Kevin Rivioli, Associated Press
The pride of The Greatest Generation died yesterday at the age of 92.
Feller was one of the bona fide star athletes who served with distinction in World War II, sacrificing prime seasons away from the game when they might have been able to find ways around the draft; Feller could easily have claimed status as his family’s only source of income. But he served proudly and honorably. And he still managed to put up a Hall of Fame career that gave some extra cache in as he fought the notion that white and black athletes should not play together on the same field, which was the subject of Timothy Gay’s Satch, Dizzy, and Rapid Robert: The Wild Saga of Interracial Baseball Before Jackie Robinson
Living in the New York market, it’s hard to imagine the impact that players like a Feller or a Stan Musial had on cities like Cleveland and St. Louis, respectively. This is especially true at a time before 24/7 sports coverage and the Internet. Heck, even TV was a brand-new technology when these athletes started their careers.
Here‘s Richard Goldstein’s obituary from today’s NY Times.
A number of my Facebook friends have paid tribute to Feller, with posts that include some of the following pieces of artwork:
From Graig Kreindler
From Kyle Banister
From Benjamin Blackburn
I did an extensive entry on Feller only a month ago, when he celebrated his birthday, so here’s that. And rather than include the numerous YouTube videos here, I’ll just post this link that will take you to several fine pieces.
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