Pilot swings for the fences

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Christopher Gross
  • JBER PAO
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Capt. Christopher Langley, 517th Airlift Squadron C-17 Globemaster III pilot, lives to play the game of baseball. He'll have the chance to play on one of the military's finest teams June 12-21.

The Heroes of the Diamond (HOD), formally known as the U.S. Military All-Star team, will be stopping in Alaska during the team's annual "Red, White and Blue Tour." This will be the ballplayers' first stop in Alaska since the team was founded in 1990.

The tour will include games against the local Anchorage Bucs, Peninsula Oilers and Alaska Goldpanners. The HOD will also play in the 105th annual Midnight Sun Game against the Alaska Goldpanners. The Goldpanners team has been playing in this game since 1960, facing a different opponent each time. The game is scheduled to start at 10:30 p.m. and typically finishes around 2 a.m. for summer solstice, June 21, at Growden Memorial Stadium in Fairbanks, Alaska. Since this game was initiated more than 100 years ago, there has never been any artificial lighting needed or used, because the sun doesn't set.

HOD is based in San Diego, Calif., and is made up of some of the military's finest baseball players. The team travels across the nation and to several different countries, at their own expense, playing against top local baseball teams. Military members in the communities visited are able to try out for the team and play with its members during their stay.

That's exactly what Capt. Langley did. He submitted his player biography to the team, and after being impressed with his background, the team added him, Langley said.

"He brings some leadership, which is great," said Terry Allvord, the team's general manager. "It seems like he's a pretty squared away officer. He's done a pretty good job with the supporting of all the logistics for us to come up (here)."

"You never know who's going to show up and what their story is," said Capt. Langley. "I'm definitely excited."

The captain said he is thrilled to have this opportunity to play with some of the best military baseball players in the nation, even though he said he is unsure who he will be playing with. He started looking into the HOD when he saw the team was would be making their way to Anchorage.

Capt. Langley's love for the game started at an early age while growing up in a town in southern Maryland.

"I started just like every little kid would with tee-ball. My dad coached and got me involved, and I just grew to love it and played as much as I could every fall and every summer," said Capt. Langley.

Capt. Langley played at the University of Maryland during his college years. After two years, he had to make a decision on where he was going to put his focus: baseball or ROTC?

He devoted his energies to ROTC and earned his commission in 2005. Even with a full-time job in the Air Force, Capt. Langley still finds time to play baseball with the Elmendorf Eagles, the wing baseball team.

"I just love every aspect of (baseball)," said the captain. "It's got the team aspect, it's got the individual aspect, where you're not relying solely on your teammates. Sometimes it's up to you."

Capt. Langley will be with the HOD team during its 12-day tour through several parts of Alaska.  He will be suiting up in a jersey with the number 42 and the name "Robinson" on the back; these markers commemorate the famous baseball player Jackie Robinson, who spent some time in the Army. All the numbers and names on the back of the HOD team jerseys have historical significance.

For more information on the HOD, visit www.heroesofthediamond.com.