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Later this month, the
Baseball Hall of Fame will open an exhibit honoring one of
the most fascinating individuals ever to don Carmine Hose.
Moe Berg, who played five seasons for the Red Sox (1935-1939), did not have a particularly stellar baseball career. In fact, the 6'1", 185-pound catcher hit .262 for Boston over 148 total games. But it was his extra-curricular work that is putting him in the Hall. After graduating from Princeton and Columbia, Berg worked as a spy for various US agencies—like the precursor to the CIA (the Office of Strategic Services). In the days before Pearl Harbor, Berg (on a baseball barnstorming tour of Japan), took surveillance photos of military installations in Tokyo. And, most notoriously, he was assigned to assassinate German scientist
Werner Heisenberg—if it appeared that he was on the verge of developing a Nazi A-Bomb. As it turned out, that "hit" was not necessary. But Moe was ready to do the deed for his country. So, if you're in Cooperstown later this Summer, check out Moe's exhibit—a
true Red Sox hero.
