Match 00
23rd August 1945
Baseball at St James Park
Baseball in Exeter.
“First stage of the European baseball championship, played at St. James’s Park Exeter, yesterday, resulted in a runaway victory for the United States Army in France. They beat the United States Navy base Exeter, by 10 runs to nothing and they should make certain of the title in the return game in Rheims. Turning point in this nine innings contest came in the Army’s third innings, when Brown, a coloured player, hit a home run into the centre field stand at a time when all the bases were loaded, Brown also excelled in the field and initiated a grand piece of double play from the left outfield. The Army had the advantage in all phases and had a deadly pitcher in Nayhem, who was a professional player before the war.”
Western Morning News 24.08.1945
This report and photo (Baseball in Exeter) was the sole record in local or British newspapers of what was an extraordinary event. The “United States Army in France” team was better known as the OISE All-Stars. This team was extraordinary for a number of reasons:
Firstly, though the fighting forces of the US Army were segregated along racial lines, much like the colour barrier in MLB, the OISE All-Stars were an integrated team.
Secondly, though boasting two Major Leaguers, two Negro Leaguers (one of whom would also feature in MLB in the breakthrough season of 1947) and a host of minor leaguers, the team were considered underdogs when a few weeks later, representing Com-Z in the ETO (European Theatre of Operations) World Series, they defeated the 71st Division “Red Circles” of the US 3rd Army who could boast as many as seven Major Leaguers in their (all-white) lineup.
The OISE All-Stars triumphed 3-2 in a 5 game series split between Nurnberg and Rheims. For more about this series and this team there is an abundance of brilliant websites, not least our very own Gary Bedingfields baseball in wartime website.
The newspaper report frustratingly doesn’t provide us with a roster or a scorecard; likewise I’ve not found any programmes from the game, so it is impossible to be certain who lined up at Exeter that August day in 1945. However the paper did name two players, who we can positively identify – and who’s extraordinary storied careers are deserving of more attention. Brown – the owner of the bases loaded home run and “grand” double play executed from left field – was none other than Willard Jessie “Home Run” Brown. He began his career in the Negro minor leagues in 1934 with the Monroe Monarchs eventually getting promoted to the senior circuit Kansas City Monarchs in 1937. His rookie season for Kansas saw him hit .379 and was a foretaste of the kind of numbers he would post over the next two decades. In his pre-war prime his regarded as the most powerful hitter in the Negro Leagues and quite possibly in all of baseball. His nickname “Home Run” Brown was bestowed by legendary Negro Leaguer Josh Gibson. Brown was not averse to travelling and for quite obvious economic reasons sold his talent to the highest bidders. His time with the Kansas City Monarchs was interspersed in the early 40’s with seasons in the Mexican and Puerto Rican Leagues – though his crowning achievement came in the 1942 Negro World Series where he and his Monarchs triumphed over the Washington-Homestead Grays, a four game series where he personally hit 7 times in 16 at bats.
A brief foray into the 43-44 Californian Winter League preceded his enlistment in the US Army with who he saw combat duty in Europe. After demob he rejoined Kansas City in 1946.
1947 was a bittersweet year for Brown – he lead the Negro League batting averages for the only time in his career hitting .371 – it was of course also the year that Jackie Robinson breached the colour barrier in MLB finally opening the doors for an influx of otherwise ignored and degraded baseball talent. Brown himself was signed by the struggling St. Louis Browns – with whom he etched himself into baseball history with at least two achievements; on 20th July against the Boston Red Sox, Brown and Hank Thompson became the first two African-Americans to line up in an MLB game together – and on 13th August, against Detroit, “Home Run” Brown became the first African-American to hit a home run in the American League. Yet in spite of his formidable reputation, and undeniable talent, Brown struggled in the Major’s, a victim of the vitriolic racism endemic in the league, where not all players, managers, owners or fans were happy for the colour barrier to have come to an end. He was released from his contract after just 21 games having hit a paltry, 179
As if to prove a point to his detractors, or perhaps himself, he followed this with a remarkable run, that winter in the Puerto Rican League he averaged .432 with 27 home runs and 86 RBI’s in just 60 games! In 1948, rejoining the Kansas City Monarchs, in what was thought to be the last quality year of Negro League Baseball before the talent drain began to tell, he hit .404 for the season, still not enough to lead the league mind you.
