Memorial League Baseball – Major Leaguers Killed in Action

On this Memorial Day weekend, we remember those lost in action defending our freedom.  Everyone knows at least a few players who entered into military service during World War II and the Korean War, but there are a handful of major leaguers who were killed in action in those two wars, along with World War I.  Today, we look back at those players.

Alex Burr was a pitcher and center fielder for the New York Yankees in 1914.  In the minor leagues that season, he pitched in seven games with an 0-1 record, and amassed seven at bats without a hit.  He apparently started the 1914 season with the Yankees, as his only major league appearance came on April 21^st in the Yankees’ fourth game of the season, a Yankees 3-2 victory in 10 innings over the Washington Senators.  Burr entered late in the game in center field, and never had an at bat.

In 1917, Burr enlisted in the American Field Service, which was later folded into the US Army Ambulance Service.  He eventually found himself in the US Air Service.  Aviation in those days was still in its infancy, and training, let along combat, was a hazard to one’s health.  Burr’s plane collided with another plane during training over a lake where each pilot was shooting at targets.  Both planes went down in the lake.  Burr’s body didn’t surface for 12 days; the other pilot was never found.  This accident occurred on October 12^th, 1918, only a month before the war ended.  He was originally buried in France, but was later relocated to Rosehill Cemetery in his hometown of Chicago, IL.

Robert "Bun" Troy was a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers in 1912.  Troy's first year of professional baseball was in 1910 when he went 6-8, and then the following year, he went 6-11.  In 1912, his minor league record jumped to 23-14.  This earned him a late season call up to the Tigers, where he started one game, a 6-3 loss to the Washington Senators.  He pitched 6 2/3 innings, giving up four runs and nine hits, striking out one and walking three.  He was also 0-2 at the plate with two strikeouts.  The opposing pitcher that day was Walter Johnson.  Ty Cobb hit .409 that season for the Tigers, but that day against Johnson, he was 0-3.  Troy would pitch two more seasons in the minors, going a combined 42-29 before his baseball career was over.  

In 1917, Troy was an Army sergeant in France when he was shot in the chest in the Meuse Argonne campaign.  He died from his wounds several days later on October 7^th, 1918 at a field hospital six miles southeast of Verdun, France.  He was originally buried in France, but was later relocated to Robinson's Run Cemetery in McDonald, PA.  That is where he grew up, but he was originally born in Wurzach, Germany.

The player with the longest major league career that was killed in action was third baseman and shortstop Eddie Grant.  Grant was originally signed by the Cleveland Naps prior to the 1905 season.  In two games that year, he had three hits in eight at bats, with a run scored and five strikeouts.  He was released by Cleveland after the season.  Grant would spend the next season in the minors for the Philadelphia Phillies, where he hit .322.

In four years with the Phillies from 1907-1910, Grant would hit .258 with 50 doubles, 20 triples, two home runs, 155 RBIs and 90 stolen bases, with 119 walks and 238 strikeouts.  He finished second in the league in 1909 with 170 hits.  After the 1910 season, he was traded to the Cincinnati Reds.  In 2 1/2 seasons with the Reds, he would hit .227 with 19 doubles, eight triples, three home runs, 82 RBIs and 46 stolen bases, with 80 walks and 84 strikeouts.  In mid-1913, he was purchased by the New York Giants, when he would make his only post season appearance, a four games to one loss to the Philadelphia Athletics.  Overall with the Giants, he hit .247 with 10 doubles, two triples, 40 RBIs and 17 stolen bases, with 34 walks and 43 strikeouts.  His last game was on October 6^th, 1915.

Grant was the first major leaguer to enlist in World War I, joining the US Army.  After attaining the rank of Captain, he and his division were sent to France, and saw some limited combat before also being part of the Meuse Argonne campaign.  Grant was killed by a direct mortar hit while calling out for stretchers to carry off some of his wounded lieutenants on October 5^th, 1918, making him the first major leaguer killed in World War 1.  He was originally buried nearby, but was later relocated to the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in Romagne, France.  He was later honored with a plaque at the Polo Grounds, and he still has a highway named after him in the Bronx.

