It has been observed many times that some illustrious baseball players would have amassed even more impressive career statistics than they did, had it not been for their service in the armed forces during World War II.
Bob Feller, for example, missed the 1942-45 seasons (except for a few games at the end of the '45 season); Joe Dimaggio, the 1943-45 seasons;
Ted Williams, the 1943-45 seasons (and most of the 1952-53 seasons during the Korean War).
Wartime service likewise robbed many lesser-known players of productive years. Here I highlight three Hall of
Famers --
Hank Greenberg,
Johnny Mize, and
Enos Slaughter -- and two lesser lights --
Buddy Lewis and
Cecil Travis.
Greenberg entered the Hall of Fame by the side door. He was chosen by the "normal" route, that is,
election by the Baseball Writers Association of America (
BBWAA). But
under the rules then in effect,
Greenberg -- who retired after the 1947 season -- could have been elected as early as 1949;
he wasn't elected until 1956.
Greenberg's eventual election to the Hall reflects not only his accomplishments as a player but also what he might have done with the four-and-a-half seasons he
lost to military service.
Greenberg spent most of the 1941 season as a
pre-Peal Harbor draftee and the next three-and-a-half seasons as a post-Pearl Harbor volunteer. Those would have been prime seasons for
Greeberg, who at the age of 29 had enjoyed a great 1940 season: batting .34o, winning his second MVP award, and leading the league in home runs, slugging percentage, and runs batted in.
Mize and Slaughter entered the Hall via the back door: election by the
Veterans Committee. That dubious honor is reserved for players who aren't elected within 20 years of their retirement.
Mize, who retired in 1953, wasn't inducted into the Hall until 1981. Slaughter, who stretched his career to 1959, had to wait until 1985 for membership in the Hall.
Mize compiled some outstanding numbers in his first seven seasons (1936-42), including two home-run titles (1939-40). But wartime service (1943-45) deprived him of three prime years (ages 30-32).
Mize remained a home-run threat after the war (co-leading the
NL in 1947 and 1948), which underscores the significance of his lost seasons. Mize ended his career with very good numbers (2,011 hits, 359 homers, .312 batting average), but his record would have been closer to spectacular had he not lost three prime seasons.
Slaughter had outstanding seasons from 1939 through 1942, then went to war at the age of 27 and missed the 1943-45 seasons (ages 27-29). Slaughter, like
Mize, posted some outstanding postwar seasons (e.g., finishing high in the
NL batting race four times). Slaughter, like Mize, turned in a very good career (2,383 hits, .300 batting average) that would have been closer to spectacular but for his three lost seasons.
It is perhaps indisputable that wartime service deprived
Mize and Slaughter of slam-dunk Hall of Fame careers. Given that, their belated selection by the Veterans Committee was just.
The tales of Buddy Lewis and Cecil Travis have sadder endings. Lewis (who, at 92, is still among us) went to war at the age of 25 with .304 batting average to that point in his career. He completed his next full season at the age of 29. His career ended three years later
following a hip injury and a one-year hiatus from baseball. Lewis finished with a very respectable lifetime batting average of .297. But he was deprived of a more productive career, probably one with a .300-plus average and stronger hold on fans' memories, if not a shot at the Hall of Fame.
Cecil Travis was Lewis's teammate, and his roommate on the road. Travis went to war at the age of 28 with a career average of .327. It is almost certain that his wartime service cost him a slot in the Hall of Fame.
According to Wikipedia, Travis
suffered a bad case of frostbite during the Battle of the Bulge, necessitating an operation to prevent amputation of his feet. Travis received a Bronze Star for his military service. Although only 31 years old when he returned to baseball, he was not the same player as he had been before the war, and hit .241 in late 1945 and .252 in 1946. He retired after batting .216 in 74 games in 1947.
Travis was only 33 when his war-shortened career came to an end. In spite of it all, he ran up lifetime batting average of .314. What might have been, indeed.
When we remember the careers that were damaged by military service, we should remember not just the players who enjoyed great and near-great careers in spite of their service. We should remember, also, the likes of Buddy Lewis and Cecil Travis.
