1941 Winter Meetings: War and Uncertainty

 Minor-League Winter Meeting

The prospect of war cast a long shadow over the National Association meeting for 1941. Europe and Asia had been mired in conflict for more than two years by this time, and just days after the meetings concluded, the United States would be forced to enter the second worldwide war of the twentieth century. A peacetime military draft had been in effect since October 1940 and baseball players, typically being in the prime of their lives and generally in good health and good physical condition, were superior material for military service.1

Indeed, the national emergency had sapped players not only for military service but for work in the burgeoning and well-paying defense industries. On the other hand, the national emergency had effectively ended the Depression, and people returned to ballparks in droves. Attendance at games was generally up, with the minors drawing a reported 15 million fans in 1941, up 3 million from 1940, while the majors, though suffering a decrease of over 30,000 fans, still drew a reported 10 million.2 It was in this atmosphere that the minor-league magnates and business staff met to conduct business at their 40th annual convention.

The National Association meeting was held in Jacksonville, Florida, from December 3 to 5 at the George Washington Hotel. This was the first time the NABPL had held a winter meeting in Florida, though the state itself was no stranger to baseball; as early as the 1880s, professional teams had been coming to Florida for spring training. Jacksonville, then (and currently) Florida’s largest city, supported a city league as early as 1886 and played host to a spring match between the Washington Senators and New York Giants in March of 1888. Jacksonville was the New York Giants’ spring training site and was the home base for the Tars, a Class-B Giants affiliate in the South Atlantic League. Jacksonville was reaping the benefits of wartime prosperity with its busy port and a new air base.3

In addition to player trades, the minors hoped to use the meetings to deal with player shortages related to the draft and particularly rules that limited the number of veteran players on teams in lower classifications. Several teams also hoped to conclude working agreements with major-league clubs that were expanding their farm systems.

Major-League Winter Meeting

By the time of the major-league meetings, the United States had entered World War II. Japan attacked the American naval and air bases at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941; Congress voted to declare war on Japan the next day. Four days later, at the conclusion of the major-league meetings, Germany and Italy joined their Axis partner in declaring war on the United States.4

Though there was some uncertainty as to how the war would affect the availability of players and certain aspects of the game, the magnates felt that based on baseball’s continuance through the outbreak of World War I, the 1942 season would go on in spite of the emergency.5 The expectations of the press and magnates were confirmed when, in a letter to Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis dated January 15, 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave professional baseball the “green light” to continue operations.6

In addition to the war, the major-league meetings were also hit by illness that struck down their executive staff; Commissioner Landis was going through a bout of pneumonia, while American League President Will Harridge was still recuperating from surgery. To reduce the strain of travel on the two leaders, both of whom lived in the Chicago area, the leagues agreed to move the meetings from New York to the Palmer House hotel in Chicago, from December 9 to 11. President Ford Frick waived the National League’s right to call for the meeting to be held in New York, and in return the senior league got dibs on setting the meeting location for 1942 and 1943.7

 

Player Movement

Minor Leagues

A number of trades were conducted at the National Association meetings, despite a manpower shortage that found affiliate and independent clubs focusing mainly on recruiting talent.8 A total of 286 minor leaguers were swept up in the peacetime draft.9 Perhaps in other circumstances, the leagues would have been less affected by these losses, but 1940 also saw a drop in reserve players for the first time in six years, a decline in the number of leagues to 41 (from 43), and an increase in the number of ineligible players.10 Several players had retired to well-paying defense-industry jobs and were unlikely to be lured back to less steady and potentially less lucrative minor-league positions.11

In spite of these losses, National Association President William Bramham was confident that 1942 would see defense industries scaling back and more players being released from the military.12 It would take only days to shatter Bramham’s optimism.

Among the arrangements made in Jacksonville, Jack Zeller, general manager of the Detroit Tigers, promised to send an unnamed Detroit pitcher to Toronto.13 Minneapolis closed a deal with Brooklyn for catcher Angelo Giuliani and pitcher Van Lingle Mungo, both of whom had been assigned to their Montreal affiliate and but would play for the Millers in 1942.

