Thomas Everett Gastall (June 13, 1932 – September 20, 1956) was an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player who spent two years in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) as a

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

in and . A

right-handed In human biology, handedness is an individual's preferential use of one hand, known as the dominant hand, due to it being stronger, faster or more dextrous. The other hand, comparatively often the weaker, less dextrous or simply less subjecti ...

batter and thrower, he stood tall and weighed . Gastall was born in

Fall River Fall River is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The City of Fall River's population was 94,000 at the 2020 United States Census, making it the tenth-largest city in the state. Located along the eastern shore of Mount H ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He graduated in 1951 from B.M.C. Durfee High School where he starred in baseball, football and basketball. He matriculated at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

where he served as captain of the baseball and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

teams, and quarterbacked the

Terriers Terrier (from Latin ''terra'', 'earth') is a type of dog originally bred to hunt vermin. A terrier is a dog of any one of many breeds or landraces of the terrier type, which are typically small, wiry, game, and fearless. Terrier breeds vary gr ...

to the most successful season in their history to that point. The university's Athlete of the Year as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

in 1955, he was posthumously inducted into the Boston University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1959. He was the 120th selection in the tenth round of the

1955 NFL Draft The 1955 NFL season, 1955 National Football League NFL draft, draft was held January 27–28, 1955 at the Warwick New York Hotel, Warwick Hotel in New York City. This was the ninth year that the List of first overall National Football League Dra ...

by the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

. After graduation, Gastall signed with Baltimore for $40,000 as a bonus baby. He was the third-string catcher behind starter

Gus Triandos Gus Triandos (July 30, 1930 – March 28, 2013) was a Greek American professional baseball player and scout (sport), scout. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher and a first baseman for the New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, and the D ...

and Hal Smith on the Orioles' depth chart.Thomas, Buddy. "Gastall: gone too soon," ''The Standard-Times'' (New Bedford, MA), Thursday, May 11, 2000.
Retrieved February 4, 2023. Gastall appeared in 52 games and had less than one hundred plate appearances over two seasons with Baltimore. He died when the

ERCO Ercoupe The ERCO Ercoupe is an American low-wing monoplane aircraft that was first flown in 1937. It was originally manufactured by the Engineering and Research Corporation (ERCO) shortly before World War II; several other manufacturers continued it ...

aircraft he piloted experienced engine problems and crashed into the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

on September 20, 1956. He had taken off in the airplane from

Easton, Maryland Easton is an incorporated town in and the county seat of Talbot County, Maryland, United States. The population was 15,945 at the 2010 census, with an estimated population in 2019 of 16,671. The primary ZIP Code is 21601, and the secondary ...

at around 6 p.m. ET. He radioed the

control tower Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airsp ...

at Harbor Field at 6:12 p.m., reporting that he was in trouble and, in what might have been his last words, "heading for the water."

Radio noise In radio reception, radio noise is unwanted random radio frequency electrical signals, fluctuating voltages, always present in a radio receiver in addition to the desired radio signal. Radio noise near in frequency to the radio signal being receive ...

prevented the operator at the control tower from hearing any further details from Gastall. His body was found floating off

Riviera Beach, Maryland Riviera Beach is a census-designated place in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 12,677 at the 2010 U.S. census. Pronunciation Riviera Beach natives do not pronounce the name the way it is spelled. Rather, it is prono ...

five days later on September 25.planecrashinfo.com Famous People Who Died in Aviation Accidents: 1950s
/ref>

Autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...

results announced on September 27 revealed that Gastall had escaped the wreckage with no signs of injury from the crash but died because of

drowning Drowning is a type of suffocation induced by the submersion of the mouth and nose in a liquid. Most instances of fatal drowning occur alone or in situations where others present are either unaware of the victim's situation or unable to offer a ...

."Orioles' Rookie Drowned in Bay," ''The Associated Press'' (AP), Friday, September 28, 1956.
Retrieved February 4, 2023. He was survived by his wife, Rosemary, and a son, Thomas.

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1932 births 1956 deaths Accidental deaths in Maryland American football quarterbacks American men's basketball players Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Baltimore Orioles players Basketball players from Massachusetts Boston University Terriers baseball players Boston University Terriers football players Boston University Terriers men's basketball players Deaths by drowning in the United States B.M.C. Durfee High School alumni Major League Baseball catchers Players of American football from Massachusetts Baseball players from Fall River, Massachusetts Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1956 {{US-baseball-catcher-1930s-stub

See also

References

External links