Willard Brown saw out the 1950’s with a variety of minor league and independent teams including the Ottawa Nationals from Canada in the Border League, playing in the Caribbean Series in Venezuela, summer ball in the Dominican Republic, stints in the Texas League, the Western League before one final reunion with a number of Negro League stars in the final year of the legendary ManDak League, playing for the Minot Mallards. The independent Manitoba-Dakota League became the home to a great many African-American and Latino stars too old for the Major’s but with reputations and talent to entertain. In 1958 Brown suited up one last time for the Kansas City Monarchs barnstorming team before retiring.
“Home Run” Brown’s career batting average (Negro & Major Leagues) of .347 places him among the very best of hitters – the paucity of Negro League statistics (a reflection of the ignorance the mainstream sporting press held them in at times) means that he is only officially attributed with 49 career home runs – though speculation is that he hit many times more than that and in what was overall a fairly short Negro League career its believed he may be among the all-time league leaders in Home Runs as befit his name and reputation.
Inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006, Willard Brown proudly shares records with Ty Cobb for most times leading a league with hits (seven) and Hank Aaron for eight times leading a league in total bases. He also stands alone at the summit as being the only player to lead a league eight times in extra base hits.
Our other named player – the pitcher Nayhem – is Samuel “Subway Sam” Nahem – the papers misspelt his name (a not uncommon occurrence in baseball reporting in Britain over the years).
Nahem floated around the minor leagues between 1937 and 1941 – making a solitary winning appearance for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1938 – he took in so many teams in his career that the scholarly and humorous Nahem would recall his nickname should have been “Formerly of”, as in “Sam Nahem, formerly of…”
1941 saw him acquired by the St Louis Cardinals with whom he pitched a career high 81 2/3 innings with a 5-2 win/loss record and an ERA of 2.98
In 1942 he was purchased by the Phillies, with whom over two seasons split by his military service (42 & 48) he posted a losing record and ever increasing ERA.
Overall Nahem appeared in 90 games over four Major League seasons, with a 10-8 win/loss career record and a final ERA of 4.69
Sam Nahem was an early enlistee in the US Army, joining in 1942 – from the outset he was an active participant in, and organizer of Army Baseball. Pitching for the Anti-Aircraft “Red Legs” of the Eastern Defence Command he set a Sunset League record pitching a remarkable 0.85 ERA and batting .400!
Posted overseas in 1944 he served in the Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division –organized two servicemen’s leagues in Rheims and of course pitched and managed the OISE All-Stars team.
Nahem, who was a trained lawyer even during his baseball career, was a notable and public supporter of integrated baseball (and society) and having witnessed firsthand the racial abuse levelled against the first African-Americans to join MLB (and maybe even still in contact with Willard Brown) he attributed the racism of his fellow players to boiling down to economic fear – “They knew these guys had the ability to be up there and they knew their jobs were threatened directly.”
The absence of a scorecard or roster for the Exeter game is galling, as I’m unable to confirm for certain the likely presence of another Hall of Famer and Negro League Star – Leon Day.
A member of the OISE All-Stars he was throughout his Negro League career considered one of the most versatile ballplayers in the game, regularly playing every position except catcher. His career statistics in the Negro Leagues included a 48-21 win/loss record as a pitcher with a 3.50 ERA, and a batting average of .318
Day featured heavily in the OISE’s ETO World Series win – and probably did play at Exeter.
Another gap in my knowledge, that I hope maybe to discover more about is the identity of the US Naval Base team at Exeter – the article makes clear this is no exhibition match – and despite calling it the European Championship we can be certain that this was a play-off Round leading to the ETO World Series. Was the US Naval Base team at Exeter the British champions?
Photo credits:
Baseball at Exeter, published in the Western Morning News, 24th August 1945
“Home Run” Brown at bat in the Exeter game – published in The Story of St James’ Park by Aidan Hamilton.
The OISE All-Stars team with Sam Nahem back row on the left hand side, and Willard Brown front row second from the right – published in The Victory Season: the end of World War II and the Birth of Baseball’s Golden Age by Robert Weintraub.
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