TALES OF THE YANKEE CLIPPER (PART VI) ENEMY ALIENS

 

 

            Prior to World War II, the United States government had adhered to a policy of isolationism. In the wake of the Pearl Harbor Attack, media-fueled hysteria built to a fever pitch. Feeling the need to neutralize a perceived threat from within, the Roosevelt administration unjustly labeled thousands of Italian, German, and Japanese immigrants “enemy aliens.”

            More than 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry were uprooted from their homes and placed in internment camps. Germans were not only subjected to relocation, but they were also forbidden to own specific items (such as flashlights, cameras, and radios) that might be used to communicate with Nazi sympathizers. More than 600,000 Italian-Americans were forced to deal with travel restrictions and curfews. Joe DiMaggio’s parents were among the many innocent Sicilians who were made to feel like criminals.

             By the time the United States officially entered the war, Giuseppe and Rosalie had been living in America for several decades. Since they couldn’t read or write enough English to pass the naturalization exam, neither of them had the proper documentation. Aware of their connection to the famous Yankee icon, General John DeWitt of the Western Defense Command considered arresting the couple to make an example of them. But in the end, he decided that other restrictive measures would suffice. Giuseppe and Rosalie were forbidden to visit DiMaggio’s Grotto on Fisherman’s Wharf. They were required to carry I.D. papers on them at all times and, if they wished to travel further than five miles from home, they had to request a permit. Giuseppe’s crab boat—a 16-footer named the Rosalie D.—was confiscated along with the vessels of more than a thousand Italians operating on the Pacific Coast.

            The mistreatment of “Enemy Aliens” continued until the end of the war and beyond. Even after hostilities ceased overseas, it took several years to dismantle the internment program. The punitive measures taken against Italian-Americans didn’t sit well with Joltin’ Joe. According to Army officials, he exhibited a “conscious attitude of hostility and resistance” toward his military duties. The Yankee slugger felt that the Army was exploiting his All-Star status for the purpose of public relations. He resented having to play in Army baseball games. And though he was repeatedly hospitalized for chronic abdominal pain, no evidence of an ulcer was detected by military doctors. Major William G. Barrett believed that DiMaggio was fabricating the illness to earn a medical discharge. His suspicions were included in an official report. Joe eventually got the release he had been seeking in September of 1945.

            Rosalie DiMaggio became an official US citizen in 1944. Giuseppe became naturalized the following year. In 2001, the US Department of Justice formally acknowledged the mistreatment of Italian-Americans during the war. The California state legislature waited nine more years to issue a formal apology (of sorts). A 2010 resolution sponsored by Democratic senator Joe Simitian officially expressed “deepest regrets” over actions taken by government officials during the enemy alien ordeal.  

EXCERPTS FROM TALES OF THE YANKEE CLIPPER (PART V) JOE IN HIS BIRTHDAY SUIT

 

 

            DiMaggio was photographed thousands of times during his career. Nearly all of those photos are tasteful. But in 2009, the one he would not have wanted anyone to see finally surfaced.

            The photo—a full frontal shot of Joe standing naked in the showers at Yankee Stadium—appeared in a San Francisco art gallery exhibit. It later passed into the possession of an auction house and went up for sale. The auctioneers provided the following description of the graphic picture: “Obviously aware of being photographed in such a state, [DiMaggio] is seen smiling for the camera—a young Joe, perhaps still in the 1930s, still in his purest youth. We are not sure how the photo made it to this point, but it is 100% authentic, first generation, and vintage.” An unidentified man—only partially in the frame—is standing shoulder to shoulder with Joe in the shot.      

            At least one source claimed that the photo was a sham. Morris Engelberg, attorney for the DiMaggio estate and one of Joe’s most trusted advisors, commented to reporters, “I could never imagine Joe DiMaggio, this private individual, ever letting anyone take a photo of him in the nude with someone next to him. When Joe DiMaggio went to the bathroom in a restaurant, I always had to escort him. And I made sure no one took a picture of him at the urinal.” Engelberg’s comments about Joe being intensely private are indisputable. The self-conscious Yankee idol strenuously avoided situations that might cause him embarrassment throughout his career. And it would indeed have been highly out of character for him to allow such a photo to be taken.

            The New York Post published Engelberg’s comments under a facetious headline reading, “Lawyer: That’s Not Joltin’ Joe’s Penis.” Speculating on the identity of the man standing next to DiMaggio, a writer from the San Francisco Chronicle comically reported, “A similar photo of Mantle recently surfaced. Collect the entire set. Bonus mystery: Next to DiMaggio in the photo is an unidentified guy. Is it a Yankee teammate? A coach? A stadium peanut vendor? Maybe it’s Engelberg letting down his guard.” Though the New York Daily News couldn’t verify the picture’s authenticity, a correspondent claimed that it had been taken in 1939.

