Baseball Mail Call

I'm Dan Piazza, curator of the National Postal Museum exhibition, Baseball: America's Home Run on view until January 2025. Join me for an inside look at some of the most exciting objects from this blockbuster show that explores America's national pastime through stamps, mail, and memorabilia.

Military and diplomatic mail services maintain ties between overseas personnel and their home communities.

Particularly during the four years of American involvement in World War II each mail call during the baseball season brought longed-for news of how the home team was faring.

Servicemen also wrote long letters home describing games played in deserts, on aircraft carriers, and other exotic locales.

Let's take a closer look.

This 1945 letter between two U.S sailors describes a sort of fantasy baseball league played quote, somewhere in the Pacific at the end of World War II.

The writer expresses surprise that Washington, DC won the pennant.

In real life, the city's Senators Ball Club was so notoriously bad that it gave rise to the saying, first in war, first in peace, and last in the American League.

The Dayton, Ohio Journal Herald prepared this condensed V-mail version of its March 25th, 1943 newspaper for distribution to local service members overseas.

Among other stories, it contains details of the Cincinnati Reds' new season lineup but laments that the team quote, lacks punch.

This letter home from a sailor in the  Pacific describes watching future Hall of Famers Johnny Mize and Joe Dimaggio play baseball in Hawaii during September 1944.

Hundreds of major league players served in the U.S armed forces during both World Wars playing baseball to entertain and raise morale among the troops.

For more on the intersection of postal and baseball history, visit the National Postal Museum exhibition, Baseball: America's Home Run online at postalmuseum.si.edu/baseball