The Milwaukee Brewers got outfielder Woody Jensen on trial from Montreal and almost got outfielder Ron Northey of Williamsport until the Phillies countered with a better offer.14 Numerous major leaguers were also traded to the minors or sent down to affiliate and independent teams, and in return minor leaguers ascended to “The Show.” (See the table in Appendix One for the volume of trading done in Jacksonville, as recounted in The Sporting News.)15

Changes among major- and minor-league managers and coaches were also announced in Jacksonville. Among them was Mel Ott’s appointment as player-manager of the New York Giants, replacing Bill Terry, who was moved into the front office to head the farm system. Team owner Horace Stoneham reported that Ott was fully responsible for trades and the signing of new players. Indeed, Ott had very firm ideas about the players he wanted to acquire, specifically mentioning outfielder-first baseman Johnny Hopp of the Cardinals or, if they couldn’t get Hopp, the Cardinals’ other first baseman, Johnny Mize. Ott expressed concern over first baseman Babe Young’s draft status and preferred Hopp’s utility in both the infield and outfield should the team lose Young.16 Ott wound up getting Mize for right-hander Bill Lohrman, first baseman Johnny McCarthy, and catcher Ken O’Dea, plus cash rumored to be $50,000. Mize would eventually slug his way into the Hall of Fame.17

Major Leagues

Detroit was sapped by the loss of key players like first baseman-outfielder Hank Greenberg, who was drafted into the Army, and southpaw pitcher Fred Hutchinson, who was serving in the Navy. With veterans like second baseman Charley Gehringer approaching retirement, the Tigers were desperate for new blood.18 Players and free agents thus enjoyed the chance to actually weigh offers and accept the best.19

But America’s entry into the war put the magnates in a cautious mood. While most baseball professionals believed the season would continue, they had not yet received the go-ahead from FDR. So trading was brisk at the Palmer House and a number of major deals were completed.

The Cardinals-Giants trade was the biggest of the meeting. In addition, Ott paid the Cincinnati Reds $20,000 for third baseman Bill Werber and acquired outfielder Hank Lieber from the Chicago Cubs for pitcher Bob Bowman and an undisclosed amount of cash.20

Washington and Boston put together a major deal in which Red Sox pitcher Jack Wilson and outfielder Stan Spence went to the Senators in exchange for pitcher Ken Chase and outfielder John Welaj.21 (Spence would blossom in D.C., being named to four All-Star squads.) The Senators also dealt with the Tigers, picking up outfielder Bruce Campbell and infielder Frank Croucher and shipping All-Star outfielder Doc Cramer and infielder Johnny Bloodworth to Detroit.22

In Jacksonville, rumors had circulated about the Red Sox possibly trading Jimmie Foxx, but by the Chicago meeting those rumors had been squelched. It was announced that he would be kept on as a utility player alongside player-manager Joe Cronin.23

In the National League, the Brooklyn Dodgers conducted a number of player transactions. Brooklyn snapped up Pittsburgh infielder Arky Vaughan, a future Hall of Famer, for four players, pitcher Luke Hamlin, catcher Babe Phelps, infielder Pete Coscarart, and outfielder Jimmy Wasdell. The Dodgers also picked up outfielders Don Padgett from the Cardinals and Johnny Rizzo from the Phillies, and sold pitcher Mace Brown to the Red Sox.24

Not be outdone by their crosstown rival Giants and Dodgers, the Yankees made some deals. New York traded one of its top prospects, outfielder Tommy Holmes, to the Boston Braves for two players named later, first baseman-outfielder Buddy Hassett and outfielder Gene Moore. With Joe DiMaggio covering center field, Holmes was seen as redundant. The Yanks also traded third baseman Buddy Blair to the Philadelphia Athletics for a former all-American running back, outfielder Eric Tipton, and pitcher Johnny Babich.25 The Yankees also picked up outfielder Tuck Stainback and shortstop Boyd Perry from Detroit to complete a September deal when the Tigers received Yankee infielder Bill Hitchcock.26

The Athletics sent outfielder Wally Moses to the Chicago White Sox for pitcher Jack Hallett and outfielder Mike Kreevich.27

 