            Genuine or fraudulent, the one of a kind photo was acquired for more than $17,000 by John Rogers—owner of the Rogers Photo Archive. Comprised of more than 40 million images, Rogers’ private collection is among the largest in the world.            

EXCERPTS FROM TALES OF THE YANKEE CLIPPER (PART IV) DIMAGGIO'S STALKER

 

    While recovering from an injury at the beginning of the 1949 campaign, DiMaggio began receiving love notes from a woman he was not acquainted with. At the same time, letters started turning up at the offices of various New York gossip columnists. They were signed by a woman calling herself “Junior Standish,” who claimed to be in a romantic relationship with the Yankee slugger. DiMaggio was familiar with a Broadway dancer of the same name, but had never actually dated her. When a handful of columnists reported that the two had become a couple, DiMaggio and Standish both made public statements to the contrary.

            The plot thickened when the mysterious letter-writer attempted to make contact with DiMaggio at his hotel. After being turned away, she sent a note threatening suicide if her efforts to meet him were thwarted in the future. Alarmed by this turn of events, Yankee PR-man Arthur Patterson contacted the police and enlisted the help of a bodyguard to protect Joe.  

            While police were investigating the matter, another note containing suicidal threats was delivered to DiMaggio’s hotel room. Hoping to produce some tangible leads regarding the author’s identity, details were leaked to the press. A 30-year-old woman was eventually taken into custody. While being interrogated by the assistant district attorney in Manhattan, she suffered a mental breakdown, screaming hysterically and threatening to kill herself. Police transported her to a Bronx hospital for psychiatric evaluation. Doctors agreed to release her into the custody of her father on the condition that she seek counseling and leave DiMaggio alone. She agreed to the arrangement and never bothered Joe again. Her identity was not disclosed to the press.

            Incidents of a darker nature had plagued major-league baseball on prior occasions. A few weeks before DiMaggio’s stalker was taken into custody, a 19-year-old office worker named Ruth Steinhagen shot Phillies’ first baseman Eddie Waitkus in a Chicago hotel room. The troubled teen, who had developed an unhealthy obsession with Waitkus, ended up in a state psychiatric hospital, where she remained for three years. Waitkus recovered and played six more seasons. A similar scene had unfolded in 1932, when Cubs shortstop Billy Jurges was shot at the Carlos Hotel in Chicago by a showgirl named Violet Popovich. Jurges had broken off a casual relationship with Popovich, prompting her to behave irrationally. The infielder was shot twice—once in the hand and again in the ribs—but returned to action that year. He played in the majors until 1948.             

EXCERPTS FROM TALES OF THE YANKEE CLIPPER (PART III) JOHNNY BABICH CALLS OUT DIMAGGIO

 

    In the summer of 1941, rarely a day went by when DiMaggio did not receive top billing in the sports pages.  But for a few days in late-June, a little-known pitcher from the Philadelphia A’s stole Joltin’ Joe’s thunder.

            His name was Johnny Babich and he had an axe to grind. A right-handed flamethrower from Albion, California, he had played with the Kansas City Blues (a New York affiliate) in 1939, compiling a handsome 17-6 record with a 2.55 ERA. After a tryout with the Yankees, he was left unsigned. It was something he never forgot.

            The journeyman hurler had an issue with DiMaggio as well. Both men had played in the Pacific Coast League during the 1933 slate. They had faced each other in the midst of Joe’s record-setting 61-game hitting streak. In the eighth inning of a scoreless tie, DiMaggio had drilled a fastball off the left field wall, driving in the only run of the game and making Babich a loser.

            Babich was confident and boastful—like Dizzy Dean without the talent to back it up. He carried a lifetime earned run average of 5.57 entering the 1940 campaign. Yet somehow he managed to dominate the Yankees that season, winning five of six decisions against them. The losses to Babich had a huge impact on the pennant race as the Bombers ultimately finished two games out of first place. With his reputation as a “Yankee Killer” secured, Babich got carried away with himself during DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.

            Hall of Famer Phil Rizzuto remembered the incident well. “Babich was another Sal Maglie,” he told biographer Maury Allen. “He would knock his mother down. He really threw hard and could intimidate a hitter. He announced in the papers three or four days before we played the A’s that he would personally stop the streak. He was going to get Joe out the first time and then walk him the next three times.”

