The men inside were thrown violently against the walls, floor and roof. Some were sent crashing through windows as the bus burst into flames.

An eternity later, there was silence, except for the crackling of flames and the groans of dazed, injured men trying to escape the wreckage. Six players lay motionless; they were dead. Another died en route to the hospital. Another died the following day. Still another died the day after that.[49]

Vic Picetti was carried from the scene to a waiting ambulance, and succumbed on the way to the hospital and was declared dead on arrival at King County Hospital.[50] His funeral was held on Saturday June 29. He was only 18-years-old. Oaks manager Casey Stengel said, “Picetti was a very good player and there is no doubt he had major league possibilities. He hit .300 (his average with Spokane was .306 as late as June 16), had a good pair of legs and was a good runner.”[51]

On the evening of June 25, all Western International League ballparks were empty and dark, as scheduled games were cancelled to honor the players who had perished, those who, at game time, were fighting for their lives, and those who were recovering from their injuries.[52] Throughout the country benefits were held in leagues large and small. Two independent teams from West Haven, Connecticut had a benefit game and raised $322.07 for the cause. A contribution of $73.07 came from the Washington and Alaska chapter of the Veterans of the Spanish-American War who were holding their convention in the area.

On July 8, Pacific Coast League rivals Oakland and Seattle played an exhibition game at Spokane’s Ferris Field to raise funds for the families of the victims. On the program was part-time Oakland third baseman and full-time baseball clown Jackie Price. Washington’s favorite son, Bing Crosby purchased $2,500 worth of the $5 grandstand tickets and donated them to convalescent ex-servicemen and other service personnel.[53] Rains fell throughout the day and kept the crowd down to 5,500. Nevertheless, more than $50,000 was raised for the families. Behind home plate, nine seats, each bearing the name of one of the deceased players, were draped in flowers as a tribute to the fallen players.

That same evening, games were also scheduled in three Western International League cities, Vancouver, Tacoma, and Bremerton to raise funds.[54] Earlier that day, the major league All-Star game was played and a contribution was made to the Spokane families.

In a final tribute, before the 1946 Esquire’s Game in Chicago, the crowd stood in silence to honor Vic Picetti.

The two players who were runners-up in the balloting in San Francisco were Joe Kaney and Jim Zavitka. Kaney signed with the Boston Red Sox and played six minor league seasons, during which he batted .267. The highest plateau he reached was Triple-A Seattle for a brief 17-game stay in 1947. Zavitka, a pitcher, seemed destined for the big time. In his first pro season, 1947, he was 17-6 at Ogden in the Class-C Pioneer League, but he missed the next two seasons and was not the same when he returned. He was finished after the 1952 season at age 26.

As far as the newspapers that sent representatives to the game were concerned, their local players could do little wrong. The Charlotte Observer sent pitcher Mason Leeper to the game along with reporter Jake Wade. Leeper, who had injured his pitching arm prior to the game, entered the game in the ninth inning and preserved the shutout, allowing one hit. The Gastonia Gazette headline read, “Lefty Leeper Pitches Final Rack in All-Star Tilt.” Wade gave a full account of Leeper’s time in the spotlight. Picetti led off and singled to left field as his ground ball was just beyond the reach of Boston shortstop Leo Reming. Lindsey fouled out to the catcher on a 3-2 count. Perchak fielded a ground ball but threw wildly to second base, and there were runners on first and second with only one out. Wade then went on to tell his readers that “Mason (Leeper) working coolly, showing the effects of his ailing whipper and without the great stuff he showed in his battles back home proceeded to whiff Udo Jansen, who had singled off (New York’s George) Worgul on his previous trip to the plate. Rich Ashburn then grounded to Reming who tossed to (second baseman) John Moskal for a force out of Wohlers ending the game.”[55] Leeper, who was one month shy of his 16th birthday when he pitched in the Esquire’s game, signed with the Atlanta Crackers and pitched in the minor leagues for five seasons, posting a 15-24 record. Worgul from Richmond Hill High School had been selected for the game by Mel Ott, Joe McCarthy, and Leo Durocher. He signed with the Giants and spent the 1948 season at Ogdensburg, New York in the Class-C Border League, going 10-10. It was his only season of professional baseball.

Bob Rice, vice-president and farm director of the Pirates, chose the initial Pittsburgh representative. Rice scouted boys playing for American Legion teams or attending baseball schools in the area.[56] The final 32 candidates for the trip had a final tryout in the form of an all-star game on July 1 at Forbes Field. The game was sponsored by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The players came from four organized youth leagues in the Pittsburgh area. The South Hills League and the American Legion supplied representatives for one of the teams and the Bureau of Recreation the Greater Pittsburgh Amateur Baseball Federal were represented on the other team. The game was between the South Hills-American Legion team managed by John Roehm and Ray Breen, and the Federation-Recreation squad, managed by Ottie Cochran and Raymond “Heinie” Boll.

Umpires for the games were Jocko Conlan, George Barr and Ziggy Sears, who had umpired the Pirates-Braves game earlier that afternoon. The 2,940 fans who attended the big-league game were invited to hand around and watch the kids.

Selected to go to New York was left-handed pitcher William Herstek of Rural Ridge, Pennsylvania, who played for the South Hills-Legion team, which won the game 9-4. Herstek’s Curtisville American Legion squad was the reigning state American Legion champions. He had been mentored by his father, who had pitched semi-pro ball. After observing Herstek in a pre-game practice in New York, coach Carl Hubbell said, “the lefthander sure has finesse. He certainly knows what it is all about out there. Look at how easy he works – sure wish I could be out there in his place. Nothing seems to ruffle him – he’s been working smooth like that at each practice – he sure is a fine choice for the game.”[57]

Unfortunately, Herstek did not get to show off his talent in the game.When Billy Pierce of Detroit was named the starting pitcher for the East team, and Herstek was assigned to pitch batting practice. He injured his arm in BP and was restricted to one plate appearance as a pinch-hitter in the game. He struck out in the fourth inning facing Denver’s Virgil Jester.[58]

Herstek signed with the Detroit Tigers in March 1945. He started the 1945 season with Class-D Jamestown, going 4-3 with a 3.69 ERA, before being promoted to and Class-AA Buffalo in late June. With the Bisons, where he was on the same staff as Esquire’s alum Bill Pierce, he was 1-1 with a 6.70 ERA. He entered the military after the 1945 season and was out of pro ball beginning with the 1946 season. He returned for one last try in 1950, going 6-6 (6.20 ERA) for Class-D Olean. Although he would pitch in semi-pro ball in the Pittsburgh area, he was out of organized baseball at age 23. Two alternates were named on July 1. They were Tony Giovane and Len Gross, neither of whom played professionally.[59]

The Nashville Tennessean sent Othur “Buck” Perdue to the game. The catcher who, like most of the other players in the game, had never been to New York was selected via balloting of local baseball officials. He had just completed his freshman year of high school and took the train to New York from Nashville’s Union Station. He was accompanied by his Centenary Methodist Institute baseball coach Thomas Page and Tennessean sports editor Raymond “Corner Stone” Johnson. Perdue never played professionally, but three players receiving votes by the 15-man committee did play professionally. Harvill Jakes and Benton Shoemake played in the low minors, and 15-year-old Harold Gilbert, who two years later would play in the Esquire’s Game, would go on to play with the New York Giants. 

