. >> 87-year-old bob feller's legendary pitching career began in iowa where he was raised on a hog farm baseball and horseshoes is about the only thing you can play in those days. i played a lot of ball with my father. >> is there a sense you're going to try for something like baseball instead of farming? >> i had no idea of ever being a farmer. all i ever wanted to do was a major league baseball player and i worked at it. >> a lot of ballplayers have always been working people that otherwise might be in the mines or the cotton mills or farming. and baseball was an escape. >> bill is the author of "ted williams at war". >> you could get paid reasonably well and be a little bit of a star if you're ever good. >> feller was good. he signed with the cleveland indians for a whopping $10,000 in 1935. he was just 16 years old. >> was that unusual to be that young? >> probably was unusual. i got -- my bonus was an autographed baseball and a contract on a piece of hotel stationa stationary. >> what did your folks say? >> they were really happy. i never got home sick. i was doing what i wanted to

he said bob feller was really rough on me until he found out i had served in combat. he h said. >> he brings it up all the time. he's a great guy and his wife is a great lady. >> he won 236 games and struck out batters. in world war ii, it cost me four seasons. >> 1946 was a special year for baseball in the country. great players were able to come back. >> earn any har well broadcast his first game for the atlanta crackers in 1946. in 1960 he moved to detroit where he announced for 42 seasons. >> i've had a great life and a great part of it was being in the marines for four years. >> i was signed by the new york giants in 1949. >> would you have gotten into major league baseball sooner had you got gone off to war? >> yeah. i had been selected to be the first at that time. i was scouted back in 1936. so they had selected me to be the first. but how can you argue with the job that jackie did. >> monte irvine fields the ball but too late to keep jackie robinson from scoring. ♪ >> in '51 irvine was with the giants are one of baseball's most famous moments. the deciding ga