Phil Mazzeo
Ballplayers Wounded in Combat
| Date and Place of Birth: | January 31, 1910 San Antonio, TX |
| Date and Place of Death: | June 23, 1987 Los Angeles, CA |
| Baseball Experience: | Minor League |
| Position: | Umpire |
| Rank: | Unknown |
| Military Unit: | US Army Air Force |
| Area Served: | Mediterranean Theater of Operations |
Phillip G. Mazzeo, the son of John and Isabella Mazzeo, was born in San
Antonio, Texas, on January 31, 1910. His father, an Italian immigrant,
ran a barber shop in San Antonio, and by 1920, the family had moved to
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On the move again a few years later, the
family settled in Los Angeles, California, where John operated another
barber shop, and young Phil worked as a stevedore at the docks, then in
the distribution department of a newspaper.
In 1940, 30-year-old Phil Mazzeo began umpiring in the Pacific Coast
League, moving to the Mountain State League in 1941. "Phil Mazzeo, who
distinguished himself as the worst umpire in the Coast League last
season, no slight distinction," wrote Art Cohn in the Oakland Tribune in
May 1941, "is now toiling in the hillbilly Mountain State League." In
June 1941, Mazzeo was on the move again, back to California, to work in
the Class A California League.
He entered military service in March 1942, at Fort McArthur in San
Pedro, California, and having attended infantry school at Fort Benning,
Georgia, he served with the Army Air Force at Barksdale Field,
California, where he managed the baseball team. Mazzeo attained the rank
of captain and was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry, while being
wounded twice during the Italian campaign.
Mazzeo was discharged from service in October 1945, and returned to
umpiring in the Pacific Coast League in 1946, and remained until
quitting to go back to his circulation department job at a Los Angeles
newspaper in November 1947. However, he didn't sever all ties with
baseball. In 1950, he had an uncredited role as an umpire in the 1950
William Bendix baseball movie, "Kill The Umpire." During the 1970s,
while living in Burbank, California, he worked as a scout for the Kansas
City Royals.
Phil Mazzeo passed away on June 23, 1987, in Los Angeles, California. He
was 77 years old and is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los
Angeles.
Date Added February 3, 2018
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