The Business Side

Minor Leagues

Little business was on the agenda in Jacksonville. There were no officers to elect and American Association President George Trautman sought a year’s postponement of action to renew the National Agreement, which was due to expire on January 12, 1942. Landis had not been well enough to oversee changes to the agreement. The minors considered only six amendments to the current Agreement, to be passed on to the majors for approval.28

An amendment championed by Frank D. Lawrence, owner of the Piedmont League’s Portsmouth club, proposed that Class-B clubs no longer be required to carry six “required players,” defined as those with less than three years of professional baseball experience. Rookies were more liable to be found in the lower minors and to be more likely to be drafted for military service. Lawrence hoped that by allowing smaller clubs more veteran athletes, gaps in manpower could be reduced.29 The plan was approved in Jacksonville and it was decided to reduce the number of required players from six to four in the B, C, and D classifications.30

Another regulation up for review prohibited bonus payments to first-year Class-D players and to free agents below the AA classification. This was seen as especially detrimental and unfair to independent lower-level clubs which, unlike farm clubs, could not have a major affiliate pay a bonus and then option a player to a lower classification.31 Drafted by the Southern Association, the proposition as written was defeated, then modified to permit bonus payments down to the A-1 classification.32

Section 11i of the National Agreement, which covered player reacquisition and terms of optional service, was also amended by the minors. A sore point between Commissioner Landis and the rest of professional baseball, player reacquisition had been debated twice before a temporary compromise was arranged prior to the 1940 season, understood by Landis to be revisited during the next Major-Minor Agreement. Since that agreement had been postponed, the majors and minors had rewritten the language of the section and proposed to make the changes effective immediately. The minors voted unanimously in favor of the amended Section 11i. 33

The original 1940 rule and the proposed 1941 revision were repeated verbatim in The Sporting News on December 11, 1941, illustrating the changes the minors hoped to make to the original rule:

1940 version: “A player reacquired by the same club or system shall, so far as Rule 11-c is concerned, be credited with having been under minor league optional assignment for the intervening period; provided that, if reacquired by a major league club, that club shall be charged with one season of major league optional service and the balance of the player’s minor league service shall be charged as minor league optional service. A player reacquired from a lower club of the same ownership or control shall, for the purposes of this rule, be regarded as reacquired.”

1941 proposed revision: “Any assignment of a player’s contract to any affiliated club in a lower classification shall, so far as Rule 11-c (referring to optional assignments) is concerned, be considered an optional assignment in determining the player’s optional service record. In the event there is more than one such assignment during any one year, that shall count as only one optional assignment against the player’s optional service record. The return of a player’s contract conditionally assigned by a lower classification club to a higher classification club shall not be considered as an assignment of the player’s contract from a higher classification club to a lower classification club. In the case of the player’s contract being acquired by a major league club from an affiliated minor league club, the optional assignment of the contract of such a player by the major league club shall be limited to two years.”34

President Bob Stedler of the Pony League proposed an amendment increasing from 30 days to 45 days the time that would count toward a full year for drafting players.

In response to the number of players called up for military service, the minors also suggested an amendment that would treat players on the National Defense List the same as ineligible or voluntarily retired players.

The final amendment to the agreement involved creating a committee to study a merit-based system for promotion of umpires for all organizations below AA classification.

Bramham, addressing the combined clubs in Jacksonville, relayed a stern message from Commissioner Landis that reminded minor-league clubs to obey laws and meet financial obligations or face stiff penalties if they flouted the laws.

In Jacksonville, a dozen minor-league clubs arranged alliances or ended affiliations with major-league and higher classification minor clubs. The new arrangements were as follows:

 

Minor Team	Agreement Arranged
Augusta, GA	Switched from New York Yankees affiliate to independent
Wasau, WI	Signed with Cleveland Indians
Macon, GA	Agreement with Los Angeles, gave Chicago Cubs Class-B outlet
Dayton, OH	Brooklyn Dodgers
Baltimore, MD	Cleveland Indians
Kingsport, TN	Brooklyn Dodgers
Montgomery, AL	Dallas
Bowling Green, KY	Nashville
LaCrosse, WI	St. Louis Cardinals
Cheyenne, WY	Brooklyn Dodgers
Charleston, SC	New York Giants
Jacksonville, FL	New York Giants

 

Major Leagues:

The major leagues had a fuller business agenda than the minors, though the meeting’s start date, just 48 hours after the Pearl Harbor attack, saw war concerns move to the forefront. The majors pledged an immediate $25,000 to Army and Navy sports programs and voted to donate the proceeds of the 1942 All-Star Game to the programs. The gate receipts from the previous year had totaled over $100,000.

