Hold My Bat

Since its baseball season I though this was the perfect time to tell the story of how major league baseball legend Ted Williams ended up back in the Marines flying an F9F Panther over the skies of the Korean War.  He also flew on the wing of a future Astronaut.

Transcript

Paula 0:00

For the Best Aerospace Era this is the mansplaining podcast. Here is your host Anthony L. Sealey

0:08

It is the bottom of the seventh inning in a tie ball game between the Detroit Tigers and the Boston Red Sox. On an 0-1 Count Tigers pitcher, Dizzy Trout threw a curve ball at the six foot three inch batter who swung and hit the ball deep over the right feild fence, a two run shot. The crowd goes wild. The game ends with a five to three victory for the Red Sox at home. The player who hit the deciding home run cannot celebrate long because the next day he would report to the Marines for war. Welcome aerospace enthusiasts. I have covered sports figures from the boxing and auto racing world in past episodes, who left the professional sport and took to the skies during world conflicts. But what about someone from America's pastime? Since its baseball season, let's talk about a baseball legend and Hall of Famer who traded his baseball glove for pilot gloves. Now when you look up list of the greatest baseball players of all time, you'll see names like Ty Cobb, Willie Mays, babe Ruth, Greg Maddox, Frank Robinson, Lou Gehrig, and Hank Aaron. Every fan and fan base has their own opinion of the greatest baseball player of all time. Now, I am a baseball fan myself, and I have watched my favorite team in more than half of the Major League baseball parks across the country today. Watching your favorite team play in another city in Teams, ballpark is an awesome experience and it gives you an excuse to travel and explore America. Now, which team am I talking about? I will reveal my favorite team at the end of this episode. I don't wanna lose any listeners from Rival fans. I will say though, one of my favorite ballparks to visit is Fenway. In Boston, you almost get starstruck looking around at the upper decks to the green monster to the field. It is the oldest major league park as it was built all the way back in 1912 for reference. That's the same year that Titanic sank. And before World War I. Airplanes like the Bleriot and the Wright Model, A flyer, were still relatively new at the time it was made, there was a lot of history there on that field. And the player I wanted to cover here made his name at Fenway and his name belongs on that list with those others I just mentioned. His name is Ted Williams. Now baseball is a game of numbers, so here are some numbers for you with 2,654 hits, 1,798 runs 521 home runs. In a career batting average of 3 44 and in the 1941 season, Ted Williams hit 4 0 6 for the season. You can name any of the top players you want from today. None of them are going to hit 400 for a season. None of them are. I got these stats from the Baseball Hall of Fame, by the way. Ted Williams was a big deal in the 1940s and fifties. He was a national celebrity off the field as well. He was the advertisement face of Chesterfield cigarettes at a time when most of the society smoked. In between seasons, though he liked to get away from the spotlight and go fishing in Florida, a major hobby of his. Now after he hit that last home run at Fenway on April 30th, 1952. Williams basically said, hold my bat. And went off to fight in the Korean War, even though he really did not want to. Everyone from the most cynical Red Sox fans to the local sports reporters who had a strained relationship with the contentious baseball star celebrated. Williams is actually presented with a brand new Cadillac as a going away present. And some local news writers signed a baseball, which they gave to him. Williams joked that he was gonna let his kids play with that ball in the backyard. So how and why did a 33-year-old, 6 3, 205 pound baseball phenom and father of four have to leave for war in the prime of his baseball career? Well, it wasn't the first time Williams left the diamond to serve. He served in the Marines during World War II at a much younger age and flew the F4U Corsair. After the war, he remained in the Marine Corps reserves. However, he did not participate in any of the reserve exercises. Despite this, he accepted a promotion to Captain in October of 1951, which extended his reservist commission. Williams did this thinking he would never be called back to service. He said, I certainly didn't believe that what was going on in Korea would have them call back a 32-year-old pilot. Well, it happened. Publicly, William said the right things about getting recalled, but privately he hated it and looked for any way out, not even an injury. He suffered against an outfield wall while