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Their sparkling batting helmets match their brown, camouflage jerseys and pants. "USA" is emblazoned across their chests and historical references like "Korean War," "Pearl Harbor" or "Honor First" are printed on their backs, in place of names.
They gracefully turn double plays, smash line drives and throw fastballs that make a loud pop in the catcher's mitt. They are the Heroes of the Diamond baseball team, a gang of all-stars from all branches of the military that roams the country playing baseball on the Red, White and Blue Tour. "We play for anybody who ever wore a uniform," said manager Crash Allvord, a retired Navy helicopter pilot. The team's first big stop this summer is Alaska, where they will play exhibition games against the teams of the Alaska Baseball League through Monday before traveling to Omaha, Neb., to participate in the festivities at the College World Series. Allvord has coached the Heroes of the Diamond off and on since 1990 and wears the word "Ground" above the number "0" on the back of his jersey. He said the historical references are something he came up with last year to spark some interest among fans, especially kids. Fans will come up and ask about the references and he often hears kids asking their parents what the names mean and receiving a quick history lesson in response, he said. Team members include Chris Langley, a C-17 pilot who has been stationed at Elmendorf Air Force Base for the past three years. The Heroes of the Diamond is the only team he's played on where kids will ask him for autographs. "You sure you want my autograph?" is his humble response to the adoring children. Langley said the team is full of good players who play quality baseball, but they don't always stick around for very long because of deployments, transfers and other conflicts. "You show up in a city, you never know who your teammates are gonna be," he said. "Some guys, I don't even know their first name." Each year, tryouts are held to create the best possible team, but the continuation of two wars has restricted the use of armed forces players. This year is the first year a limited number of current professional and summer collegiate players are allowed to play. When holes in the roster need to be filled, the team will usually use games to give players a tryout, as was done with Langley. He joined the Heroes of the Diamond this spring after playing a charity game with the team in Florida and has since played a handful of games. He learned of the opportunity by researching the team online. Players who are active military must get excused leave to play on the team. When on tour, the team doesn't just play baseball. It will pitch in to help the home-team orchestrate the show. Allvord said his crew can run the music, do the broadcast, or whatever else the local park wants or needs them to do. In the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday against the Anchorage Bucs, Allvord stood outside his team's Mulcahy Stadium dugout, holding a box full of raffle tickets in one hand and a wireless microphone in the other. He led cheers over the loudspeaker, prompting the fans to cheer for the home-team Bucs, as someone drew the winning raffle ticket out of the box. Heroes of the Diamond beat the Bucs 4-1 in that game and is 2-1 going into a doubleheader today against the Peninsula Oilers in Kenai. Allvord said the team wins about 75 percent of its games, a success that comes even though players spend long periods away from real games. Players practice however and wherever they can -- Allvord said he has even heard of soldiers throwing grenades through tires to keep their arms loose while they are overseas. Despite the built-in appeal of rooting for the troops, Allvord said fans don't always want to see the Heroes of the Diamond beat their home team. But if they play well, the fans can be swayed. "We got a good opportunity to win 'em over," he said.