Memphis also had a vote of local officials and their choice was Gilbert Mills, who was listed at no less than three positions. Mills trip to New York was sponsored by the Memphis Commercial Appeal.[60] Adept on the mound, first base and in the outfield, he played right field for the East team and went 0-for-4. However, his record on the mound in Memphis was such that he was signed by the Dodgers as a pitcher. In 10 minor league seasons, he posted a 52-83 record, but over the 1952 and 1953 seasons with the Dodgers’ Class-AAA team in Montreal, he put together a combined record of 18-11 for manager Walter Alston. Mills would not move up to the Dodgers and gave up on his dream after the 1955 season. He was 28.

As Braven Dyer wrote before departing from Los Angeles with Erv Palica, “Baseball has never done enough for the nation’s kids. This game is a starter. It didn’t matter to these kids whether they were rich or poor, or whether their parents were Republicans or Democrats. They were picked because they could play good baseball. And the experiences they enjoy in the next two weeks should help to teach them the American way of life.”[61]

Blue Radio Network executive Edward J. Noble added, “The event symbolizes the development of American youth leadership as opposed to the ‘ism’ youth movements in totalitarian nations.”[62]

After the game, there was a banquet for the teams. Each player was given a gold baseball as a souvenir of the game and was allowed to keep his uniform and windbreaker.

Chapter Three

Esquire’s All-American Boys Baseball Game: 1945

He Came from Egypt

Once again boys came to New York from all over the country and were treated to a wonderful experience that included a boat trip up the Hudson River, a meeting with Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, and lunch at Toots Shor’s Restaurant.[63] Thirty-two players were representing their home towns, and each was accompanied by a local writer so to assure that the folks back home wouldn’t miss a thing. The game was broadcast nationally with Red Barber and Harry Wismer at the microphones.

Proceeds went to the Living War Memorials Commission that built community recreation facilities with the funds. Proceeds also went to the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis.

On Tuesday August 21, the players met their managers and had their first workouts. The West Squad worked out at Ebbets Field and the East Squad worked out at the Polo Grounds. The following Monday, the teams switched venues.

In addition to seeing major league ball games, the boys met with Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia and wen to see “Hats off to Ice.” And what would a trip to New York be without an excursion to the top of the Empire State building!

The game at the Polo Grounds on August 28 produced Curt Simmons who would go on to star with the Phillies and Cardinals. Managers were Babe Ruth (East) and Ty Cobb (West). Ruth was assisted by Carl Hubbell and Gordy Maguire of the New York Giants. Cobb was assisted by Chuck Dressen and Red Corriden of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

The West broke out on top in the third inning with four runs. Simmons walked two in the frame and three errors by his mates fueled the rally. Only one of the runs was earned. The East squad, down 4-2 going into the final inning, rallied to win 5-4. Manager Cobb, in defeat, addressed his team and said, “It was a great game with a sensational finish. Life, like baseball, is made up of ups and downs, so boys, please remember that.”[64]

At the time, Simmons had just completed his sophomore year of high school and was 16-years-old. That summer, he pitched the Coplay American Legion team to the first of two consecutive Pennsylvania state junior crowns. The next season, he would make it three in a row. His mound prowess earned him selection to an American Legion all-star game at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, where he struck out seven of the nine hitters he faced in three innings.[65] From there it was on to the game in New York.

Simmons emulated Ruth in the game. After pitching the first four innings, allowing the one earned run in the third inning when the West scored four times, he was removed from the game on the short end of a 4-0 score. Simmons switched to the outfield for the final five innings. In the ninth inning, with one on, he hit the longest drive of the game. His triple drove in a run, and he scored the tying run during a three-run rally as his East team came from behind to win 5-4. Simmons was chosen the game’s MVP.  Remembering his experience in New York, Simmons said, “He (Ruth) called everybody kid. But I remember he said, ‘Hey kid, you’re pitching.’ So I got a base hit when I was pitching, and after I pitched he said, ‘Go play right field.’ So I got to play the whole game, and I hit a triple toward the end of the game, and we ended up winning.”[66] In the picture below, that is Curt with his arms extended third from the right. 

Simmons shared hero status in the game with John Neal of Bloomington, Illinois. In 1945, the selection process for the Chicago representative to the Esquire’s game took the form of an All-Star game at Comiskey Park on July 28, 1945. In the event, sponsored by the Peoria Journal, the CYO All-Stars defeated the American Legion All-Stars 1-0 in seven innings. Neal, Bloomington High School’s sophomore pitching star, started the game in the outfield, getting two hits and then pitched a hitless last inning in the seven inning contest. He was selected to go to New York.[67] In a practice before the game, Neal was turning heads as he deposited balls into the outfield stands. The hitting display impressed team manager Babe Ruth so much that the Bambino elected Neal to play the outfield in the game. In the game itself, Neal, batting in the cleanup spot did not disappoint. He went 2-for-4 with a single and a double and was right in the middle of a rally that resulted in his team scoring its first two runs in the fourth inning. Neal after attending college at the University of Illinois and serving in the Marines, signed with the Orioles in 1954, but his professional career consisted of one appearance in Class-C.

Another hero in the game was winning pitcher Bill Glane of Detroit who pitched the last two innings, striking out five batters. In the eighth inning, after Simmons misplayed a fly ball in right field, Glane was able to strike out the side and avert further damage. In the ninth, a bunt single and a sacrifice put a runner in scoring position, but Glane rose to the occasion, striking out the next two batters to keep the score at 4-2 and was credited with the win when his mates erupted for the three runs in their final turn at bat.[68] Glane (to Ruth’s right in the picture) first played with Spokane in 1946, joining the squad after the devastating bus crash that decimated the squad. The left-hander then signed with the Dodgers and was 60-62 in nine minor league seasons. The highest level that he reached was Class-AAA.

The first player selected for the game was Burt Stone from Miami. He was elated when informed by Jimmy Burns of the Miami Herald. The young second baseman had batted .400 (24-for-60) in the preceding season at high school, stealing 17 bases.[69] During his time in New York, he let the folks back home know of his adventure, writing a daily column in the Miami Herald. One day, he communicated that, “We took in an ice show Wednesday night. It was really something to see. I’d never seen an ice show before and neither had the other fellows. The settings and lights and costumes were beautiful, and the girls weren’t bad either.”[70] 

In the game, he drove in Simmons with the tying run with a single, and later came around to score the winning run. Stone’s family was in attendance at the game, including his brother Corporal Larry Stone, who had flown in from Cairo, Egypt.[71] The irony here is that game MVP Simmons had come to the game from Egypt, Pennsylvania. Burt Stone signed with the Boston Braves and spent six seasons in their organization, getting as high as Class AAA.

Six players in addition to Simmons made it to the major leagues. They included Davey Williams, Bob DiPietro, Jack Dittmer, Vern Morgan, Herbert Plews, and John Thomas.

DiPietro was days shy of his 18 birthday when the game was played in New York. He had just graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School and was chosen to represent San Francisco after hitting triple and three singles in the East Bay-West Bay All Star Game. He scored after his triple in the top of the 12th inning to put his West Bay team into the lead, 5-4, but the East Bay squad tied the score in the bottom of the inning. The West team did win the game 6-5 in 15 innings.

After graduating high school, with the draft approaching, he had met with a Navy recruiter. However, he elected to go to the game in New York. The military would wait until he returned from New York. And then, he enlisted in the Army.

