Interview with Willard W. Marshall, September 13, 1985

Partial Transcript: Mr. Marshall--(clears throat)--your crea-- career began in professional baseball in 1940.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about playing for the Atlanta Crackers, his signing with the team, and his college career before he signed.

Keywords: Connie Ryan; Earl Mann; Errors; Fathers; Fielding; Lester Burge; Mathematics; Mothers; Nashville (Tenn.); Parents; Scouts; Southern League; Wake Forest University; Willie Duke

Subjects: Atlanta Crackers (Baseball team).; Baseball; Baseball players; Basketball; Brooklyn Dodgers (Baseball Team); College students; Minor league baseball.

Partial Transcript: I signed with the Cardinals when I was about fifteen years old. Sixteen years old.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall states that he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals when he was sixteen. However, his father made the scout he signed with tear up the contract. He also talks about his military service during World War II.

Keywords: Contracts; Dan Topping; Eddie Dyer; Equipment; Florida; Inventory board; Military service; Money; Parents; Petersburg (Va.); Quartermasters; Running; Salaries; Signings; Spring training

Subjects: Baseball managers; Baseball players; Brooklyn Dodgers (Baseball Team); New York Giants (Baseball Team); Pearl Harbor (Hawaii); St. Louis Cardinals (Baseball Team); United States. Marine Corps; World War, 1939-1945

Partial Transcript: ...Who did you play with? And against?

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about playing baseball in Hawaii during his years in the marine corps.

Keywords: Camp Catlin; Dee Moore; Dick Wakefield; Nippy Jones

Subjects: Musial, Stan, 1920-; Pearl Harbor (Hawaii); Pesky, Johnny, 1919-2012.; St. Louis Cardinals (Baseball Team); United States. Army; United States. Marine Corps; World War, 1939-1945; Wounds and injuries.

Partial Transcript: And uh, uh, you came up to the Giants. Your manager was Mel Ott.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about some of the famous New York Giants players he played with when he first joined the team. He also discusses spring training the year he was discharged from the military, and his transition back into playing Major League baseball.

Keywords: Carl Hubbell; Double-headers; Exhibition games; Hank Leiber; Heroes; Managers; Mistakes; Nervousness; Pennants; Post-war era; Spring training; Starting lineups; Transitions

Subjects: Baseball managers; Baseball players; Baseball--Management; Major League Baseball (Organization); New York Giants (Baseball Team); Ott, Mel, 1909-1958; Richmond (Va.).

Partial Transcript: I know--(clears throat)--that uh, your parents followed your career very closely.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about his first few games playing for the Giants, and how his hitting a home run against the Dodgers made him a hero for a little while. He also shares his childhood preference for the Detroit Tigers, even though he was from Virginia.

Keywords: Baseball games; Baseball teams; Games; Home runs; Kirby Higbe; Newspapers; Parents; Spring training

Subjects: Baseball players.; Brooklyn Dodgers (Baseball Team); Detroit Tigers (Baseball Team); Major League Baseball (Organization); New York Giants (Baseball Team)

Partial Transcript: In, uh, in 1946, in spring training, and obviously you weren't there, Danny Gardella...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about the players who left the Major Leagues to play for the Mexican League. He also discusses his fellow Giants players during the 1946 season.

Keywords: Bill Wrigley (??); Buddy Blattner; Buddy Kerr; Cards; Children; Dave Koslo; Eddie Brannick; Ernie Lombardi; Friends; George Hausmann; Goody Rosen; Hitters; Johnny Mize; Larry Jansen; Line drives; Mexican League; Mexico; Monty Kennedy; Movies; Personality; Ping-pong; Running; Shirts; Sid Gordon; Table tennis; Talent; Throwing; Tommy Byrne; Walker Cooper

Subjects: Baseball players; Gardella, Daniel L.; Liga Mexicana de Beisbol Profesional; Maglie, Sal, 1917-; Major League Baseball (Organization); New York Giants (Baseball Team); Pitchers (Baseball)

Partial Transcript: 1947, the following year was probably the best year you, as you indicated earlier...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall discusses the treatment of rookie players such as Bobby Thomson by other Giants players in the late 1940s. He also talks about playing in the outfield.

