After a tremendous 16 year career with the Dodgers, The Little Colonel Harold Pee Wee Reese was handed his unconditional release on December 30, 1958. Besides his athletic ability he is famous for his on the field support of his teammate Jackie Robinson, especially in Robinsons difficult first years. He broke into the big leagues in 1940 as a back-up shortstop, and in 84 games had a very respectable .272 rookie batting average. The ten time all-star was fortunate to be a part of two World Championships (1955 as a player and 1959 as a coach). Like many players of his era, he missed three seasons due to military service. Reese enlisted in the United States Navy in 1943. While Pee Wee was in the service, the Dodgers languished, finishing no better than third place and as poorly as 42 games out (in seventh place) in 1943. Upon his return in 1946, Reese immediately righted the ship as the Dodgers battled the St. Louis Cardinals in a tight pennant race. Due to his leadership, and being one of the most popular players with both his teammates and the fans, he was the Dodgers team captain, and he, not manager Walter Alston, brought out the line-up card at the start of every game. Following his retirement from baseball, Reese enjoyed considerable success as a play-by-play announcer on network television. He called games for the Game of the Week on CBS from 1960 to 1965 (with Dizzy Dean) and for NBC from 1966 to 1968 (with Curt Gowdy). For many years, Reese was also employed at Hillerich & Bradsby, makers of Louisville Slugger baseball bats. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1984.
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 07:26:10 +0000