The majors agreed with the National Association to postpone the new Major-Minor Agreement for one year. But the majors struck down two of the amendments passed by the National Association. There proved to be no middle ground to be found on Section 11i and the rewritten amendment on player reacquisition, which had passed unanimously in Jacksonville, was voted down by both major leagues in Chicago. The majors also rejected the proposal regarding the extension of days in which a player’s draft status would be determined.

The major leagues did concur on the status of players who were drafted for the war. They would be regarded as voluntarily retired, though they would be placed on a separate list. Another alteration the majors considered and approved was a change in dates for the draft meetings and final transfer of players. The date for the annual draft would be moved back to November 1 instead of the evening before the World Series’ first game, while the deadline for transfers would be October 1 instead of September 10. It was hoped that the new dates would give teams more time to appraise players and would end the awkwardness of calling up players before the end of the minor leagues’ seasons. The minors approved the motion by a mail-in vote.

The majors also considered a motion by Clark Griffith of the Washington Senators and Don Barnes of St. Louis Browns to increase the number of night games at major-league parks. FDR in his Green Light letter would recommend increasing the number of night games, and this change was favored by a majority of the American League magnates, but the National League and Landis were unconvinced and the number of night games remained static for the time being.

In addition to stumping for more night games, Don Barnes came to Chicago with an even more surprising and disruptive idea: moving the long-suffering Browns to Los Angeles. The proposal was rejected unanimously by the magnates and the commissioner, but it did open up the possibility that West Coast baseball would become a reality at some point and that the cities on the Pacific Coast were growing in size and stature relative to the Eastern metropolises. The onset of may have war added to jitters about such a major shakeup in league cities.35

Elections were held at the Palmer House for the vice presidency and board of directors for both leagues. Clark Griffith of Washington and Sam Breadon of the St. Louis Cardinals were re-elected vice presidents of the American and National Leagues respectively. The American League Board was represented by the Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, and Boston Red Sox, while the National League Board was to be represented by the Chicago Cubs, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Boston Braves.36

Several minor rulings were voted on, including:

• Approval of the customary exception to the doubleheader rule that would allow both St. Louis teams to hold doubleheaders after their third Sunday home game. Other clubs had to wait until after the fourth home Sunday game before they could schedule a doubleheader.
• Passage of a rule barring doubleheaders created by pushing back regularly scheduled game to the final series.
• Approval of a rule that if the postponement of a contest requires transfer between cities, a game cannot be called off less than one hour before the game’s scheduled start time.
• Rejection of a proposal to create a spring war-charity rookie game.37

Summary

Professional baseball faced numerous challenges at the start of World War II, and the national emergency ensured that many of these issues would not be revisited until after the war. Though the sport would be played throughout the war, with the blessings of President Roosevelt and to the betterment of the nation’s morale, manpower concerns would continue to dog baseball until 1945. Just as the war would take a toll on the nation, it would have an impact on the nation’s game. About 90 percent of professional baseball players would serve in World War II, more than 5,000 in all.38 Hank Greenberg, Ted Williams, Johnny Mize, and many other players with promising and in some cases potentially legendary careers would see their playing days cut short by military service. The war would not only draw players from the game, but fans as well as attendance dropped by about one million between 1942 and 1943.

Evident in the 1941 meetings was the longstanding strain in the relationship between major- and minor-league baseball. Though there was accord on such items as the National Agreement, the draft, and the status of enlisted ballplayers, the National Association and the major leagues remained at odds over optioned players, bonuses, and efforts at player retention.

The minor-league franchises would prove most vulnerable to the loss of revenue and support during the war, and could expect little to no assistance from the majors, contracting in the first year of the war from 304 teams to 206.39 The minors were contracting as early as 1941, and proposals like the six amendments recommended to the National Agreement were seen as ways to stanch the losses.