            The media really played up the story and, according to Rizzuto, DiMaggio was quite upset when he read what Babich had said. The anticipated showdown took place on June 28 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia with close to 14,000 fans in attendance—well above average for the A’s that season. In the first inning, Joe D. came to the plate with a pair of runners aboard. He worked the count to 3-1 before popping out to shortstop Al Brancato. Phase I of Babich’s plan was complete. Now all he had to do was keep the ball out of the strike zone in DiMaggio’s next few at-bats. 

            The Yankee icon returned to the plate as a lead-off hitter in the third inning. By then, the Bombers had built a 3-0 lead. Babich’s first two offerings were way outside, but DiMaggio lunged for the second one, driving it straight through the pitcher’s legs. One writer remarked, “If Joe had hit the ball a few inches higher, Babich would have been a hurling soprano.” Fueled by all the hype, DiMaggio was not content to settle for a mere single. He went tearing around first base without hesitation and slid safely into second. “The whole bench stood up and cheered Joe and laughed at Babich and called him some pretty good names,” Rizzuto recalled. DiMaggio later remarked that the hurler appeared mortified.   

            After absorbing a 7-4 loss on June 28, Babich logged another dreadful outing against the Yankees a week later, allowing six earned runs in one inning of work. DiMaggio tagged him for a single, extending the hitting streak even further. It would prove to be Babich’s last season in the big leagues as he posted a 2-7 record with a stratospheric 6.09 ERA. He continued pitching in the minors through the 1945 campaign and later spent two seasons as a manager, leading the Stockton Ports of the California League to a championship in 1947.               

EXCERPTS FROM TALES OF THE YANKEE CLIPPER (PART II) MR. GORDON, MEET MR. DIMAGGIO

 

            

            During DiMaggio’s controversial 1938 holdout, he made an arrangement with San Francisco owner Charley Graham to take batting practice with the Seals so he could stay sharp while discussions with the Yankees continued. During one round of BP, DiMaggio was hammering every pitch that left-hander Jimmy Rego delivered. Worried that manager Lefty O’Doul might cut him from the squad, Rego stopped grooving pitches to the Yankee slugger and started using his best stuff. “Jesus, I was throwing hard and shoving the bat right up his ass,” the hurler later recalled. DiMaggio—perhaps feeling the pressure of his ongoing contract dispute—got so frustrated, he threw his bat out toward the mound before stalking off the field.      

            With the country still in the throes of the Great Depression, DiMaggio knew that he was jeopardizing his reputation by turning down a salary that most Americans could only dream about. Worse yet, the Yankees were protected by baseball’s reserve clause, which essentially stated that players were property of the teams they had signed with until owners decided to trade or release them. Realizing the gravity of the situation, DiMaggio ultimately decided that the risk of holding out any longer was too great and accepted what the Yankees were offering.

            The Yankee Clipper’s return to baseball was quite eventful. He entered his first regular season game on April 30 in Washington. With two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Taffy Wright of the Senators hit a blooper behind second base. DiMaggio raced in from center field. Myril Hoag came motoring in from right field. Rookie Joe Gordon—who had been called up from the championship Newark squad—ventured far beyond the infield in hot pursuit. All three players converged on the ball. At the last minute, Hoag made the grab and somehow managed to avoid crashing into his teammates. But the 6-foot-2, 200 pound DiMaggio collided with the smaller Gordon, who stood 5-10 and weighed around 180. DiMaggio sustained a minor bruise on his head and remained in the game. Gordon, on the other hand, was carted off the field on a stretcher. He was out of action for a month.

            Recounting the incident, DiMaggio later wrote, “Considering that this was my first game since I had come to terms with the Yankees, that I was booed for the first time in my life by fans and that I knocked out our new second sacker halfway through the game, it might be said that I broke in with a bang!” 

            Playing beside the Yankee Clipper could definitely be hazardous at times. In July of 1936, DiMaggio ran into Hoag at full speed while chasing a ball hit by Hall of Famer Goose Goslin. Though both outfielders initially appeared to have escaped serious injury, Hoag was found unconscious in his hotel room two days later. Holes were drilled in his head to relieve inter-cranial pressure and doctors believed that he would never play ball again. But in an unexpected turn of events, he successfully rehabbed, returning to the Yankee lineup in April of 1937. He continued to play in the majors through 1945, finishing his career with the Cleveland Indians.

            Gordon and Hoag were not the only men to incur serious injuries while playing alongside Joe D. In Mickey Mantle’s rookie year, he shredded his knee while stopping abruptly to avoid a collision with DiMaggio. Multiple players reported that Joe had a quiet voice that could not always be clearly heard when he called for a ball.