Baseball in Wartime - Bill Hansen

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Those Who Died That Others Might Be Free

Bill Hansen

Date and Place of Birth: 1921 Chicago, Illinois
Date and Place of Death: January 1945 Belgium
Baseball Experience: Minor League
Position: Outfield
Rank: Sergeant
Military Unit: Third Army US Army
Area Served: European Theater of Operations

Bill Hansen of Chicago's West Side William F. Hansen - a native of Chicago's West side - signed with the Greenville Lions of the Class D Alabama State League in 1941, and was batting .339 with seven home runs in 55 games with the lastplace club, when he was assigned to the Fort Pierce Bombers of the Class D Florida East Coast League. The Bombers were vying for a position in the league playoffs and Hansen, an outfielder, batted .276 in 53 games to help them finish in third place. Unfortunately, the Bombers were defeated in the first round of the playoffs by the Miami Beach Flamingos.

In 1942, Hansen batted an eye-catching .393 after 16 games with the Bombers, and joined the Statesville Owls of the Class D North Carolina State League. His stay there, however, was short-lived and he spent the majority of the season with the Green Bay Bluejays of the Class D Wisconsin State League. Hansen batted .310 in 88 games and led the team with 72 walks and 17 stolen bases. The Bluejays finished just one-half game behind the pennant-winning Sheboygan Indians, and beat the Appleton Papermakers, three games to two, in the first round of the playoffs, before being defeated by Sheboygan in the finals.

Hansen’s contract was purchased by the Milwaukee Brewers of the Class AA American Association at the end of the season, and a bright future seemed to be ahead for the 22-year-old, but he was inducted into the Army on September 3, 1942. Sergeant Hansen served with General Patton's Army in Europe. In January 1945, having been overseas for just one month, he died of wounds received in combat in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge.

In 1948, Hansen's body was returned to Chicago. Following services at the Moeller and Halleman Chapel he was buried at the Waldheim Cemetery.

Year	Team	League	Class	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
1941	Greenville	Alabama State	D	55	254	51	86	16	3	7	58	.339
1941	Fort Pierce	Florida E. Coast	D	53	196	28	54	7	4	1	24	.276
1942	Fort Pierce	Florida E. Coast	D	16	61	14	24	3	2	0	10	.393
1942	Statesville	N. Carolina State	D	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
1942	Green Bay	Wisconsin State	D	88	319	90	99	30	7	7	57	.310

Thanks to Davis O. Barker for help with this biography.

Added September 19, 2006. Updated February 28, 2011.

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