In New York, DiPietro was selected as captain of the West team, and got a hit off Simmons in the game. His trip to New York was followed closely by the San Francisco Chronicle. Before departing for New York, he was asked if he was excited. “Excited? Boy, oh boy, I’ll say I’m excited! I never dreamed that anything so wonderful could happen to me. I can’t realize yet that it’s all true.”[72] When in New York, his mom Reisa carefully went through each and every copy of each and every newspaper, clipping away and putting each article about Bob into a carefully maintained scrapbook. She had no shortage of help from family and friends, to whom Bob was known as “Deef.” He got the unusual nickname early on. His schoolmates had difficulty pronouncing DiPietro, called him “D-P,” and D-P became Deef.[73]

As a youngster, DiPietro had been a fan of the New York Yankees and before departing for New York said, “My favorite team has been the Yankees. They, to me, have always seemed to be a legend of the best that baseball can offer. I’d be the happiest fellow in the world if I could wear a Yankee uniform.”[74] 

DiPietro and his teammates convened for their first practice at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field with no less than five scouts in attendance. A special thrill for DiPetro was playing for Ty Cobb, who was his favorite player. In that first practice, Cobb took some extra time to help DiPietro with his bunting.[75]

He remembered a scene during practice when Babe Ruth was frustrated with one of his players in the batting cage. “He (Ruth) grabbed the bat from one of the players and told the kid, ‘Get the hell out of the batting cage. You aren’t worth shit as a hitter.’ He said, ‘Carl (Hubbell), groove a few of ‘em here. Let me show them how to hit.’ Carl Hubbell was pitching! I look back. Cobb, Ruth, Hubbell, and what did I get? Zip (autographs)! Ruth hit six balls into the stands. It was the damnedest exhibition I’d seen. And he was in a sweat suit. But he had that great swing. Of course, the Polo Grounds, it was very short down both lines, but he hit a good drive to center field. He put on a show; it was great.”[76]

After getting out of the service DiPietro signed with the Boston Red Sox and played 13 seasons in the minor leagues, batting .282 but only had a cup of coffee in the majors, playing in four games with the Boston Red Sox in 1951.

Davey Williams represented Dallas in the game in New York, and his powerful bat earned him a start in the game. Years later, he looked back on some of his experiences while in New York. “Cobb managed our team and seemed to enjoy it. But a lot of it was like a publicity routine. There was a picture of Cobb and me down in a simulated crouch. He was supposed to be showing me how to field a ground ball. But it was a joke because we were in such a squatted position that if you really tried to play that way, it would be ridiculous.”[77]

In the first inning, he walked and injured his hand, losing a nail when he was spiked trying to break up a double play, and stayed in the game through eight innings, getting a hit off Simmons. Ty Cobb was impressed by Williams’ toughness and later wrote to him to say as much. After the Esquire’s game, he signed with scout Claude Dietrich of the Atlanta Crackers, but before playing an inning of professional ball, spent 14 months fulfilling his military obligation.[78] 

He first played with Waycross, Atlanta’s affiliate in the Class-D Georgia-Florida League in 1947, batting .290 with a league leading 147 runs scored. He led the league with 34 doubles and, in all, had 52 extra base hits. The following season found him at Pensacola in the Class-B Southeastern League where he once again led his league in scoring (119) and once again had 52 extra base hits. He batted .308 and was named to his league’s All-Star team. By 1949, he was with Atlanta but was, by then, the property of the New York Giants. He spent the bulk of the 1949 season with Atlanta, batting .290 and was named the Class-AA Southern Association’s Rookie-of-the-Year.

He played in 13 games for the Giants at the end of the 1949 season and spent 1950 at Minneapolis in the Class-AAA American Association. In July of 1951, after beginning the season with Minneapolis, he rejoined the Giants and played 50 games for the National league champions. He went on to play six seasons at second base for the New York Giants and was in two World Series. In 1953, his best season, he batted .297 as was named to the National League All-Star team.

Herb Plews came all the way from Helena, Montana to play in the game. He was not the initial choice to represent Wyoming and Montana in the game. The initial choice, Dick Mitchell of Miles City, Montana, signed with the Yankees and was in their system for six seasons, compiling 53-55 record, but the highest he got was a two-game stint at Triple-A Newark in 1949. Plews, who was backing up Williams at second base in the Esquire’s game, went into the game as a defensive replacement and did not get to come to the plate. Although his high school did not have a baseball team, Plews played American Legion ball and on the basis of his play in Legion ball, was selected to go to New York.[79] After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Illinois. His first minor league experience came in the 1950 when he was signed to a minor league contract by the Kansas City Blues. The Blues, at the time, were affiliated with the New York Yankees. After serving in the service for two years during the Korean War, he returned to baseball and had his best minor league season at Denver in 1955, batting .302.

Prior to the 1956 season, he was traded by the Yankees to the Washington Senators and made it to the majors with Washington that season, playing in 91 games, batting .270. He played four seasons in the majors, mostly with Washington, and batted .262 in 346 games. After playing his final major league game for the Red Sox in July 1959, he went back to the minor leagues and played through 1965, accumulating a total of 1,083 hits in the minor leagues.

Jack Dittmer hailed from Elkader, Iowa and had completed his junior year of high school when chosen for the Esquire’s game. Better known for his football skills as a youngster, the pass catcher commenced his senior year of high schoolboy scoring five touchdowns in the opening game.[80] After attending the University of Iowa, where he was named to the second team All-Big Ten football squad in his senior year, he signed with the Boston Braves in 1950 and made it to the majors in 1952. He played in the majors for six seasons, batting .232. His best season was 1953 when he had a career high 134 hits, clubbed 23 doubles, and batted .266 for Milwaukee.

Vern Morgan was named to the Esquire’s squad among some controversy. It seems that he had signed a contract with the New York Giants in 1944, and his eligibility was questioned. When it was determined that he had never actually played professionally, the contract was torn up and he was allowed to represent Emporia, Virginia in the Esquire’s game.[81] He signed with the Chicago Cubs in 1948 and finally made it to the majors in 1954. In parts of two seasons with the Cubs, he played in 31 games and batted .225. After his playing days, he managed in the minor leagues for eight seasons.

John “Bud” Thomas was sent to the game by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He had done well playing for his local American Legion team, the Sedalia Merchants, and in the Missouri State American Legion tournament, he stared as the Sedalia Merchants advanced to the finals before losing to a team sponsored by Pratt and Whitney. Based on his performance in the tournament, Thomas was selected to go to New York.[82] His proud father, who had also participated in Legion ball, was a CPO who had returned from the Aleutian Islands and was stationed in Seattle at the time his son was honored by the selection committee. The younger Thomas was overjoyed. “No fooling. You’re not kidding me, are you? Oh boy, I can’t wait until I get home and write my dad. I guess I’m a lucky boy. Gee whiz.”[83] At the game in New York, Bud was befriended by Cobb. Thomas remembered “For some unknown reason, he took to me when I played in that All-Star game. It was during the practices and so on and he cornered me in the hotel and talked and talked and talked. We corresponded for a long time.”[84]

Thomas returned home to Sedalia after the trip and said, “It’s a thrill that comes once in a lifetime.” He had started the game at shortstop and was removed from the game in the middle of the ninth inning. And he came home with his uniform, warm-up jacket, bats, and other souvenirs, including balls autographed by Ruth and Cobb. He also had memories of a trip to the Latin Quarter night club.[85]

He signed with the St. Louis Browns and made it to the major leagues for a brief stay towards the end of the 1951 season. In 14 games, he fared pretty well, batting .350 (7-for-20) with a home run and a pair of stolen bases. After the home run he received the silent treatment from his teammates on the bench. Little did anyone know that he would be out of the majors the next season, sold off to Toronto of the International League. His last season in organized baseball was 1953, when he batted only .193 for San Antonio in the Class-AA Texas League. After his playing career, he became an educator in his home town of Sedalia, Missouri, starting as a student teacher and rising to the level of Assistant Superintendent of Schools, a position he held for 11 years. He died in 2015 at the age of 86.