chasing a fly ball would keep him from going to Korea. Now for the sake of this episode, I'm not gonna go into great detail about the cause and play-by-play of the Korean War. Some call it the Forgotten War. Here are some basics, though. After World War II, Korea was divided along the thirty-eighth parallel into two independent nations. The North was supported by Communist China and Soviet Russia. The South was supported by us and our allies. Both sides of Korea wanted to unite the peninsula under its own influence. North Korean forces crossed the thirty-eighth parallel in 1950, and the war was on. Also, our Congress never officially declared war here, despite our involvement, and the war is still technically going on now, although there is a ceasefire. There is a lot to cover here, but I'll save all that for another time Speaking of Korea. Doesn't everyone have that older relative who seems to be always watching MASH on tv? Now Williams could have publicly refused to go back to the Marines. It could have made a big protest, but that's not the kind of person he was. He reported for a recurrent training and went all in. He only had weeks to get his flight legs, if you will, back before shipping out to Korea. During his recurrent flight training, it was suggested to Williams, that he should switch from the F4U Corsair that he is familiar with to piloting one of the new jets. It would be safer for the Rusty pilot because in a jet it would be less likely that he would end up in a dog fight. Williams who was initially reluctant to return to the Marines, loved the idea. the jet was the awesome F9F Panther. The F9F Panther had a length of 37 feet, a straight wingspan of 38 feet, and was powered by a Pratt and Whitney Turbojet. After this episode, go look up a picture of the F9F Panther. It's a cool looking early combat Jet Williams found flying the panther was much easier and fun to fly. Then the Corsair, although Rusty, he seemed to be natural when it came to flying. After training, he and his unit traveled to K-3 Marine Base in South Korea. Let's get into it. The base K-3, that Captain Ted Williams was stationed at. Was located on an airstrip that was originally built by the occupying Japanese forces during World War ii. Just 10 years earlier, his unit was known as a blow and go group. Captain Williams said this was their mission parameters. Our job was support the ground pounders on the front lines. We had dived down on the Chinese. Drop our load and get the hell out of there as fast as we could. Essentially, their job was to fly beyond the 38th parallel into North Korea fast and hit supply lines like bridges or enemy strongholds and fly back to base. They were not really supposed to engage enemy aircraft like the MIG 15. That was the job for the F 86 sabers and the F4U corsairs. Now for those of you who have been to a aerospace museum and seen these early fighters from this time, then you probably notice how small their cockpits are. In order to fit Williams', six foot, three inch, 205 pound frame, into the cockpit of an F9F Panther, the ground crew had to shove his shoulders down with their boots just to fasten the straps. I wonder if this is the moment William said to himself, how did I end up here. Let's get to some mission that he flew, shall we now on one mission? In February, 1953, captain Williams flew with another 200 Allied aircraft. For a hop over the North Korean town of Kyomipo about 25 miles south of Pyongyang. His group's mission was to bomb communist supply buildings and enemy safe houses. Williams was the wingman of flight leader a major Marvin Hollenbeck. After diving in low and hitting their targets, this happened to Williams in his words. I felt the plane mush up on me for an instant, but I didn't even know I was hit. The stick got stiffer on me, and I knew I had lost my hydraulic system. Then the electrical system went out on me. No radio, no fuel or speed gauges, no nothing. He was also heading north the wrong direction, seeing how damaged his panther was, his wingman gave him a hand signal to eject. Captain Williams refused because he heard about another pilot whose feet hit the canopy of his jet as he was being ejected. That doesn't sound good. One of his squadron mates gave him the follow me hand signal to try and get him back to an allied base. The closest base available was K 13. Williams somehow got his crippled panther there. After a belly landing, William suffered only a twisted ankle, although those who witnessed him coming in say he looked very pale after running away from his bullet ridden Panther. Captain Williams later said. If I had known then that my ship was on fire, I damn well would've shot my canopy and jumped. That's what his wing men were trying to tell him. Now, would you want to get back into the cockpit and