This thread could have several names, but baseball was formerly a low paying seasonal job for most professional ballplayers. Spring training actually involved physical training to get back into shape after a winter of alternative and frequently non-athletic employment. You don't have to look at too many Topps cards of the 50s before finding a line like
"Art sells used cars in the offseason."
Many of our vintage friends have nicknames such as "Doc" that usual mean they were either a trained doctor or dentist outside of baseball.
We all recognize that careers were interrupted by military service as well, but that is
not what I'm looking for here either.
Careers after baseball are also
not what I am looking for, such as Joe D selling coffee pots for Mr. Coffee. So no celebrity endorsements please.
Moe Berg's early career with Brooklyn was impacted by his desire to finish law school in the spring each year. Ultimately this led to his career in espionage after his playing days. This is more in line with my concept.
I could start a list, but will not do so now. Just name a vintage player or two and what their
real jobs were
during their career, when not playing baseball.
The more unusual the job the better. The guidelines above will not be strictly enforced. A list in this post may be forthcoming, but I doubt it. Lets just let this one go where it wants to go. I'll bet everyone will be surprised by some of the posts, if there are any.