Most of the players, of course, didn’t make it to the majors, but the competition to get to New York was just as challenging. George Fisher, a pitcher, represented Ogden, Utah. The Ogden Standard-Examiner was sending its first representative to the game and held an All-Star game on June 14 to determine its representative. 28 players from Utah and Idaho took to the field at John Affleck Park. Even Ogden, Dave Romney, took the event seriously. He practiced for ten days so as to be able to throw a strike with the first pitch. On the receiving end of the pitch was Mayor Earl Glade of Salt Lake City.[86]

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer sponsored an All-Star doubleheader on June 18 in Seattle, pitting the local King-Pierce County team against the Statewide all-stars. Although the locals won both games, it was a player from the Statewide team that made it through the gauntlet of promising youngsters to be selected for the trip east. Bob Goldstein, who had a single, double, and triple over the course of the two games [87], was initially signed by the Yankee organization in 1948 and batted .280 over the course of three minor league seasons, advancing as far as Class-B in 1950.

The Tennessean also sponsored an All-Star contest after which five scouts in attendance selected Bob “Buck” Jones to travel to New York. The pitcher hurled a complete game in Nashville scattering five hits and striking out 16, as his DuPont squad defeated the Old-Timers Leagues All-Stars. During the summer months, he had led his team to the first half championship in the eight-team Old-Timers League, where he had pitched a no-hitter. He was accompanied to New York by a cheering section comprised of one member from each of the leagues other seven teams.[88] 

But, Jones did not get to participate in the game in New York. He had injured his arm pitching batting practice on the eve of the game and manager Babe Ruth, trying to win the game at all costs, would not even consider using Jones as a pinch hitter.[89] Jones would not play professionally.

From Macon, Georgia came catcher Billy Henderson. Years later he remembered, “The coaches told me it was the opportunity of a lifetime. I had hardly been out of Macon.” He was accompanied to New York by O. B. Keeler of the Atlanta Journal. Keeler is best known as the biographer of golf’s Bobby Jones. Henderson’s memories included an early banquet during his stay in New York. “I found myself sitting next to this distinguished gentleman in a pinstripe suit. I chatted with this impressive and refined man throughout the dinner. I later asked a teammate who the man was and he told me. It was Ty Cobb. I had never met a more poised, articulate and considerate person. He impressed me as a genuine and sensitive man.” In a batting practice before the game, he caught the offerings of Carl Hubbell. “It was like a dream. I was afraid to pinch myself to find out whether I was awake or not.”[90] 

In the game, Henderson, who went 0-for-1 at the plate, made a crucial throwing error in the third inning when the West scored all their four runs. With runners on first and second and a 3-2 count on the batter, Cobb had his men running. The pitch was outside, but Henderson, not waiting for the umpire’s call, threw anyway, and the throw went into the outfield. Ruth, in a show of impatience and profane language, which Billy would never forget, removed Henderson from the game as Billy went out to the field in the fourth inning. He was replaced by Ted Mace, whose single ignited the three-run rally in the ninth inning.

Henderson went on to the University of Georgia, where he set a career record of 91 steals that exists to this day. He played professionally for two seasons. His first stop, in 1950, after receiving a $2,500 signing bonus was in his hometown of Macon, Georgia, where he played for the Class-A Macon Peaches. Although he was doing well in his first three weeks with the club, he spent the balance of the season with Fitzgerald, Georgia in the Georgia State League, batting .370. The following season, he started the season with Macon. He was reassigned to Greenville (South Carolina) Spinners of the Class-B Tri-State league and was on the move again to Class D Hazelhurst-Baxley, Georgia.[91]

Frustrated by his lack of advancement in baseball, he walked away and went on to a legendary career as a high school football coach. His first position was as an assistant coach at Jefferson High School in Georgia. He had head-coaching stints at Willingham High School and Mount DeSales High School before in 1973 assuming the post at Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia where his teams, over 23 years, went 222-65-1 and won three state championships.  

His legacy began to take form in that Esquire’s Game back in 1945 where his encounters with Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth gave him lessons as to how to carry himself and treat other people. In an interview later in life he shared his fondest football memory. It was not about his successes of which there were many. This is what he said.

"My fondest football memory is the first time our team gathered in the gymnasium for a Thanksgiving meal. Besides the players, there were mommies and daddies, brothers and sisters. We bowed our heads for the invocation. I did not close my eyes. I looked around the gym and saw white hands holding black hands, hands of the rich and prominent holding hands with poor kids from the other side of the track. And I was thinking, it all human beings did something like this, there would be few problems in this world."[92]

Perhaps, taking people like Billy Henderson one step further on a life’s journey to something great beyond sports is what the Esquire’s Game and later Brooklyn Against the World and the Hearst Sandlot Classic were all about.

From Buffalo, New York came shortstop Lester Eggers, who had served as his class president at South Park High School, while excelling in baseball and basketball. He signed with the Detroit Tigers and spent. Les spent five seasons, interrupted by two years in the military during the Korean War, in the minor leagues and after his playing days joined the Police Department, where he served from 1954 through 1979.[93]  

In 1945, Jim Crosset took over the reins of promoting the game for Esquire and was instrumental in moving the game to Chicago in 1946. What was to be the last Esquire game was held in from of 28,211 spectators at Wrigley Field in Chicago on August 10, 1946 and six of the 16 players on the East team eventually made it to the majors. 

Chapter Four

Esquire’s All-American Boys Baseball Game: 1946

Cobb Meets Wagner in the Windy City

New Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler added his name to the growing list of supporters for the game when he commented:

“I am tremendously interested in amateur baseball and want to encourage allof those who sponsor ethical competition among the younger ballplayers. There is a marked upsurge in interest in junior baseball all over the country and I think this is a very healthy sign.”[94]

Before getting to go to the August 10, 1946 contest in Chicago, the players had to survive the selection process in their local communities. In one case, that meant going up against players from three states. The Ogden Standard-Examiner sponsored a baseball school which served as a tryout vehicle for boys from Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming. From a group of more than 200, 24 boys were selected to play in an All-Star game on July 3. Proceeds from the game were used to support the Shriners Crippled Children’s Hospital Fund and the managers were George “High Pockets” Kelly and Pat Patterson, both of whom were serving as area scouts for the Cincinnati Reds.[95] Kelly, who played sixteen seasons in the majors, stared with the New York Giants in the 1920’s when, over a seven year period, he batted .306, led the league in homers once and in RBIs twice. He was subsequently elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans’ Committee in 1973. Patterson played briefly with the Giants in 1921 before going on to a career as a scout for the Cincinnati Reds.

The player selected, after the game in Ogden, to go to Chicago was none other than left-hander Morris "Bud" Powers, a pitcher who probably went on to a great career, but it was most definitely not in baseball. Indeed, while with Powers in Chicago, writer Al Warden of the Ogden Standard-Examiner wrote that Powers “looks sweeter to the writer than a hundred-pound sack of sugar would look to a needy housewife.”[96] He went on to become a successful executive with Fram Corporation.

