Some stories gain their power not from what happened, but from what almost happened. My father's tale of being replaced in center field by baseball legend Ted Williams during World War II perfectly captures this truth.
As an exceptional athlete who earned athletic scholarships during the Depression, my father's promising career was interrupted when he volunteered for the Navy the day after Pearl Harbor. While stationed in Pensacola, Florida, he played center field on a Navy baseball team managed by Herman Franks (who later managed the Chicago Cubs). When deployment orders came, Franks informed my father that Ted Williams would be taking his position—promising to introduce them before departure and to send box scores comparing their performances. Williams was away fishing (his famous obsession), and those promised box scores never arrived in the war-torn South Pacific.
Send me a message, pretty please.
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