William Brooks Southworth (June 20, 1917 – February 15, 1945) was an American professional baseball player who became a decorated bomber pilot in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. He was the son of baseball player and manager Billy Southworth. While the two men had different middle names, the younger was commonly known as "Billy Southworth Jr."

Biography

Southworth was born in 1917 in Portland, Oregon. His father had played for the Portland Beavers of the

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...

during 1915 and 1916 as an outfielder. The younger Southworth grew up in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

. He graduated from East High School and attended Ohio State University. Also an outfielder, Southworth signed in early 1936 with the Asheville Tourists, for which his father was the manager; the team was a Minor League Baseball affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. Southworth played five seasons for farm teams of the Cardinals, Cleveland Indians, and

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

. Records of the era are incomplete, but he played in at least 467 minor-league games, including 102 games in 1939 with the

Rome Colonels The Rome Colonels was the primary moniker of minor league baseball teams based in Rome, New York between 1898 and 1951. Rome teams played as members of the New York State League (1898–1901), Empire State League (1905) and Canadian–American Lea ...

of the

Canadian–American League The Canadian–American League, nicknamed the Can-Am League, was a class C level minor league baseball circuit which ran from 1936 through 1951, with a three-year break during World War II. Teams *Amsterdam Rugmakers, 1938–1942, 1946–19 ...

. That season, he had a .342 batting average and was named the league's most valuable player. He reached the top minor-league level in 1940, appearing in 15 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs of the

International League The International League (IL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States. Along with the Pacific Coast League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball ...

. On December 12, 1940, almost a year before the Attack on Pearl Harbor, Southworth enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps, becoming one of the first American professional baseball player to enlist in the armed forces prior to World War II. Rising to the rank of

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

, Southworth was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal after completing 25 bombing missions in the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground For ...

in 1942 and 1943. In early 1945, he died at age 27 while leading flight training for the

Boeing B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 Fl ...

, when his aircraft crashed into Flushing Bay, off the

Borough of Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long Is ...

in New York City. He is buried at Green Lawn Cemetery in Columbus, Ohio.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Southworth, Billy 1917 births 1945 deaths Asheville Tourists players Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Baseball players from Columbus, Ohio Baseball players from Portland, Oregon Columbus Red Birds players Daytona Beach Islanders players Kinston Eagles players Martinsville Manufacturers players Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Rome Colonels players Springfield Indians (baseball) players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Wilmington Blue Rocks (1940–1952) players United States Army Air Forces bomber pilots of World War II United States Army Air Forces officers United States Army Air Forces personnel killed in World War II