Pete Gray

Peter James Gray (né Wyshner; March 6, 1915 – June 30, 2002) was an American professional baseball outfielder who played for the St. Louis Browns of Major League Baseball for one season in 1945. He was notable for playing despite having lost his right arm in a childhood accident.

Peter Gray (sometimes spelled as Peter Grey) was born as Peter J. Wyshner in the mining town of Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, on March 6, 1915. He was one of five children born to Lithuanian immigrants Antoinette and Peter Wyshner. His father worked in the coal mines of northeastern Pennsylvania to support his family.

His older brother became a boxer in the middleweight division and went under the name Whitey Gray (boxed 1921–1928). During his time as a boxer, Whitey Gray won six matches by KO, lost five (three of which were KO's), had three newspaper decision wins, and two newspaper decision draws. In total, Whitey had 16 bouts with a 37.5% KO rate and boxed a total of 45 rounds.

Wyshner was right-handed, but lost his right arm at age seven or eight, as a result of a wagon accident in 1923. His arm had to be amputated above the elbow. He never could remember exactly how the accident happened, and several versions of the story have emerged through the years. In one version, Wyshner was sitting on a truck with friends and fell off, and his arm got stuck in the spokes of the old-fashioned wheels. After the accident, the driver dropped him on his family's porch and ran off. But Wyshner was so enthusiastic about baseball that he learned to bat and field one-handed, catching the ball in his glove and then quickly removing his glove and transferring the ball to his hand in one motion.

Seven years after his accident, Wyshner completed his formal education at age 13 and began working as a water boy at the Truesdale Colliery. Life was not easy for him, but he did not like being treated with sympathy or being treated differently than others. One story that told about his frustration with being treated differently comes from his days as a young man playing sandlot baseball; He was running home and crashed into the catcher, which knocked the baseball out of the catcher's glove. This resulted in Peter being safe at home plate. The catcher was very upset and told Wyshner that he would hit him, if only he had two arms. Wyshner didn't take this well, and got into the face of the catcher and told him to go ahead and try.

By 19 years of age, Wyshner was playing outfield for the Hanover Lits Baseball Club of the Wyoming Valley Anthracite League. When he began to play semi-professional ball, he changed his last name to "Gray", as his brother had done as a boxer. He wanted to avoid ethnic prejudices, whether of players, coaches, fans, or front office managers. In some areas, some people still resented Eastern European immigrants and their descendants. Now known as Peter Gray, he played with Pine Grove in Pennsylvania and Scranton in Brooklyn, New York. He had tryouts with the St. Louis Browns and Philadelphia Athletics, but was never called up by either team. He continued to play semi-pro and minor league baseball.

In 1941, after the attack of Pearl Harbor, Gray attempted to join the Army, but was denied on the basis that he was an amputee. Gray responded to being rejected by the Army, saying that, "If I could teach myself how to play baseball with one arm, I sure as hell could handle a rifle."

Gray's speed and placehitting ability made him a successful minor league outfielder. He attained a batting average of .333 and a stolen-base record of 63; as a result, he was named the 1944 Southern Association's Most Valuable Player.