Ernie Johnson, 87, Braves pitcher, announcer and World War II veteran

Earlier this evening, it was reported during the Atlanta Braves telecast that their legendary announcer Ernie Johnson Sr. died Friday after spending time in hospice care. He was 87.

One of the friendliest voices in baseball, Johnson spent over 50 years with the organization as a player, executive, and broadcaster. Johnson was one of a handful of players who were left from the Braves’ playing days in Boston. After getting a cup of coffee in 1950, his 15-4 record at AAA Milwaukee the next season paved the way for his full-time role with the Braves pitching staff in 1952.

Ernie Johnson / Topps

Johnson was a key factor in the Braves 1957 World Series victory over the New York Yankees, pitching effectively in relief for three games. He stayed with the Braves through the end of the 1958 season, playing one more year for the Baltimore Orioles after being released.

In 2008, I had the opportunity to interview Johnson via a telephone call from his home in Cummings, Georgia. He spoke with an unparalleled level of clarity and familiarity about his experiences in baseball and his service in World War II.

For a rookie like me, it was like speaking to a sage of baseball, but he held no pretenses about himself. His voice was as inviting as I remembered it from the countless evenings I watched the Braves on TBS.

As the number of living major league players who served in World War II continues to dwindle, Johnson’s experiences serving his country speak highly to his character. He happily shared his journey during his time in the military.

Signed in 1942 by the Boston Braves, Johnson pitched briefly at Class A Hartford before entering World War II. Johnson spent three years in the Marines, seeing action in Japan during the Okinawa invasion. Unlike some ballplayers who did not want to go overseas, Johnson saw the call of duty as his opportunity to help lead the country to victory.

“I could have stayed in this country," Johnson said. "The captain called me in the office and asked me if I wanted to play baseball here. The captain told me, ‘We'll keep you from going overseas, and you can play for the base team.'"

Mulling over the decision of whether to stay or leave, Johnson decided to go to Japan. He just could not desert the troops he trained with for so long.

“I don't want to sound gung-ho, but I got through spending a year or two with these guys and we were prepped and ready to go overseas," he said. "I just thought to myself, ‘I didn't want to play baseball; I joined to help win the war. I'm gonna stick with these guys.’ We went overseas, and I was in the Okinawa invasion.”

He returned for the 1946 season suiting up with Class B Pawtucket. Luckily for Johnson, his best years were ahead of him; however, others returning from service weren’t as fortunate.

“I didn't take me too long to get ready," he said. "I was young in the service. I missed three years and I was still only 21, 22. I got back in shape pretty fast. I felt sorry for guys that went in when they were 25, 26, and now they're 28 and you could see they lost it. They would say, ‘I can't do it anymore.’ The guys I was with in Pawtucket, they couldn't play like they used to and they didn't last very long. It was sad, they missed three to four years and it really affected their careers.” 

As a pitcher, he felt that he had an easier road back from World War II than a position player. He felt it was a lot easier to recover your arm strength than it was your overall feel for the game in the batter's box.

“Pitchers are more apt to not lose it," he said. "They get back in shape and on the mound, it's not different. [The] hardest thing is hitting; you lose your timing and your bat speed, and that's when you lose your career.” 

Fortunately for baseball, Johnson’s career blossomed after his service and led him into our homes for many years as the unmistakable voice of the Atlanta Braves. The legacy he left behind from his entire career as a baseball player, father, broadcaster, and veteran has left an indelible mark on everyone that was able to know him.

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Wes Covington | 1957 World Series hero dies at 79

Wes Covington, the upstart who helped spark the Milwaukee Braves to victory in the 1957 World Series, died of cancer in Edmonton, Alberta, on Monday. He was 79.

Wes Covington

Born March 27, 1932 in Laurinburg, N.C., John Wesley Covington was signed by the Boston Braves in 1952. He was sent to their farm club in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where he roomed with a skinny 18-year-old from Alabama, Hank Aaron.

Covington led the team in home runs that season and according to Aaron in his autobiography, "I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story", Covington was thought to be the bigger power threat.

"If people had known that one of our players would someday be the all-time, major-league home run leader, everybody would have assumed that Covington would be the guy," Aaron said.

Early on, Covington did show his prowess at the plate, hitting 21 and 24 homers respectively in 1957 and 1958, but his subsequent lack of defensive abilities kept him from being a full-time player. In 11 seasons, Covington belted 131 homers while playing for six different teams.

Al Spangler, who played 13 seasons in the majors, was a teammate of Covington's in 1955 with Jacksonville and then again with the Braves from 1959-1961. Spangler noted Covington's strengths tipping towards his work at the plate.

"Overall, he was a great player," Spangler said via a phone interview from his Texas home. "He didn't like to play defense, but he was a great hitter. When we played together in 1960, he played left field and I would go in the later innings and replace him for defensive purposes."

Surprisingly, Covington is famous for plays he made on defense during the 1957 World Series. His two stellar catches in left field helped to preserve victories for the Braves. In Game 2, he made a nearly impossible grab off of a drive from Bobby Shantz’s bat and in Game 5, he robbed Gil McDougald of a homer after crashing into the fence to make the catch. To his former teammates though, Covington will be best remembered for his kindness. Earl Hersh, who played with Covington in the majors with Milwaukee and the minors with Wichita, had nothing but superlatives for the fallen outfielder.

"He was to me, a first class guy," said the 79-year-old Hersh from his Pennsylvania residence. "Everything was good that I knew about him. He was a nice person and a good ballplayer. I found him fun to be around; just a good time guy."

Bobby Malkmus, who also played with Covington in Jacksonville before teaming up on the Braves, said in a phone interview from his New Jersey home that Covington remained a loyal teammate despite the racial barriers which existed during the time.

"He was a tremendous guy, easy to get along with," Malkmus said. "We got along really well. He was a good ballplayer and a good friend. [There was] no black and white situation with him; he was just a good teammate, kind of a jolly person."

Covington, like many black players during the 1950s faced the challenges of Jim Crow segregation while traveling. Spangler recalled some of the difficulties that Covington and the other black players faced on the Jacksonville team in 1955.

“We had Wes and another African-American, Horace Garner," Spangler recalled. "They couldn't even get off the bus to go in and have lunch when we were traveling. When we arrived at a town, we never saw them again until game time.”

Malkmus, who played with Spangler and Covington in 1955, was saddened by the hardships faced by his recently deceased teammate.

“They had to stay with black families on the road," Malkmus said. "They didn't eat with us on the road. If we stopped to get something to eat, they either had to eat in the kitchen or we had to bring them food out to the bus. It was terrible.”

Malkmus was raised in the diverse city of Newark, New Jersey, which made sympathetic to the plight of his African-American teammates like Covington. He recalled the difficulties they faced in Southern cities. 

“I was born and raised in Newark amongst the blacks and got along with them really well," he said. "My experience with the South was brutal as far as blacks and whites were concerned. They didn't treat the blacks well. We used to shower and play with them, but we couldn't live with them.”

Upon finishing his baseball career with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1966, Covington moved to Western Canada and operated a sporting goods business. He worked for the Edmonton Sun newspaper for 20 years as an advertising manager and then the Edmonton Trappers baseball club in a front office position. Covington rarely appeared in the States after moving to Canada except for the occasional Braves reunion or card show.

In 2003, Covington returned to Milwaukee after an almost 40-year absence. When asked why he had removed himself so far from the town where he built his baseball legend, Covington revealed motives outside of the sport.

“It's nothing against the city or the great fans," Covington said. "I just had other things I wanted to do with my life. I didn't want to be a baseball bum, living in the past."

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