Somehow, Kelly and the others involved in the selection process did not appreciate the talents of another pitcher, this one from, of all places, Meridian, Idaho. The kid from Idaho was one of nine Idaho players at the baseball school, and was one of three players from Idaho selected to start in the game. Vernon Law was the starting pitcher for Kelly’s Esquire team and struck out the first seven batters he faced. However, in the third inning, with one out he ran into some control trouble, walking three batters. He also allowed a single and although each of the outs he recorded was via the strikeout route, he gave up one run. Powers replace Law on the mound and pitched three shutout innings, striking out seven, and edging out Law and shortstop Andy “Buzz” Harrington for the trip to Chicago.[97] Harrington, whose father had played in one game with the Detroit Tigers in 1925, did not play professionally. On the other hand, Law signed in 1948 with the Pirates and went on to win 162 games, including 20 (18 complete games) when he won the Cy Young Award in 1960, was named to his only All-Star team and won two games in the World Series for the Pirates.

In Denver the unanimous choice was Fred Steinmark. The shortstop was portrayed in a pre-game article by Al Warden of the Ogden Standard-Examiner as having a strong arm and as having led his high school league in RBIs. Less than a week before the game, he was replaced by infielder Paul Ciberay. Indeed, the replacement was so close to game time that Steinmark’s picture, along with a brief bio was included in the official program.

Steinmark signed with the Cleveland Indians and played three seasons in the minor leagues. After his second season, 1948, he was involved in an off-season automobile accident. He returned to action in 1951 and was batting .361 in early June. By then he had been married to his childhood sweetheart Gloria for three years and they had two children. Fred wanted to be with his family and in June, 1951 left professional baseball. He became a policeman and raised his family in Colorado.[98]

A generation later, another Fred Steinmark would be grabbing the headlines, but in a football uniform. Fred and Gloria’s son, was an outstanding football player at the University of Texas. His story went from triumph to tragedy seemingly overnight. The smallish defensive back was part of a great come from behind effort as the Longhorns defeated Arkansas on December 6, 1969 for the National Championship. Six days later, after being diagnosed with cancer, his leg was amputated. His spirits remained good, but the cancer returned and he died on June 6, 1971.[99] 

Ken Fremming represented Buffalo, New York. The pitcher signed with the Detroit Tigers and spent seven seasons in the minor leagues, getting as high as Triple-A Toledo. 

In Seattle, against the backdrop of the Parade of Progress exhibition, a double header was played on July 1 to determine Seattle’s representative to the Esquire’s Game in Chicago as well as the first Hearst Classic in New York. Seattle had been conducting All-Star games for several years and, in 1944 and 1945 sent players to the Esquire’s games. Jim Presley was the representative in 1944 and Bob Goldstein was the representative in 1945. The selection process, even to get to the game in Seattle was arduous. Presley and Goldstein were both from the Spokane area and had competed at games at Ferris Field in Spokane that had been sponsored by the Spokane Daily Chronicle.[100] Neither made it to the majors. In 1946, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer sponsored the All-Star Game on July 1. In attendance as special guest star was Tris Speaker, who flew in from Cleveland and was looking forward to getting in some fishing during his first trip to the Northwest. The managers were Casey Stengel of the Oakland Oaks and Jo-Jo White, who had succeeded Bill Skiff as manager of the Seattle Rainiers on June 12.

The local King-Pierce County team, 23 strong, was announced on June 7 and squared off against a team comprised of 25 all-stars from other parts of the state and Northern Idaho. And everyone got their names in the newspaper even if the spelling was not always accurate. For example, the State team’s first baseman was either Howley, or Rowel, or Rowley – so it was written on June 24 in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. By game time the players arrived at the Olympic Hotel, it was determined that his name was actually John Rowely. As always in these type of events, there are last minute changes. On the eve of the vent, it was announced that catch Johnny Brogan, a former mayor at Boys’ Town in Nebraska, would be representing Northern Idaho in the game.

The King-Pierce County team won both games 11-1 and 8-7. The two top players from the game were sent east. Russ Rosburg went to the Hearst Classic and Tony Brodie went to the Esquire’s Game in Chicago. The alternate was Gerald Kimmerle of Lake Washington, who had batted .455 in his final high school season. All three players accompanied the Seattle Rainers on a road trip to Portland and Los Angeles before Rosburg and Brodie headed east.

Rosburg signed with the St. Louis Browns and played nine seasons of minor league baseball. He batted .306 over his nine years with 155 home runs. His highest level of play was in the Pacific Coast League, where he got into 37 games over a three year period, batting .275. He retired after the 1957 season. Brodie signed with the New York Giants and spent four seasons in the low minors, never getting beyond Class-C. He retired after the 1953 season. Kimmerle did not sign on with a big league organization.

Jerry Ahrens was a double threat for the West squad. He was from St. Louis and was accompanied to the game by Harold Tuthill of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Jerry, who had two no-hitters was so prodigious a hitter that manager Ty Cobb batted him fourth in the lineup and sent him to the outfield once his pitching chores were complete. He pitched the first three innings, striking out two, and was the winning pitcher. As a batter, he had one hit in three appearances and drove in two runs. He was signed by the Tigers and pitched two minor league seasons, posting a combined mark of 21-8 while batting .223. However, he would not get past Class-A.

Grabbing the sports headlines in the months leading up to the event in Chicago were the June 19 heavyweight title match between Joe Louis and Billy Conn, as Louis came back after his long layoff from serving in the military during World War II and scored, an eighth round knockout.

While in Chicago, the boys stayed at the Hotel Stevens, overlooking Lake Michigan. On August 4, the boys saw a doubleheader between the White Sox and the Washington Senators, followed by a buffet dinner sponsored by Esquire. and in the days prior to the August 10 game, they attended a performance of the Ringling Brothers Circus on August 5, saw a game between the White Sox and the Indians on August 6, took a two and one-half hour boat ride on Lake Michigan and saw the musical “Up in Central Park” on August 7, were back at Comiskey Park for another White Sox-Indians game on August 8 followed by an evening trip to the amusement center at Riverview Park. On Friday August 9, they attended a practice of the College All-Stars football team and spent the evening at the movies.[101]

Present for the pre-game festivities were Chandler, along with former heavyweight boxing champions Gene Tunney and Max Baer.

Ty Cobb returned to manage the West squad and applauded the game. “When any event makes it possible for boys from all sections of the country to meet on common ground, and where all have a common interest, it is a big step forward in making this country a better place for our coming generation to live in.”[102] Assisting him were two of the scouts for the Chicago Cubs, Bill Conroy and Bill Prince. The pair had headed up the baseball school in Chicago that summer.

Honus Wagner managed the East Squad. His coaches were Luke Appling and Mike Tresh. Wagner said, “Working with these boys will take me back to my kid days in Carnegie, Pennsylvania. We’ll did in and learn a lot of baseball while we are together. I can’t say that we’ll win, but I will say the West will get all the competition they are looking for when the umpire calls, ‘Play Ball!’”[103]

Wagner was posed with an unusual challenge as five of his players were first basemen and he had to do some juggling to field all nine positions, especially as he had only one pitcher. Wagner also had nine left hand batters on his roster.

