FIELD OF DREAMS

Can we just go back for a minute? It’s easy to do during these difficult times. I want to transport you to a time when country stores were only a mile or two apart and seasoned burley farmers sat out on the front porch of Neas’ store in St. James, or they moseyed on down to Browning’s store on Cedar Creek. The main topics of discussion in 1919 amongst the wise sages of store benches were tobacco, the Nineteenth Amendment, cattle, World War One, Spanish Flu, horseshoes and baseball. Baseball brought everyone together during this time and took precedent when brought up in conversation. One name that came up frequently brought a smile to everyone’s face and a “yes sir he’s got it alright” when it came to the diamond. So, go get a fresh pack of sunflower seeds or peanuts and a bottle of pop because there is a runner on third with two outs and David Dale Alexander just stepped into the batter’s box.

Dale was born on April 26, 1903, to Don and Alice Alexander on a beautiful farm in Greene County that had been in the family since the seventeen-hundreds. Don taught his children hard work in the tobacco fields, and he also encouraged a love for the game of baseball- Don was an excellent catcher in the Appalachian League (Nowlin). Although Dale turned out to be a gifted baseball player, he was also a standout athlete in basketball and football where he lettered in both at Milligan College. In 1924, Dale Alexander stood at six feet and three inches tall and weighed in at 215 pounds of nothing but farm strength, muscle, and pure athleticism. His toughness and huge stature earned him the nickname “Moose,” and he would become the dread of pitchers across North America. Though it would be hard to tell it by looking at him because he had a very thin frame and exceptionally long arms, he could absolutely knock the cover off a baseball.

In that same year, Dale would play his first professional baseball game with the Appalachian League, then to South Atlantic League in Charlotte, he then went to Toronto to play in the International League. It was in Toronto where he was scouted by the Detroit Tigers in 1929. Alexander had made it to the majors, and he would leave no doubt that Greene County was in the house by leading all the other rookies that year by a wide margin- there was no title for Rookie of the Year in 1929, but if there was one he would have won it (Nowlin). He had 215 base hits, which led the league, and was ranked fifth with 25 homeruns, and 137 RBI’s- no one had achieved that feat since “Shoeless” Joe Jackson in 1911 nor would it be done again until Ted Williams in 1937.

In midseason of 1932, Detroit decided to trade Moose to the Boston Red Sox. Detroit, it seems to me, was trying to limit Dale, only giving him 23 games and was becoming extremely critical of his fielding performance on first base. I LOVE THIS PART OF THE STORY. When Moose was traded to the Red Sox, he found his zone. His work ethic and his practice of only going after a “good ball,” had him with a .367 batting average at the end of the 1932 season. This average won him the title “American League Batting Champion.” Also, his fielding performance at first base caught the attention of sports writers across the nation, including the Los Angeles Times that noted him as “one of the best in his line” (Nowlin). It is worth noting here that Alexander achieved his notoriety on the worst team in the American League, arguably the worst in the history of the Red Sox franchise with a winning percentage of .267.

Moose’s star was rising fast and he caught the attention of the Yankee’s franchise player Babe Ruth who was, in 1933, in his twentieth season and was still bombing the stiches with 33 dingers that year. The Babe is quoted saying “he sure bruises the ball” in the New York Times article (The Nimrod of the Nolichuckey). He hit the ball hard, really hard, and what’s very special about Alexander’s stroke is that he usually hit the ball in the opposite direction. He was right-handed and he was the panic button for any second, first basemen, or right fielder. The New York Times reporter in 1933 claimed “an infielder is in danger of having an arm or leg carried away when Dale rifles one in his direction.”

It was in the 1933 season on May 29, Memorial Day, that Mr. Alexander’s fortunes would turn for the worse. While sliding into home, he would gravely injure his leg. Upon his injury, the Red Sox trainer used a new form of treatment called diathermy- this involves sending high volts of electric currents into the treated area. Since the treatment was “new,” the trainer had little to no idea what he was doing and ended up giving Dale third degree burns on his leg. The injuries were so severe that they set up gangrene and Moose nearly lost his leg. Dale’s time in the major leagues had came to an end, but once again, he will overcome adversity.

David Dale Alexander continued to thrive in baseball even after almost losing his leg. He stacked up titles and winning percentages in the minors over the next decade and went on to scout for Major League teams through the nineteen-seventies. He never complained about his injury, not once. He never blamed anyone or whined about it. You see, Dale’s dream wasn’t about him, it was about baseball. It was about the continuation of this pastime where young men bonded with each other on a level that few people understand. Where fathers bonded with their sons and taught them how baseball could teach them a lot about life. Dale’s dream and legacy was on the field, in the game, and that celebrated culmination when the crack of the bat sends everyone into action.

Greeneville, Tennessee was his home and that is where he rests today at Shiloh Presbyterian in Tusculum. Greeneville is also where his name resides on the press-box of a field, a field that is named in his honor. I have watched so many outstanding young men achieve greatness here and I have watched them overcome obstacles when the chips were down. Yes, if Dale Alexander were here with us today, I have no doubt he would be in the stands with us cheering on the Greene Devils as they play on their own field of dreams.

Sabr.org. 2020. Dale Alexander | Society For American Baseball Research. [online] Available at: <https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/5568e9fe> [Accessed 30 April 2020]. Bill Nowlin

Kieran, John “Nimrod of the Nolichucky” New York Times. 15 April 1933 pg.18