The 1941 Winter Meetings also hinted at changes to come to the game after the war, including an increase in night games, the transfer of franchises to the West Coast, and a contraction and slow decline in the number of minor leagues and teams. All of the above were in the cards for baseball in the coming years.

 

Appendix One:

Major-league teams are in bold.

Player	Acquiring Team	Selling Team	Terms
P Earl Overman	Fort Worth	Dallas	Trade: P Jackie Reid
OF Guy Curtright	St. Paul	Shreveport	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Lynn Myers	Toronto	Rochester	Cash/Undisclosed
C Verne Richards	Louisville	Springfield, MA	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Tony Gridaltis	Milwaukee	Springfield, MA	Cash/Conditional Sale
C Angelo Giuliani	Minneapolis	Brooklyn Dodgers	Cash/Undisclosed
P Van Lingle Mungo	Minneapolis	Brooklyn Dodgers	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Woody Jensen	Milwaukee	Montreal	On Trial
IF Hal Quick	Portsmouth, VA	Williamsport, PA	Trade: 2B Don Curry
C Gus Hixson	Williamsport, PA	Wilkes-Barre, PA	Cash/Undisclosed
P Charlie Barrett	Cincinnati Reds, transferred to Syracuse, NY	Birmingham	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Kermit Lewis	San Francisco	Cincinnati Reds	Transfer
C Ray Mueller	Sacramento	Pittsburgh Pirates	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Debs Garms	Sacramento	Pittsburgh Pirates	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Walter Harrington	Augusta, GA	DeLand, FL	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Earl Pugh	Charleston, SC	DeLand, FL	Cash/Undisclosed
P Bernard DeForge	Portsmouth, VA	Birmingham	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Thomas Nelson	Pensacola	Birmingham	Cash/Undisclosed
P Paul Gehrman	Los Angeles	Birmingham	Cash/Undisclosed
P Jim Trexler	Little Rock	Buffalo	Cash/Undisclosed
P Al Fisher	Knoxville	Oklahoma City	Trade: P Jennings Poindexter and 1B Alex Hooks
OF Bud Hafey	Oklahoma City	Memphis	Cash/Undisclosed
P Sheldon Jones	Jersey City	Oklahoma City	Trade: OF Hershel Martin and Cash
OF Eddie Marleau	Dallas	Oklahoma City	Trade: P Pat Beasley and Cash
IF Pep Young	Columbus, OH	Sacramento	Cash/Undisclosed
P Pete Hader	Memphis	Columbus, OH	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Marshall Mauldin	Memphis	Knoxville	Cash/Undisclosed
P Pete Stine	Augusta, GA	Knoxville	Cash/Undisclosed
C Paul Pride	Augusta, GA	Knoxville	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Russ Bevel	Augusta, GA	Knoxville	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Frank Metha	Fort Worth	Knoxville	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Frank Scalzi	Sacramento	Knoxville	Trade: OF Arnold Moser
P Elmer Rummans	Houston	Knoxville	Trade: P Steve Warchol
OF William Duke	Knoxville	Elmira, NY	Cash/Undisclosed
3B Ulmont Baker	Knoxville	Concord, NC	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Roy Pinkston	Knoxville	Lexington, NC	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Elmer Weinschreider	Jamestown, NY	Muskegon	Cash/Undisclosed
P Lee Sherrill	Memphis	Asheville, NC	Cash/Undisclosed
2B Carl McNabb	Elmira	Hagerstown	Cash/Undisclosed
P Allyn Stout	Elmira	Atlanta	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Paul Easterling	Elmira	Dallas	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Mickey Burnett	Pocatello	Mobile	Trade: IF Mervin Bensmiller
OF Judson Kirke	Pocatello	Mobile	Trade: IF Mervin Bensmiller
OF Joe Molina	Pocatello	Johnson City, TN	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Dick Culler	St. Paul	Nashville	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Charles Chute	St. Paul	West Palm Beach	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Elmer Kirchoff	St. Paul	West Palm Beach	Cash/Undisclosed
P Joe Hatten	Montreal	Minneapolis	Trade: P Van Lingle Mungo, C Angelo Giuliani
OF Jake Powell and P Steve Rachunok	Indianapolis	Montreal	Cash/Undisclosed
