By Mike London
mlondon@salisburypost.com
Bring up the name Jerry Wayne Thompson in a casual baseball discussion and you’ll be greeted mostly by blank stares.
But when you throw his unique nickname ó “Doodlebug” ó into the conversation, American Legion baseball fans who were around in the 1950s know exactly who you’re talking about.
“Doodlebug” Thompson died in Florida last week. By phone, e-mail and word of mouth, old Salisbury Legion comrades who haven’t strayed far from Newman Park got the word and passed it on.
“Must have had 20 calls just today about Doodlebug,” said Hall of Fame southpaw Tom Eaton, who followed closely behind Thompson at Boyden High School.
Eaton was the little lefty who spearheaded Salisbury’s run to the Legion World Series in 1955. He was a gifted hurler. He still says Randy Benson’s the best he’s ever seen at Newman Park, but he also swears “Doodlebug,” at least until he got hurt, was right up there.
Thompson was the stereotypical southpaw straight out of a Hollywood movie. He was “Nuke” LaLoosh 35 years before they filmed “Bull Durham.” He was tall, lean and threw extra, extra hard. There were nights he knew exactly where the ball was headed. There were also nights when he could hit the bull.
Eaton’s sure “Doodlebug” had the talent to make it big, but his special arm didn’t get the support it needed from a troublesome knee that he wrecked playing football for Boyden against Charlotte Central. If you tore up a knee in the 1950s that often was the end of the road.
On May 27, 1952, Thompson was involved in one of the wildest Legion games ever staged at Newman Park. Fans nearly spent the night, as Mooresville battered Salisbury 21-6. Ten pitchers combined for 28 walks and 13 wild pitches. Nineteen errors were made behind them. Catchers chipped in with nine passed balls.
But when he had his stuff, Thompson was impossible to hit.
On June 9, 1953, he must have thrown 180 pitches in an 11-6 complete-game victory against Laurinburg. He went the distance, fanning 15 and walking nine.
A week later, he whiffed 14 in a 5-3 loss at Kannapolis.
On June 20, 1953, he became part of the lore and legend of Newman Park when he blew away Monroe and carried a no-hitter into the ninth inning. Bill Grant blooped a hit to right with one out in the ninth to ruin the celebration. Thompson settled for a one-hitter and 15 Ks.
Believe it or not, just 72 hours later, he was back on the mound at Newman Park for revenge against a strong Kannapolis team.
He went the distance, walking seven, allowing five hits and striking out 17 to win 2-0. Surviving members of the Kannapolis lineup probably remember “Doodlebug.”
On June 8, 1954, shortly after he graduated from Boyden, Washington Senators assistant farm director Sherry Robertson saw Thompson throw in a tryout camp at Charlotte’s Griffith Park and offered a contract.
Thompson signed. His next stop was with the Fulton Lookouts in the Class D Kentucky-Indiana-Tennessee League, known as the Kitty League.
Thompson didn’t fare well and was released by the Senators. The bad knee, not his arm, was the culprit.
He went “under the knife” in hopes of repairing the damaged knee, and Mooresville’s Tex Millard, scouting for the Cincinnati Reds, saw enough lightning in Thompson’s left arm to sign him on Feb. 9, 1955.
In 1956, Thompson climbed the ladder as far as Class A ball in Savannah, Ga., before a letter from Uncle Sam interrupted his progress.
In the army, he trained at Fort Jackson, S.C., and Fort Belvoir, Va. He was shipped to Japan with the 29th Engineers Battalion early in 1957.
He reinjured the balky knee playing service baseball in Japan. That was the end of his pitching career.
By 1959, he was working at the local Veterans Hospital as a psychiatric aide. For a time, he also taught weightlifting at the Salisbury YMCA.
He attended business college, and in 1963, he won the Post’s “Pick the Winners” football contest, claiming two tickets to the Orange Bowl, $150 cash and a last fling with celebrity.
Eaton says Thompson eventually retired to Atlanta, then moved on to Florida. He’s not aware of any remaining relatives in Salisbury.
“Everyone knew Doodlebug,” Eaton said. “Most liked him.”