One of those first basemen was Don Ivol from Dormont, Pennsylvania, who played for the Mt. Lebanon Wildcats in the City-County League. Wagner moved Ivol to the pitcher’s mound. He had been selected after an All-Star game in Pittsburgh’s Forbes Field on Saturday, July 13. The game sponsored by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and played under the auspices of a group known as the Dapper Dans, was played after the Pirates-Phillies game on that date. The committee that selected Ivol included Pirate manager Frankie Frisch, and coaches Spud Davis, Del Bissonette, and Al Lopez. In the July 13 game, the Whites, managed by Ray Breen, defeated the Blues, managed by Ottie Cochran, 5-1. Also impressing the judges was Whites’ pitcher Charles Yeager. On July 16, Ivol worked out with the Pirates at Forbes Field and got some pointers from Wagner, Pirate first baseman Elbie Fletcher, and the men who served on the committee that had selected Ivol as the best player on July 13.[104]

In the practices before the game in Chicago, Wagner had Ivol throw to White Sox catcher Mike Tresh, who was serving as one of Wagner’s coaches. In speaking with the writers covering the game, Tresh said that he thought Ivol had the makings of a fine pitcher.[105] Ivol entered the game in Chicago in the second inning with one out and the bases loaded. He got out of the jam by inducing the first batter he faced to ground into a double play. He stayed in the game and pitched two more innings, during which he allowed a run while striking out five batters. By the time he came out of the game, with one out in the bottom of the fifth, his team had drawn to within one run of the lead. However, in the sixth inning, the West squad scored five runs and won the game 10-4.

Ivol’s parents were at the game in Chicago along with 15 residents from Mt. Lebanon including Wildcats’ coach Art Long. Local broadcaster Bob Prince, who would become the Pirate announcer in 1948, was also at the game and led the cheering section, exclaiming “That’s my boy!” when Ivol was pitching.[106] Ivol did not play professionally.

The first player selected for the game was another first baseman, Miami’s Bob Hall. He was selected by and accompanied to the game by the Miami Herald’s .Hall played left field in New York and was signed by the Yankees. He spent three years in their system but didn’t get beyond Class-D.

Proceeds from the game went to the Chicago Servicemen’s Centers and the American Commission for Living War Memorials.

Cobb had his woes as well as two of his pitchers elected to stay home and participate in a local American Legion tourney. Ernie Funk from Little Rock would go on to sign with the Detroit Tigers and made it as far as Class-AAA. Funk was replaced by right fielder Louis Lasley. Lasley played three seasons in the lower minors but was never able to excite any interest by major league teams. At the last minute, Frank Womack of Houston withdrew to pitch closer to home and was replaced by shortstop William “Sonny” Bollman. Bollman signed with the Pirates and lasted three seasons in their minor league system, batting .251 and getting as high as Class-A Charleston in the South Atlantic League.

There was a series of conflicts between the Esquire’s Game and the American Legion. According to the Richmond Times Dispatch, the Legion had a rule against a plyer’s participation in the Esquire’s Game and Esquire itself maintained that, “An American Legion Junior baseball player who is a member of a department championship team will not be eligible for competition in any All-American game until such time as his team is eliminated in National competition.”[107]

Cobb also was in a bind as only one catcher, Pat Plew from Oklahoma City was named to the squad. At the last minute, Arnold Fischer was from Minneapolis was added to the squad. Fischer would go on to sign with the Cleveland Indians and played in the minor leagues for four seasons. In his last minor league season, he advanced as high as Triple-A, but his stay at that level was very brief.

Richard Vander Clute was the starting pitcher for the East squad and pitched 1 2/3 innings. He was accompanied to Chicago by Mike Lee of the Long Island Press. He pitched college ball at Colgate and Wake Forest. He was assigned by the Yankees to their Norfolk farm team in the Class-A Piedmont League for the 1950 season, but showed up with a sore arm and never pitched an inning of organized baseball.[108] He went on to join the Marines in 1951, and was injured during the Korean conflict.[109] He rose to the rank of Captain and in civilian life became a marketing manager with Unisys Corporation.

Cobb’s squad exploded for five runs in the sixth inning off pitchers Albert Webb of Cincinnati and Ken Fremming of Buffalo, before Chuck Stobbs of Norfolk restored a semblance of order, pitching out of a bases-loaded jam. Stobbs pitched the last 2 2/3 innings, but by then, the game was out of hand. The West coasted to a 10-4 victory. Walter Pocekay was chosen MVP after going 4-for-5 in the contest. Pocekay, from Richmond, California, had been sent east by the San Francisco Chronicle. He played in parts of nine minor league seasons, mostly on the West Coast, and batted .308, but he never made it to the majors.

Braven Dyer of the Los Angeles Times was attending the contest for the third consecutive year, this time accompanying Charles Norman of San Diego. The third baseman had excelled in the All-Star event at Gilmore Field after leading his high school team to the California Interscholastic Federation championship. Dyer noted that “The value of this annual game cannot be estimated. In the first place, the thrill of a cross-country trip provides an educational experience which cannot be gauged in dollars and cents. Association with men such as Cobb and Wagner is a privilege seldom accorded youngsters of today. Ty is worth millions and no amount of money could make him take part in this type of promotion unless he loved kids and baseball.”[110]

The players that made it to the major leagues were Hobie Landrith, Chuck Stobbs, Harry Agganis, Pete Whisenant, John Powers, and Harold “Tookie” Gilbert. 

Harry Agganis was the top ranking player in the Eastern Massachusetts School league, and was sent to the game by Ernie Dalton of the Boston Globe. Although only a sophomore at the time, he had been awarded the Fred Ostergren Memorial Trophy as the outstanding New England athlete and student of 1946. Later that year, on Christmas Day in the Orange Bowl in Miami, he led his Lynn Classical High School football team to the National High School Championship, defeating Granby High School of Norfolk, Virginia, and its star quarterback Chuck Stobbs. The following year, he would be in the Hearst Classic in New York.

Tookie Gilbert, representing New Orleans, was sent to the game by Fred Digby of the New Orleans Item. He was seen as the outstanding prospect of those playing in the game, having never hit below .600 in his school and sandlot play, and had batted .415 in American Legion play during the summer of 1945. He had been initially selected for the 1945 game, but did not go to New York. Gilbert’s father, Larry had played in the majors with the Braves for two seasons, and was part of the 1914 Miracle Braves squad. Larry finished his active career playing with the New Orleans Pelicans for nine seasons, and served as the team’s manager from 1923 through 1938. Scout Bruce Connatser who had played minor league ball in New Orleans in 1931, remembered that Gilbert “was just a child” back then. Young Tookie was a fixture at the ballpark. Connatser remembered that “Harold grew right up in baseball, and his dad had him out to the New Orleans home games before he knew how to walk.”[111] At the time of the Esquire’s game in 1946, Larry was managing at Nashville and took the day off to travel to Chicago and watch his son play. 

He signed with the New York Giants and made his way to Nashville in 1949, batting .334 with 33 homers in 154 games. Manager Leo Durocher of the Giants thought he was ready for the big leagues and, after an exceptional spring training, Gilbert made his debut on May 8, 1950 with the Giants, the heir to the first place job open since Johnny Mize had been traded to the Yankees late in the 1949 season. Gilbert played 111 games in 1950, but his .220 batting average showed that he had been called up too soon.[112] He was sent back to the minors, returning to the Giants for an unproductive 70 games, batting only .189, in 1953. That was the end of his major league career.