Keywords: Baseball games; Baseball teams; Bill Rigney; Buddy Kerr; Dave Koslo; Hitting; Home runs; Johnny Mize; Personality; Rookies; Running; Sid Gordon; Team records; Throwing; Walker Cooper

Subjects: Baseball players; Chicago Cubs (Baseball Team); Major League Baseball (Organization); National League (Major League Baseball); New York Giants (Baseball Team); Ott, Mel, 1909-1958; Outfielders (Baseball); Rookie baseball players; Thomson, Bobby, 1923-2010

Partial Transcript: Being from, from, from the upper South, um, I don't know how much you had an opportunity to travel...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about adjusting to living in New York City as a Southerner, and tells how he coped with the changes. He also talks about the few endorsements he did as a player, and states that endorsements in general were much less prevalent at that time.

Keywords: Atlanta (Ga.); Cameras; Charlie Glock; Chesterfield; Deer; Endorsements; Friends; Golf clubs; Hunting; Introversion; Media; Media coverage; NYC; New Jersey; Off-seasons; Quail; Smoking; Sportswriters; Spring training; Tobacco factories; Trap shooting; Traveling

Subjects: Baseball players; New York (N.Y.); Richmond (Va.).

Partial Transcript: Were you aware of some of the issues that were going on at the time, and I'm talking in terms of things like, uh...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall discusses teams such as the Pittsburgh Pirates, who considered unionizing. He states that there were people trying to persuade his team to unionize as well. He also talks briefly about the player pension plan.

Keywords: Baseball teams; Bill Rigney; Minimum salaries; Money; Pension plans; Player pension plan; Player representatives; Reserve clauses; Robert Murphy; Salaries; Unionizing; Unions

Subjects: Chandler, Happy, 1898-1991; New York Giants (Baseball Team); Pensions.; Pittsburgh (Pa.).; Pittsburgh Pirates (Baseball team); Strikes and lockouts

Partial Transcript: Did you as--(clears throat)--as, as, as players, um, have any feeling that, that, uh, he was for you, against you...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks briefly about Happy Chandler and his being an advocate for the players, even though he was hired by the owners. He also talks about Jackie Robinson's breaking the "color line", his own feelings on the subject, and some of black players he played with as a member of the New York Giants.

Keywords: "Color line"; Abuse; Adversity; Baseball bats; Cab drivers; Hank Thompson; Hearts (card game); Hotels; Integration; Racism; Restaurants; Taxi drivers; Travel; Traveling; Virginia

Subjects: African American baseball players; Baseball commissioners; Baseball players; Baseball team owners; Chandler, Happy, 1898-1991; Irvin, Monte, 1919-; New York Giants (Baseball Team); Paige, Satchel, 1906-1982; Richmond (Va.); Robinson, Jackie, 1919-1972; Segregation

Partial Transcript: In uh, July of 1948, uh, Mel Ott was replaced...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about Mel Ott's being replaced by Leo Durocher as manager of the Giants in 1948. He describes Durocher's personality and tells how his preference for certain types of baseball players led to his (Marshall's) being traded to another team.

Keywords: "Thundering herd"; Arrogance; Baseball trades; Johnny Mize; Pennants; Personality; Player trades; Running; Sid Gordon; Trades; Walker Cooper

Subjects: Baseball managers; Baseball players; Baseball--Management; Durocher, Leo, 1906-1991.; New York Giants (Baseball Team); Ott, Mel, 1909-1958; Stanky, Eddie, 1916-1999.; Thomson, Bobby, 1923-2010

Partial Transcript: When he came to the Giants also, he ran afoul of the commissioner, uh, over Freddie Fitzsimmons...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall discusses how Leo Durocher got into trouble with Commissioner Chandler several times, though he states that he was not privy to many of the details. He also describes more Giants baseball players whom he knew when he was a player.

