Poking around at some Library of Congress photos, I encountered the photograph below. In it, we see Vince DiMaggio sliding into home as George Stovall signals “safe.” The picture was taken in February 1943, during the off-season when DiMaggio had worked in the California Shipbuilding Corporation shipyards since the previous fall. George Stovall was a former Cleveland Indians manager and had been working in the shipyards as a checker for over a year at the time of this photo. I’m curious as to where the rest of the playing field is, in relation to the action in this picture — it’s difficult to discern. Nevertheless, I do enjoy what this photo represents: a culture in which a love for baseball runs so deep that these men take advantage of every moment they can to indulge in a quick pick-up game.
Library of Congress