Pete Whisenant of Paw Creek, North Carolina was selected after starring in an All-Star game in Charlotte, North Carolina between teams from North and South Carolina. He was selected for Chicago game by a seven man panel of judges headed by the coaches for the two teams, four writers including Wilton Garrison of the Charlotte Observer, and Claude Dietrick, head scout of the Atlanta Crackers.[113] He was the best performer for the East Squad in the 1946 Esquire’s game, getting three hits in five at-bats. He made it to the major leagues with the Boston Braves in 1952 and played parts of eight seasons for six different teams. After his playing days, he continued in baseball and managed for two seasons in the Oakland A’s organization. He was named the Class –A California League’s Manager of the year in 1982 when he led Modesto to a 94-46 record.

Chuck Stobbs was a hard hitting, hard throwing first baseman and pitcher from Norfolk, Virginia, starring at Granby High School. He had starred in the Eastern Virginia-Western Virginia All Star game, pitching his squad to a 7-1 win and earning a trip to the game in Chicago. At Chicago, he pitched the last two and one-third innings and was selected the game’s MVP. He was named Virginia Player of the year in high school in 1946, was named to the All-State Basketball team, and led his high school football team to three consecutive undefeated seasons. In 1946, his team lost to Esquire teammate Harry Agganis’ Lynn, Massachusetts team for the National High School Gridiron championship.

He signed with George “Specs” Toporcer of the Boston Red Sox[114] and was with the Red Sox organization through 1951, posting a 33-23 record in Boston. Later on, he pitched with the Washington Senators for nine years. He is perhaps best known for one pitch. On April 17, 1953 at Griffith Stadium in Washington, DC, Mickey Mantle sent one of Stobbs’ offerings far and long. The tape-measure shot was said to have gone 565 feet before coming to a rest. Stobbs went on to win 107 games in the majors (with 130 losses), but that one pitch will never be forgotten.

After his playing days, he coached at George Washington University and spent time coaching in the organizations of the Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Royals.[115]

Hobie Landrith of Detroit was selected for the game by Lyall Smith of the Detroit Free Press. In 1948, he played in the Hearst game.

John Powers hailed from Birmingham, Alabama. He was selected for the game after starring in the Alabama All-Star game sponsored by the Birmingham News. In that game, his three doubles impressed the judges, one of whom was Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler. He had 304 homers as a professional, all but six in the minor leagues. He slammed 298 homers in 13 seasons. Twice, with Class B Waco in 1950 and with Class AA New Orleans, he banged out 39 dingers. He played in parts of six seasons in the major leagues but only batted .195 with six homers and 14 RBIs in 215 at-bats.

Among the youngsters with high hopes was Gene Tanselli. The shortstop was sent east by the Oregon Journal and joined the professional ranks in 1951 after completing his studies at Oregon State. He played seven seasons in the minors, mostly with Salem, Oregon, after which he pursued a career in education and coaching. He went on to coach at Oregon State from 1967 through 1972.

Nashville, this time around was represented by Gary Binkley, who had gone 3-for-5 in the local All-Star Game played at the Sulphur Dell.   

Esquire had hoped to take the game to a different city each year, but these hopes were dashed when the magazine, in December, 1946, informed the participating newspapers from coast to coast that there would be no further games after 1946. Nevertheless, in 1947, many of these papers got together and named an All-American team. The players went to Chicago and were treated to an excellent experience. However, baseball was not on the itinerary and hopes to rekindle the All-American Game were quickly extinguished. By then there were two other All-Star events, each of which began in 1946.

The summer of 1946 was quite busy with boys’ All-Star games. The Esquire game, of course, was contested at Wrigley Field in Chicago on August 10. The two other All-Star games bringing in kids from around the United States, were played in August, as well. Brooklyn Against the World at Ebbets Field (August 7-9) and the Hearst Sandlot Classic at the Polo Grounds (August 15) pitted local New York talent against the out-of-towners. The Brooklyn games continued in various formats through 1950, but the Hearst Classic, which continued through 1965, was the most enduring of the youth All-Star games. All three contests were reported in the August 21 edition of The Sporting News, but The Hearst Classic was the most enduring of the youth All-Star games.

[1]Boston Traveler, July 5, 1949, 39

[2] Jack Cuddy (United Press). Mount Carmel (Pennsylvania) Item, August 2, 1944: 6.

[3]New York Post. July 29, 1944. 18.

[4] Paul Kurtz, “Boys Set for All-America Contest: Polo Grounds is Scene Tomorrow of Baseball’s Junior All-Star Clash,” Pittsburgh Press, August 6, 1944: 33. 

[5] Al Warden. The Ogden (Utah) Standard Examiner, May 3, 1945

[6]Kansas City Star, June 25, 1944: B1

[7]Kansas City Star, July 2, 1944: B1

[8] Ernest Mehl, “Second Guessing,” Kansas City Star, August 8, 1944: 7

[9]Omaha World Herald, August 5, 1944, 9

[10] Bill Leiser, San Francisco Chronicle, August 3, 1944: 1-H

[11]The New York Times, August 6, 1944, S-3

[12] James R. Walker and Robert V. Bellamy, Jr. Center Field Shot: A History of Baseball on Television, (Lincoln, University of Nebraska Press, 2008), 17.

[13] Scorecard – 1944 Esquire’s All-American Boys’ Baseball Game.

[14] Ibid.

[15] Arthur Patterson. “Eastern Boys’ Nine Blanks West Before Crowd of 17,803, 6-0” New York Herald Tribune, August 8, 1944: 17-A.

[16]New Orleans Picayune, August 8, 1944, 8

[17] E. C. “Doc” Osborn, The Brownsville (Texas) Herald, August 14, 1944, 7

[18]Delaware County (PA) Daily Times, August 8, 1944, 10

[19] Chip Royal, “Bench Eye View of Connie Mack: Kids Thrill Pilot,” Ogden Standard-Examiner, August 17, 1944: 13.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Louis Effrat, The New York Times, August 8, 1944, 12

[22] Richard Flannery, Reading Eagle, October 18, 1998, D-2.

[23] Ibid.

[24]The Sporting News, August 10, 1944, 13

[25] Leonard Cohen. New York Post, August 5, 1944: 18.

[26] Hugh Fullerton, Jr., “Sports Roundup”, The North Adams (MA) Transcript, August 8, 1944, 6.

[27] Louis Effrat, The New York Times, August 8, 1944, 12

[28] Osborn August 14, 1944, 7

[29] Leonard Cohen. New York Post, August 8, 1944: 34.

[30] Danny Peary, We Played the Game,48.

[31] Mark Kram, Philadelphia Daily News, July 26, 1995.

[32] Floyd Olds, “Ashburn Gets N. Y. Trip for All-American Game,” Omaha World-Herald, June 25, 1944: B1

[33] Olds, “East Kids Halt West Stars 6-0: Richie Enters Tilt in Sixth After Damage is Done,” Omaha World-Herald, August 8, 1944: 9

[34] Mark Kram, Philadelphia Daily News, July 26, 1995.

[35] Sam Levy. Milwaukee Sentinel, June 26, 1951, 6-7.

[36] Red Thisted. Milwaukee Sentinel, October 5, 1951, Part 2, 3

[37] Braven Dyer, “The Sports Parade,” Los Angeles Times, June 25, 1944: A5.  