2B Billy Adair and P Bob Ferguson	Memphis	Montgomery	Cash/Undisclosed
P Walter Brown	Memphis	Salina, KS	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Red Reeves	Memphis	Pensacola	Cash/Undisclosed
P Bill Curlee	Memphis	Sacramento	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Red Treadway	Atlanta	Wilson, NC	Cash/Undisclosed
P Milton Rosenstein	Atlanta	Miami Beach	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Red Ferrell	Atlanta	Springfield, MA	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Emil Mailho	Oakland	Atlanta	Cash/Undisclosed
1B Walter Stockhill	Decatur	Greenville, SC	Cash/Undisclosed
1B Paul Schoendienst	Shreveport	Clovis	Cash/Undisclosed
C Herb Crompton	Shreveport	Atlanta	Cash/Undisclosed
P Jess Dobernic	Los Angeles	Milwaukee	Cash/Undisclosed
P Lee Stine	Portland, OR	Los Angeles	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Maximillian F. Earhart	Waycross, GA	N/A	Rookie/New Player
IF Joe Vitari	Waycross, GA	N/A	Rookie/New Player
OF Sherwood Schuerbaum	Macon	Columbus, GA	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Thomas Nelson	Macon	Pensacola	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Deason Loveless	Macon	Selma	Cash/Undisclosed
P Kirby Hayes and P Darren Arden	Macon	Miami	Cash/Undisclosed
C Bob Garbark	Buffalo	Milwaukee	Cash/Undisclosed
P Clare Bertram	Milwaukee	Tulsa	Trade: IF Herb Stroud, IF George Fink, and unnamed P
OF Tony Gridaltis	Milwaukee	Lansing	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Bill Norman	Milwaukee	Houston	Cash/Undisclosed
P Harold Vandenberg	Milwaukee	Syracuse	Cash/Undisclosed
P Hal Johnson	Fort Worth	El Paso	Cash/Undisclosed
1B Joe Yourkovitch	Montgomery	Fort Worth	Cash/Undisclosed
C Del Friar and 2B Ray Taylor	Savannah	Shreveport	Cash/Undisclosed
P Onnie Robinson	Augusta, GA	Savannah	Cash/Undisclosed
P Doyle Lade	Savannah	Salina, KS	Trade: P Hugh Klaerner
P John McPartland	Dallas	Pampa, TX	Cash/Undisclosed
P Clem Hausman	Dallas	Borger, TX	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Norman De Weese	Albany, NY	Dallas	Cash/Undisclosed
3B Dale Case, P Robert Cash, OF George Galios, OF Birl Horton, OF Joe LaPiana, 1B Bob Williams, IF William Reyes	Lancaster, PA	El Paso	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Dale Gill and OF Jaime Rodriguez	Lake Charles, LA	El Paso	Cash/Undisclosed
P Orlando Rodriguez and 2B Salvador Sparacino	Portsmouth, VA	El Paso	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Lloyd Warner	Philadelphia Phillies	Cincinnati Reds	Released by Cincinnati, signed by Phillies
OF Ron Northey	Philadelphia Phillies	Williamsport, PA	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Mervin Connors	Dallas	Texarkana, TX	Cash/Undisclosed
P Al Sachen	Dallas	Pensacola	Cash/Undisclosed
C Jim Grilk	Toronto	Sacramento	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Calvin Chapman and P Buck Marrow	Dallas	Chattanooga	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Royce Watson and P Hope Beard	Wilmington	Lynchburg	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Benny Hassler, OF Joe Mene, OF Marvin Pelton	Wilmington	Selma	Cash/Undisclosed
1B Bob Prichard	Wilmington	Charlotte	Cash/Undisclosed
C Joe Glenn	Oakland	Louisville	Cash/Undisclosed
IF Buddy Blair	Philadelphia Athletics	Newark	Trade: P John Babich and OF Eric Tipton
P Earl Reid	Indianapolis	Newark	Cash/Undisclosed
P Boots Poffenberger	San Diego	Nashville	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Paul Armstrong	Dallas	Montgomery	Cash/Undisclosed
SS Jim McLeod and C Ted Clawitter	Augusta, GA	Montgomery	Cash/Undisclosed
1B Tommy Canavan	Birmingham	Ogden	Cash/Undisclosed
P Rex Cecil, P James Morris, OF Keith Frazier	Jackson, MS	Stockton	Cash/Undisclosed
P Eddie Kowalski	Charleston, WV	Saginaw	Cash/Undisclosed
2B Ray Viers, 3B Cecil Hubbard	Montgomery	Marshall, TX	Cash/Undisclosed
OF Bob Price, P Bill Vandenberg, UT Clarence Benton	Richmond	Marshall, TX	Cash/Undisclosed

