United States Navy Baseball
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please discuss this issue on the talk page or replace this tag with a more specific message. This article has been tagged since June 2006. |
The United States Navy Baseball program is based in San Diego, California. The team consists of active duty and reserve personnel from around the world. They compete in the Southern Division of the Western Baseball Association. The team originated in Pensacola, Florida before moving to San Diego for the 1993 season.
Contents |
[edit] Mission
To Promote the Awareness of Americans in Support of the Honorable Sacrifices our Armed Forces make at the tip of the spear.
[edit] History
The origin of United States armed forces baseball has been traced as far back as the American Civil War (1860-1865). For over a century, military baseball has been utilized as a successful tool to improve recruiting efforts and the morale of both the armed services and the American people.
Following World War I, major league stars such as Ty Cobb and Christy Mathewson served their country while playing on teams overseas and at home. Military baseball reached its peak of popularity during World War II (1941-1945) as baseball legends Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Hank Greenberg and Bob Feller headed the list of major league professionals playing on service teams. Military baseball also served as a conduit to post-war reconstruction efforts and international relations most notably in Japan.
Military baseball support was extremely limited in scope during the Korean War (1950-1952) and finally, the Vietnam War (1965-1974), when politicians began the systematic dismantling of our military infrastructure and force strength. Baseball was slowly phased out and went dormant along with the decline of our armed forces.
[edit] Modern Era
In 1990, the United States experienced a renaissance of organized military baseball in the “Modern Era”. Determined re-organization efforts began after a U.S. Navy program was founded in Pensacola, Florida. That initial Navy program launched nearly two decades ago, led to establishing the growth of successful teams in all the armed forces around the world.
With tensions in the Middle East and the current war in Iraq, the Global War on Terrorism continues to be a factor in lives of Americans each day. As a way to capture the same spirit during World War II a historic effort led by the Navy team provided a unique and patriotic arena for Americans to support their armed forces at home and abroad.
Today, [U.S. Navy Baseball] is the largest, fastest growing and most successful organized military program in the world. Over 20,000 active duty and reserve personnel have participated in the program since 1990. In 2003, an episode of the CBS television show “JAG” was based on the programs annual Navy-Marine Corps All-Star Game featuring 2002 Cy Young award winner and Oakland Athletics pitcher Barry Zito.
[edit] Navy-Marine All-Star Game
The Navy-Marine All-Star Game is played each summer immediately following a San Diego Padres contest and dedicated to Pearl Harbor survivor Commander Lawrence S. Jackman, U.S. Navy. The most valuable player award is dedicated to Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Wayne Kidd, USMC, who was killed in the line of duty while stationed at Camp Pendleton in March of 1996.
[edit] Red, White and Blue Tour
In 2005, the program coordinated the first-ever combined military baseball team representing all the armed forces and the United States Coast Guard to create the most talented military baseball team in the world. The U.S. Military All-Stars were the first “joint” military team in history to represent the armed forces during the historic "Red, White and Blue Tour of New England” competing against the Cape Cod and New England Collegiate Baseball Leagues recognized as the top NCAA sanctioned summer collegiate organizations in the country.
