Don Hanscom of Hampden played baseball for 33 years.
Hie remained in uniform an extra year or two so that he could play with sons Alan and Lance. It was worth the wait.
Pitcher Alan, outfielder Lance and third baseman Don had five of Dixmont’s eight hits in a 3-0 win at Garland Field, Bangor, over a high-riding team headed by Dick DeVarney.
At age 12, Hanscom began filling in for area team players who couldn’t make it at game time.
After two years at Hampden Academy, he entered the Merchant Marine. Back in civilian life, he was graduated from Bangor High in 1947.
He hit nearly .500 in each of two seasons for the Rockland Rockets of the Knox County League, and
later played for the Houlton Collegians, Newburg, Skowhegan, Howland and the Boise Club of St.
George, Que.
Pay ranged from $3 to $15 a game.
Clyde Sukeforth of Waidoboro, Maine Baseball Hall of Fame charter member and longtime Dodger scout and coach, admired Hanscom’s speed and ability. When discovered, it was too late for Don to go through the minor league system.
Hanscom played all positions but catcher. Opponents or teammates included Don Bowman, Jack Scott, Fibber McGee and Jack Jordan.
Coaches included Don Fraser and Ky Ayoob, the latter a newsroom veteran at the Bangor Daily News.
From Bangor Daily News
https://obituaries.bangordailynews.com/obituary/donald-hanscom-804297571
HAMPDEN - Donald Pitt Hanscom, 82, husband of the late Marilyn (Wentworth) Hanscom, went home to be with his Lord and Savior July 10, 2010, while at a Bangor health care facility. He was born July 21, 1927, in Lincoln, son of Pitt and Frances (Duplisea) Hanscom. Don was raised in West Hampden by Edwin and Virginia Carlson. Don was a graduate of Bangor High School and served in the Merchant Marines during World War II. He was a tremendous athlete and had a passion for sports. Don played semi-pro baseball and football in various leagues throughout Maine and Canada, and was also a professional boxer. In 1987, he was inducted into the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame.
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