fly another mission right after this happened? Well, captain Williams did. Just 20 hours later, captain Williams, along with 19 other Marines, flew past the 38th parallel once again on another mission. He and his flight of four bravely dove down into enemy fire once again. It hit a communist tank and infantry training base. This time though, Williams made it back to the right side of the 38th Parallel without that incident. One of Captain Williams' commanding officers though, was furious that he flew such a dangerous mission again. So soon. Think about it. there would be a blood bath of bad publicity from home. Especially from Red Sox fans. If Williams got shot down and was taken prisoner or worse, we all know how ruthless Boston fans are. Marine pilots were issued a revolver just in case they were shot down over enemy territory. However, captain Williams never kept his loaded. His plan in the event he was captured by North Korean forces was to just say, I'm Ted Williams, and I know nothing. Now on one very early morning mission, a type of early morning mission that Captain Williams described us saying Good morning to the enemy. One of the pilots of the three Panthers flying on the mission signaled that his radio was out and had to return to base. Captain Williams', flight leader on this mission was none other than Major John Glenn. Yes, that John Glenn Future Mercury, seven astronaut, the first American to fly in orbit above the Earth and future US Senator John Glenn. Awesome, right? Let's get into this. Major. John Glenn and Captain Ted Williams did not really know what to make of each other when they first met back at K-3. Glenn had a reputation as being one of the best pilots among the career Marines, but he really was an unknown to Williams. Williams, though was a celebrity on base and stood out among the others. Glenn wrote this to his wife Annie in 1953 about Ted Williams. He said, Ted Williams, is an outfit. Lives in next hut. Met him. Seems okay. Short, huh? Decades later, William said this, on the first time he met John Glenn at a meeting at the K-3 base. That looks like the right stuff to me. At 0607, major Glenn followed closely by Captain Williams. Each deployed one of the 500 pound bombs on an enemy supply bridge from a thousand feet in the air. They both also fired their 20 millimeter cannons at some targets along the run. That's one way to say good morning to the enemy. After this major Glenn found another bridge he wanted to hit, which he did on two more passes. However, Williams who was flying as his wingman forget to arm his remaining 500 pound bomb. On this second pass. He had to drop it further down range from the target. This was very close to the bottom line. The boundary between friendly and enemy locations. Major Glenn was furious as he thought Williams' bomb landed in friendly territory. After they landed back at K-3, major Glenn ripped him a new one. The reservist, captain Williams stood there and took the verbal lashing. However, major Glenn was mistaken before the mission. Glenn did not check the most up-to-date ground status before taking off. North Korean communist forces had retaken that position Williams bomb had landed on. They both made mistakes on this mission, but fortunately everything worked out. Despite this rocky start. Major Glenn chose Williams as his wingman on more missions. On another mission In May, 1953, Williams was Glenn's Wingman once again, along with eight other panthers. Their target this time was a North Korean troop. Shelters situated in a mountain range, a challenging and dangerous mission. They flew low and navigated the mountainous terrain. While they faced heavy anti-aircraft fire. Eight of the 10 unloaded their 500 pound timed incendiary bombs each obliterating their targets. Another successful hop, as they called it. Glenn, wrote this back home. Ted flew my wing this morning and was all bubbling over when he got back. What a character. Most other reservist marines did not like flying with major Glenn as his wingman because instead of heading back to base after hitting his target, Glenn would often turn around and go back for another pass. Williams didn't mind this. It is also evident based on the quotes about each other that they enjoyed each other's company and they liked flying with each other. Things were not always exciting in Korea for Ted Williams though. Many other Marines on base called him. The nickname Bush short for Bush Leaguer. Almost everyone wanted to talk to him about baseball, but he preferred to talk about fishing, photography or flying. Williams also left base to hunt ducks when time allowed. He was known to have a short temper and speak his mind, so I'm sure not everyone liked the famous reservist on base. He also got so sick once that he was taken to an aircraft carrier