Walter H "Walt" Brickner was born on February 4, 1920 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He signed his first professional contract with Dover of the Eastern Shore League in 1939 and batted .272 in 41 games. He also made a couple of appearances on the mound as a knuckleball pitcher.

He joined Moultrie of the Georgia-Florida League in 1940 and had a strong year batting .318 with 53 RBIs. Brickner followed that with a .337 batting average in 1941 and drove in 82 runs. It was, however, his last season in baseball as he joined the Army on January 28, 1942.

Brickner was assigned to Camp Wheeler, Georgia where he played centerfield for the Camp Wheeler Spokes along with Senators' shortstop Cecil Travis. Private Brickner later served overseas in Europe and was taken prisoner by the Germans. He spent two years in a POW camp.

Upon his return, Brickner played for the Albany Senators of the Eastern League in 1945 batting .238. He was with Greenville of the Alabama State League in 1946 where he turned his hand to on-field managing before moving to the Idaho Falls Russetts of the Pioneer League. In September, while walking to town with two teammates, he collapsed and was taken to hospital where he remained unconscious for four hours. It was almost certainly due to the run-down condition he was in after serving as a POW.