[38] Dyer, “Dodgers Land Prize in Palica; Pitcher Gets Big Chance at 17,” The Sporting News, February 22, 1945: 4

[39] Bill Leiser, San Francisco Chronicle, August 3, 1944, 1-H

[40] Leiser, San Francisco Chronicle, June 28, 1944: 1-H

[41] Leiser, San Francisco Chronicle, August 4, 1944: 1-H

[42] Leiser, “Picetti Delivers at Typewriter,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 11, 1944, 1-H

[43] Darrell Dreyer, “First Sackers Outfield,” The Sporting News, August 31, 1944: 21

[44] Stan Speer, “17-Year-Old Vic Picetti Delivers with Man-Sized Pokes for Oaks,” The Sporting News, April 26, 1945: 6

[45]Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 26, 1946: 1

[46] Nelson L. Allen, Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 25, 1946: 1.

[47] Rory Costello, “Ben Geraghty,” SABR Bio-Project.

[48] “Eight are Dead in Bus Crash, Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 25, 1946: 5

[49] Howie Stalwick, “The Last Survivor,” RecordNet.com, June 24, 2006.

[50]Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 25, 1946: 1.

[51] Ed Schoenfeld, “Oakland Fans Mourn Death of Vic Picetti,” Oakland Tribune, June 25, 1946: 10.

[52] Bob Johnson, “Nation-Wide Drive Launched to Aid Kin of Dead Players,” Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 26, 1946: 11

[53] “Bing Purchases $2,500 of Benefit Game Tickets,” Spokane Daily Chronicle, July 5, 1946: 1

[54] Bob Johnson, “Benefit Association Formed to Aid Kin of Dead Players,” Spokane Daily Chronicle, June 28, 1946: 11

[55] Jake Wade (Charlotte Observer) in Gastonia DailyGazette, August 8, 1944: 7.

[56] “Rice to Name Worthy Boy for All-Star Baseball Game,” Pittsburgh Press, June 13, 1944: 26.

[57] Paul Kurtz, “Boys Set for All-America Contest: Polo Grounds is Scene Tomorrow of Baseball’s Junior All-Star Clash,” Pittsburgh Press, August 6, 1944: 33.

[58] Paul Kurtz, “Western All-Americans No Match for Eastern Nine in Boys’ Contest,” Pittsburgh Press, August 8, 1944: 20.

[59] “Herstek Selected Outstanding Boy Among All-Stars,” Pittsburgh Press, July 2, 1944: 25.

[60]Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), July 30, 1944: 17.

[61] Dyer, “The Sports Parade,” Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1944: A9 

[62] Oscar Fraley. “All-American Game to be Lesson in Sportsmanship,” (Nashville) Tennessean, July 27, 1944: 14.

[63]The Independent Record (Helena, Montana), August 24, 1945, 8

[64] Al Warden. “East Defeats West 5-4 in Esquire All-American Tilt,” Ogden Standard Examiner, August 29, 1945: 12.

[65] C. Paul Rogers III. “The Day the Phillies went to Egypt”, Baseball Research Journal, Fall, 2010.

[66] Richard Panchyk. Baseball History for Kids: America at Bat from 1900 to Today, with 19 Activities, (Chicago, Chicago Review Press, 2016), 53.

[67] Fred Young, “Neal Rates Job on Esquire Nine,” The Pentagraph (Bloomington, Illinois), August 5, 1945, 8

[68] Lyall Smith. “Bill Strikes out 5 Boys in Two innings,” Detroit Free Press, August 29, 1945: 10.

[69]The Ogden Standard Examiner, May 21, 1945, 9A

[70] Burt Stone, Miami Herald, August 24, 1945.

[71] Woody Thompson, Miami Herald, August 29, 1945.

[72] Eddie Edwards, “Boy Ball Star Excitedly Awaits New York Trip,” San Francisco Chronicle, July 22, 1945, 3-H

[73] Ibid.

[74] Edwards, “Bob DiPietro Yearns to Play with Yanks,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 7, 1945, 2-H

[75] Edwards, “Ty Cobb Puts West Through First Workout,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 23, 1945, 1-H

[76] Nick Diunte, "Bob Dipietro," SABR Bio-Project

[77] Lee Heiman, Dave Weiner, and Bill Gutman. When the Cheering Stops: Former Major Leaguers Talk About Their Game and Their Lives, (New York, MacMillan, 1990), 217-218.

[78] C. Paul Rogers II, “Davey Williams,” in The Team that Time Won’t Forget: The 1951 New York Giants (Society for American Baseball Research, 2015)

[79] Bill Nowlin. “Herb Plews” SABR Bio-Project.

[80]Mason City (Iowa) Globe Gazette, September 26, 1945,

[81] Al Warden, The Ogden Standard Examiner, August 17, 1945, 8A.

[82] D. K. Scruton. Sedalia (Missouri) Democrat, August 5, 1945: 8.

[83] Harold Tuthill. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 7, 1945: 8

[84] Panchyk, 53.

[85] Scruton. Sedalia (Missouri) Democrat, September 2, 1945: 8.

[86] Matt Wyse, “All-American Event Scheduled at Ballpark Tonight,” Ogden Standard Examiner, June 14, 1945, 12.

[87]Ellensburg (Washington) Daily Record, June 19, 1945: 6.

[88]The Tennessean. August 2, 1945: 14-15.

[89] Raymond Johnson. The Tennessean, August 30, 1945: 14.

[90] Ed Grisamore. It Can be Done: The Billy Henderson Story, (Macon, Georgia, Henchard Press, 2005): 22-25.

[91] Grisamore: 42-43.

[92] Gene Asher. “Great Coach, Better Man,” Georgia Trend, May, 2005.

[93] Lester Eggers Obituary, Buffalo News, September 15, 2012: D4

[94]Ogden Standard Examiner, June 2, 1946: 12A

[95] Ogden Standard Examiner, June 30, 1946: 10A

[96] Al Warden, “Cobb May Start Powers on Mound in All-American,” Ogden Standard Examiner, August 7, 1946: 11

[97]Ogden Standard Examiner, July 4, 1946: 8.

[98] Bower Yousse and Thomas J. Cayan, Freddie Steinmark: Faith, Family, Football (Austin, Texas, University of Texas Press, 2015) 3-17.

[99]Niagara Falls Gazette, June 7, 1971: 14.

[100] Bob Johnson, “Annual Chronicle Junior Baseball Game at Ferris Field June 17,” Spokane Daily Chronicle, April 10, 1946: 13.

[101] Al Abrams, “Esquire Boys Join Chicago Social Whirl,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, August 5, 1946: 13.

[102]Ogden Standard Examiner, May 9, 1946.

[103]Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 10, 1946: 17.

[104] “Ivol, Esquire Boy, Drills with Pirates,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 17, 1946: 11.

[105] Al Abrams, “Honus May Shift Ivol to Slab Role,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, August 8, 1946: 12.

[106] Abrams, “Sidelights on Sports,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, August 12, 1946: 12

[107] Chauncey Durden. “The Sportsview,” Richmond Times Dispatch, August 20, 1946: 13.

[108] Jack Lang, Long Island Star Journal, June 18, 1950:18.

[109]Nassau (County, New York) Review-Star, August 25, 1952: 1.

[110] Braven Dyer. Los Angeles Times, August 2, 1946: 6.

[111] Paul O’Boynick, “Baseball Scouts to Mecca,” Kansas City Star, August 6, 1946: 9.

[112] Graham, The New York Giants, 295.

[113] Eddie Allen, Gastonia (NC) Evening Gazette, July 12, 1946, 8

[114] Bill Nowlin. “Chuck Stobbs”, SABR Bio-Project.

[115] Make Zaloudek. Sarasota Herald-Tribune, July 18, 2008: 19.