Elmer Gedeon was a center fielder for the Washington Senators in 1939.  That season in the minors, he hit .253 before a late season call up.  He made his major league debut on September 18^th, 1939 in a victory over the Tigers.  Overall, in five games, he went 3-15 with a run and RBI, with two walks and five strikeouts.  He would return to the minors for the 1940 season, hitting .271.

Gedeon was drafted into the Army before the 1941 season.  He was later assigned to the Army Air Corps, and earned his pilot wings and position of Second Lieutenant by May of 1942.  That month, the B-52 bomber he was flying near Raleigh, NC crashed in a swamp.  Despite burns to his face, hands, legs and back, and three broken ribs, he returned to fiery wreckage and rescued a fellow crew member that had a broken back and broke both legs.  Gedeon's
recovery took twelve weeks, where he lost 50 pounds and required skin grafts.  He was awarded the Soldier's Medal for heroism and bravery.

In February 1944, Gedeon was assigned to RAF Boreham, United Kingdom.  On April 20^th, his B-26 was shot down near Saint-Omer, France as his squadron attacked a V-1 buzz bomb factory under construction.  He was originally declared missing in action, but his grave was located in May 1945 near Saint-Pol, France.  His remains were relocated to Arlington National Cemetery.

Harry O'Neill was a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1939.  He appeared in one major league game on July 23^rd of that year, entering the game as a defensive replacement in a 16-3 loss to the Tigers.  He didn't get an at bat that game.  He would be in the minor leagues in 1940 where he hit .238.  After that, he was out of professional baseball, but being an all around athlete, he played semi pro basketball and football between then and when he enlisted in the Marine Corps in September 1942.

O'Neill attended the Marine Officers' Training School in Virginia, graduating as a Second Lieutenant.  He was assigned to Camp Pendleton in California.  In January 1944, he was promoted to First Lieutenant, and on January 13^th, his division headed to the Pacific Theater.  On June 16^th, he suffered a shrapnel wound in an assault on Saipan.  He recovered for six days on a hospital ship before returning to combat in an assault on Tinian.

On February 19^th, 1945, O'Neill's division landed on Iwo Jima.  After an Allied aerial assault on March 5^th, his division attacked the next day, encountering heavy resistance with small arms and mortar fire throughout the day.  O'Neill was killed that day by sniper fire, one of 92 officers in the 4th Marine Division to lose their lives on Iwo Jima.  He was originally buried on Iwo Jima, but was later relocated in Arlington Cemetery in Drexel Hill, PA, just outside of his hometown of Philadelphia.

Finally, that brings us to the only major leaguer killed in action in the Korean War.  Robert Neighbors was a shortstop for the St. Louis Browns in 1939.  From 1936 to the time he was called up, he hit .285 in the minors.  He would make his major league debut on September 16^th, 1939 in a 4-0 loss to the Senators.  In seven games with the Browns, he would hit .182 with a home run, and RBI and a strikeout.  He would return to the minors for the next two seasons, hitting .269.

Neighbors also had a brother
that was killed in WWII.

In March 1942, he enlisted in the US Army Air Forces, and he served in both Italy and the Pacific Theater in World War II.  After the war, Neighbors decided to stay in the military rather than return to baseball.  He and his crew were stationed in Korea in August 1952, when Neighbors volunteered for a bombing run after the original pilot fell ill on August 8^th.  The mission hit its first target, but encountered unexpected enemy fire on the way to the second target.  The crew radioed in that they had been hit and were bailing out, but their exact location was unknown.

Neighbors was originally listed as missing in action, but that status was changed to killed in action when he wasn't part of prisoners repatriated in a prisoner exchange at the conclusion of hostilities.

As we enjoy the long weekend, let's remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, including the players above.