 

Notes

1 Norman Polmar and Thomas B. Allen, World War II: America at War 1941-1945 (New York: Random House, 1991), 724-725.

2 “Bramham Says 15,000,000 Saw the 1941 Contests — 277 Players Were Inducted — Managers Named, Deals Made,” New York Times, December 4, 1941: 35; “Big League Crowds Exceeded 10 Million,” New York Times, October 28, 1941: 30.

3 Frederick G. Lieb. “City, Now Army-Navy Center, Ready to Put On Big Parade of Florida Hospitality for Visitors,” The Sporting News, November 27, 1941: 1.

4 Polmar and Allen, 10.

5 Edgar G. Brands, “Majors Gird to Carry On During U.S. Emergency; Vote Funds to Give Equipment to Men in Service,” The Sporting News, December 18, 1941: 7.

6 “Stay in There and Pitch — F.D.R.,” The Sporting News, January 22, 1942: 1.

7 J.G. Taylor Spink, “Majors May Meet in Chi,” The Sporting News, November 20, 1941: 1.

8 Edgar G. Brands, “Jax Session Starts Biggest Trade Rush,” The Sporting News, December 4, 1941: 1.

9 “Bramham Urges Immediate Preparations for 1942,” The Sporting News, December 4, 1941: 2, 9.

10 “41 Minors Reserve 4,348 Players for 1942, Drop of 172,” The Sporting News, November 27, 1941: 12.

11 Ibid.

12 “Bramham Urges Immediate Preparations for 1942.”

13 Bunny Morganson, “Grimes Goes to Leafs as Part of Buc Tie-Up,” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 1.

14 “Passing Through the Gateway to Florida,.” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 3, 10, 13.

15 “Talent at Premium in Player’s Market,” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 3, 11.

16 “Ott Has Full Power as Pilot of Giants,” The Sporting News, December11, 1941: 1, 17.

17 Dan Daniel, “Giants Stir N.Y. Fans by Volleys of Cash in Mize and Other Deals,” The Sporting News December 18, 1941: 1.

18 Sam Greene, “Hank Greenberg May March Right Back Into Army Service,” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 1.

19 “Talent at Premium in Player’s Market.”

20 Daniel, “Giants Stir.”

21 “Caution of Traders Slows Player Mart,” The Sporting News, December 18, 1941: 7, 11

22 Sam Greene, “Success of Tigers Transfusion Rests With Bloodworth,” The Sporting News, December 18, 1941: 1.

23 “Caution of Traders.”

24 Daniel, “Giants Stir.”

25 “Caution of Traders.”

26 Daniel, “Giants Stir.”

27 “Caution of Traders.”

28 “No Officers to Elect,” The Sporting News, November 27, 1941: 8.

29 J.G. Taylor Spink, “Independents Fight Talent Monopoly,” The Sporting News, November 20, 1941: 1, 6.

30 Edgar G. Brands, “Dispute over ’11-i’ Again Made an Issue,” The Sporting News, December 11, 1941: 3, 11.

31 Spink, “Independents Fight Talent Monopoly.”

32 Brands, “Dispute over ’11-i’ Again Made an Issue.”

33 Ibid.

34 Ibid.

35 David Finoli, For the Good of the Country: World War II Baseball in the Major and Minor Leagues (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc., 2002), 17.

36 “Majors Gird.”

37 Ibid.

38 Steven R. Bullock, Playing for Their Nation: Baseball and the American Military During World War II (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2004), xii; Finoli, For the Good of the Country, 309.

39 Finoli, For the Good of the Country, 17.