for treatment which caused him to miss out on some missions. Also, captain Williams was once dispatched to inspect a down panther. That crash landed a few miles from the k-3 base. He was shaken greatly after he found the helmet of Marine Pilot Joe Dean Bailey. A scene that troubled him for decades. Now, here is a mission that could have ended it all for Ted Williams. On April 27th, major Glenn and his wingman, captain Williams formed one section along with 20 other Marines on a mission to hit a communist ammunition factory in the city of Nampo. About 25 miles south of Pyongyang. Following Glen's lead Williams was a fourth to drop his bombs on the factory facilities. It happened, Williams said, I know I was hit. I looked out and there was a big damn hole in the right tank. Big as your fist. The right tip tank of his panther he thought was hit by an anti-aircraft fire. A blaze started on the wing. This could be it. Major Glenn. Came alongside Captain Williams and gave him the hand signal to follow me up. The thinner air at the higher elevation extinguished the blaze on his wing. They both made it back to K-3 safely. The ground personnel back at K-3 we're glad he made it back. However, anything that could have made that size of a hole should have blown up the tank, the wing, and taken down the F9F Panther with Williams in it. Amazingly though, upon inspection of the damaged right tip tank, a sizable rock was found inside, not a shell from enemy fire. My guess is that the explosions from the bombs somehow launch this rock into Williams's Panther. That just hits home how low the Marines fearlessly flew to hit their targets. General Jack r Dailey shared this story of mission number ACME 03 just days after John Glenn's passing in December of 2016. John Glenn was 95 years old. While in Korea, captain Williams flew around 40 missions and was major John Glenn's wingman on at least eight missions, but possibly more. As always, in war, we will never have all the details and the full play by play of every mission. William said this of John Glenn. He is fearless and the best I ever saw. It was an honor to fly with him. John Glenn stayed in Korea after Ted Williams left and served on Lone in the Air Force. Here he piloted the F 86 Saber in dog fights against MIG fifteens between the Korean War and being chosen as one of the Mercury. Seven. John Glenn broke a cross country record and a few windows along the way on this flight, but that's a story for another time. It's amazing though that these two larger than life figures, Ted Williams and John Glenn from seemingly completely different worlds became lifelong friends in the sky over the brutal Korean war. Here's one interesting story I wanted to share that John Glenn once told about Williams while they were spending some RR time in Japan, they were sightseeing when a Japanese kid approached Williams from a group, the kid pointed at Williams and then got into a batting stance and then swung in invisible bat, a way of asking the towering marine, are you Ted Williams when there's a clear language barrier? Williams laughed and nighted. Yes. The kid and his group of friends cheered. Williams then took a few steps away and got into a pitcher stance and threw an invisible pitch at the boy who was also in a batting stance, and his swung his invisible bat once again. After the boy swung Williams ducked and acted like a line drive almost hit him. I thought that was a great story and I wonder how popular baseball grew in popularity in Japan after seeing major league baseball players like this during the Korean War. Look at the many Japanese star players in the league today. Same goes for Korea. However, most kids during this time were too busy finding something to eat or something to wear, in the war touring country. Now, baseball is a game of numbers, as I said before, from RBI's, stolen bases, batting averages to home runs. Remember this when comparing numbers from some of baseball's legends against today's baseball stars. Some of them went off to war and had gaps in their playing careers, and I don't see any of the top players today saying Hold my bat and going off to fight. If you're an aerospace enthusiast and or a baseball fan and want to know more about Ted Williams's time flying with John Glenn in Korea, then find the book The Wingmen by Adam Lazarus. I highly recommend it. Also, Ted Williams did return to the Diamond that August, 1953. He finished that season batting 4 0 7. He continued his Hall of Fame career on the field. Remember this story when you see Ted Williams statue outside of Gate B at Fenway Park? Oh yes. And as far as my favorite team go, Braves. Thank you so much for listening. And remember, there's always a light at the end of the runway.

Paula 26:53

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