Keywords: "Lucky" Lohrke; Baseball fans; Clint Horton (??); Fans; First basemen; Freddie Fitzsimmons; Hitting; Infields; Jack Lohrke; Johnny Mize; Publicity; Roommates; Runners; Running; Sheldon Jones; Wes Western (??); Whitey Lockman

Subjects: Baseball coaches; Baseball players; Chandler, Happy, 1898-1991; Durocher, Leo, 1906-1991.; Hegan, Jim; New York Giants (Baseball Team); Outfielders (Baseball); Pitchers (Baseball); Wounds and injuries.

Partial Transcript: You mentioned that, uh, of course that you got traded.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall discusses his being traded to the Boston Braves. He also talks about Lou Perini, who was the owner of his new team, and the effect that the move had on his family.

Keywords: Alvin Dark; Baseball trades; Boston (Mass.); Children; Contractors; Horace Stoneham; Infields; Lou Perini; Marriage; Player trades; Salaries; Wives

Subjects: Baseball players; Baseball team owners; Boston Braves (Baseball Team); New York Giants (Baseball Team); Stanky, Eddie, 1916-1999.

Partial Transcript: Let me go over, um, a little bit of, of, you know, some of the players that you played with in Boston.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall describes his fellow players at the time that he was playing for the Boston Braves.

Keywords: Billy Southworth; Bob Elliott; Buddy Kerr; Buster Mills; Change ups; Cubans; Earl Torgeson; Families; Fielders; Friends; Hitters; Introverts; Johnny Sain; Managers; Pennants; Personality; Roommates; Roy Hartsfield; Sam Jethroe; Sid Gordon; Sporting News Register; Stealing bases; Talent; Tommy Holmes; Warren Spahn

Subjects: Baseball managers; Baseball players; Baseball--Management; Boston Braves (Baseball Team); Olmo, Luis, 1919-; Pitchers (Baseball); Wounds and injuries.

Partial Transcript: This really was the first time that you'd played on a team that had a couple really good starters.

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks about some of the best baseball players he played with and against, in his opinion. He mentions Stan Musial and Jackie Robinson in particular.

Keywords: Baseball uniforms; Clothes; Exhibition games; Flannel; Johnny Mize; Spring training; Starters; Trains; Traveling; Uniforms; Vern Bickford

Subjects: Baseball players; Baseball umpires.; Cleveland Indians (Baseball Team); Feller, Bob, 1918-2010; Musial, Stan, 1920-; New York Giants (Baseball Team); Robinson, Jackie, 1919-1972; Williams, Ted, 1918-2002

Partial Transcript: What, um, well, in '51, um, and again this goes back to your fielding skills, you became the only, or at least the second outfielder...

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall talks briefly about a season in which he made no errors. Errors are defined as instances when the fielder misplays the ball in a way that could have been prevented by normal effort. He also discusses some of the ways that baseball has changed since his time, and shares why he no longer watches baseball.

Keywords: 1951 baseball season; Artificial turf; Astroturf; Barnstorming; Baseball errors; Baseball fields; Baseball trades; College; Errors; Experience; Hearts (card game); High school; Poker; Talent; Third basemen; Trading; Training; Trains; Travel

Subjects: American League (Major League Baseball); Baseball players; Major League Baseball (Organization); Marshall, Willard W.; Minor league baseball.; New York Mets (Baseball team).; New York Yankees (Baseball Team); Synthetic sporting surfaces.

Partial Transcript: How do you feel about free agency?

Segment Synopsis: Willard Marshall gives his views on the modern (1985) free agency of baseball players. He discusses the player pension plan and the effect that it has had on him as a retired player. The interview is concluded.

Keywords: Age; Athletes; Early Wynn; Free agency; Money; Pension plans; Player pension plan; Salaries

Subjects: Baseball; Baseball players; Baseball team owners; Major League Baseball (Organization); Pensions.; Pitchers (Baseball)