"Coleman's SBD"
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Description: Jerry Coleman is a former major league baseball player with the New York Yankees, a former Marine Corps pilot who flew 120 combat missions combined in WWII and Korea, and has been a major league baseball broadcaster since 1960! As of November 2011, Coleman is the oldest active play-by-play announcer.
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Playing career
Born in San Jose, CA, (September 14, 1924), Jerry spent his entire major league playing career with the New York Yankees. He played 6 years in their minor league system before reaching the big club in 1949. Coleman hit .275 in his first year and led all second basemen in fielding percentage en route to finishing 3rd in rookie of the year balloting.
Coleman avoided a sophomore jinx by earning a selection to the All-Star team in 1950. He then shined in the World Series with brilliant defense, earning him the Babe Ruth Award (present day MVP) as the series' most valuable player. He was nicknamed "The Colonel", having been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel while flying in two wars as a Marine aviator. He had postponed his entry into professional baseball in World War II and once again left baseball to serve in the Korean War.
While a Marine Corps aviator he flew 120 combat missions, receiving numerous honors and medals including two Distinguished Flying Crosses, and has been honored in recent years, including being inducted into the USMC Sports Hall of Fame for his call to duty. He is the only Major League Baseball player to have seen combat in two wars, though not the only player to serve as Marine aviator in two wars, a distinction he shares with Ted Williams. Williams, however, served in combat only in the Korean War, having served as a flight instructor during World War II.
Coleman's career declined after injuring himself the following season, relegating him to a bench role. He was forced to retire after the 1957 season, but he left on a good note, hitting .364 in a World Series loss against the Milwaukee Braves.
Marine Aviator Career
He arrived at Guadalcanal in August, 1944, and was assigned to VMSB-341, known as "The Torrid Turtles". He flew 57 combat missions, flying close air support with VMSB-341, the first squadron in the Marine Corps specifically designated to do, and flew missions in the Solomon Islands and the Philippines. In July, 1945, his squadron, along with other Marine Corps squadrons, were called back from the Pacific to form carrier-based squadrons in anticipation of the amphibious assault on Japan. With the sudden ending of the war in the Pacific, he remained at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina. In January, 1946 he was transferred to the inactive reserve list, and resumed his baseball career with the New York Yankees.
With the outbreak of the Korean War, Lt. Colonel Coleman was recalled to active duty, and was sent to Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro, California, for training in the Vought F4U Corsair. He was assigned to VMF-323, also known as the "Death Rattlers", and flew 63 combat missions in the F4U and AU1 Corsair. This included close air support and interdiction / strike missions. He was then assigned duties as a forward air controller (FAC). He was transferred back to the United States in August, 1953, and was again placed on the reserve list. Later that month, he was back playing second base for the New York Yankees. That same year, he joined the Marine Corps Reserve unit in New York, where he did promotional work for the Marine Corps until he retired as a Lt. Colonel in 1964. He served three years in World War II and two years in Korea, and he is the only major league player to see combat in two wars.
Lt. Colonel Coleman flew a total of 120 combat missions in World War II and the Korean War. He was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses, 13 Air Medals, and three Navy Citations.
Broadcasting career
In 1960, Coleman began a broadcasting career with CBS television, conducting pregame interviews on the network's Game of the Week broadcasts. In 1963 he began a seven-year run calling New York Yankees’ games on WCBS radio and WPIX television. Coleman's WPIX call of ex-teammate Mickey Mantle's 500th career home run in 1967 was brief and from the heart: "Here's the payoff pitch... This is IT! There it goes! It's out of here!"
After broadcasting for the California Angels for two years, in 1972 Coleman became lead radio announcer for the San Diego Padres, a position he has held every year since but 1980, when the Padres hired him to manage. He also called national regular-season and postseason broadcasts for CBS Radio from the mid-1970s to the 1990s.
Coleman is also famous for his pet phrases "Oh Doctor!", "You can hang a star on that baby!", "And the beat goes on", and "The natives are getting restless".
In 2005, he was given the Ford C. Frick Award of the National Baseball Hall of Fame for broadcasting excellence, and is one of four Frick award winners that also played in the Major Leagues (along with Joe Garagiola, Tony Kubek and Bob Uecker).
In the fall of 2007 Jerry was inducted to the National Radio Hall of Fame as a Sports Broadcaster for his years as the play-by-play voice of the San Diego Padres.
Coleman no longer handles play-by-play duties, leaving Ted Leitner and Andy Masur to cover most of the radio broadcasting efforts for each Padres game. He does, however, still work middle innings as a color analyst. As of the 2010 season he reduced his broadcast schedule down to 20-30 home day games. As of November 2011, Coleman is the oldest active play-by-play announcer.
"Stan Stokes" used with permission.
