Gordon Houston becomes the first player in Organized Baseball to die during active duty in World War II

On February 12 1942 — Texarkana Minor league outfielder Gordon Houston becomes the first player in Organized Baseball to die during active duty in World War II. The minor league batting champion, who became a full-time fighter pilot following the attack on Pearl Harbor, dies at the age of 25 when his Republic P-43 Lancer crashes at Washington’s McChord Field, after leading a sortie along the West Coast, looking for Japanese submarines. Houston had played with Texarkana in 1940.