Bob Cerv

Robert Henry Cerv (May 5, 1925 – April 6, 2017) was a professional baseball left fielder born in Weston, Nebraska, and raised in a small ethnic Bohemian community. Before his professional career, he played both baseball and basketball at the University of Nebraska and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Cerv grew up playing semi-pro ball alongside his father and uncle in the Pioneer Night League, and first saw major league baseball as a child at Yankee Stadium, where he watched Lou Gehrig hit three home runs — an experience that fixed his ambition to one day play there himself.