Bert Shepard

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Robert "Bert" Earl Shepard (born June 28, 1920 in Dana, Indiana) was a baseball pitcher who had his right leg amputated after his fighter plane was shot down in Germany during World War II. He went on to pitch in one major league game for the Washington Senators in 1945.

The 5"11", 185 lb. left-hander taught himself to walk and then to pitch with an artificial leg while confined in a German POW camp. In 1945 Shepard was back in the United States and wanted to resume his pitching career. During spring training he impressed Senators owner Clark Griffith enough to offer him a job as a pitching coach.

On August 4, 1945 Shepard got the call to enter the 4th inning of a home game in which the Senators were well-behind the Boston Red Sox. It was game 2 of the fourth consecutive doubleheader that Washington was playing in, with a fifth scheduled the next day, as well. Shepard made headlines, not only for being in the game itself, but also with 5.1 innings of impressive relief, allowing only three hits and one run. The final score was Red Sox 15, Senators 4.

In between games of a doubleheader on August 31, 1945 Shepard received the Distinguished Flying Cross for his service in WWII. He later went on to be a player/manager in the minors until 1954. He was a key participant on the National Amps baseball teams of former servicemen with amputations secondary to war injuries. After retiring from baseball, Shepard worked for IBM and Hughes Aircraft as a safety engineer.

[edit] Trivia

• The game of August 4, 1945 was notable for two other events as well. Shepard came in to relieve teammate Joe Cleary, who would be the last native of Ireland to pitch in a major league game. Also, outfielder Tom McBride tied a major league record with 6 RBI in the 4th inning.

[edit] Further reading

• Richard Tellis: Once Around The Bases, Triumph Books, Chicago, 1998, pp. 107-120.

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Baseball Library - biography & photograph
• Baseball Library - Once Around the Bases
• Baseball Guru - Bert Shepard and the Missing Foot