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LEROY "SATCHEL" PAIGE 
In Mobile, Alabama on July 7, 1906, Leroy Robert Page was born. The 'i' was added later by his parents in order to sound more "high toned."
He would become, arguably, the greatest pitcher ever to play baseball. I say arguably, because had he been able to compete in the Major Leagues with his white counterparts whilst he was in his prime, there would surely have been no doubt. He reportedly got his nickname at a very young age while working as a baggage porter at the Union Railroad Station in Mobile. He was called a "satchel tree" - this was a name used for someone who would carry many bags at one time. His baseball career began at the local semi-pro baseball team, the Mobile Tigers. He would go on to play for the Birmingham Black Barons, Chattanooga Black Lookouts, Nashville Elite Giants, Baltimore Black Sox, Cleveland Cubs, Pittsburgh Crawfords, Kansas City Monarchs, New York Black Yankees, Memphis Red Sox and Philadelphia Stars, all within the Negro Leagues. In the Major Leagues, he played for the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns and the Kansas City A's. "Satch" Facts He once started 29 games in one month while pitching in Bismarck, North Dakota. In 1933, he had a winning run of 21 consecutive winning games and 62 scoreless innings. In one season, he claimed to have won 104 of 105 games. On his 42nd birthday, in 1948, he was sold to the Cleveland Indians. This made him the oldest player ever to make his Major League debut. He made a special appearance in 1965, pitching 3 innings for the Kansas City Athletics which made him the oldest player ever to play in the Major Leagues. He did not commit a single error in the 179 Major League games that he played. In 1971, Leroy "Satchel" Paige was the first Negro League star to be elected to the National Baseball Hall Of Fame. He greeted his induction with this particularly poignant quote: "The one change is that baseball has turned Paige from a second class citizen into a second class immortal." Leroy Robert Paige died at the age of 75 on June 8, 1982 in Kansas City, Missouri. Links To Other Leroy "Satchel" Paige Internet Resources: The Official Satchel Paige Web Site. Sports Trivia - Leroy "Satchel" Paige. Negroleaguebaseball.com - Satchel Paige: The Great Integrator Of The Game. baseball-reference.com - Satchel Paige. Blackbaseball.com - Satchel Paige. National Baseball Hall of Fame - Satchel Paige. National Baseball Hall of Fame - Satchel Paige Wallpaper. SIGN UP TO OUR EMAIL NEWSLETTER If you would like us to keep you updated with changes and improvements to thatsalabama.com, please enter your email address here: If you would like to support thatsalabama.com with a donation via paypal, please click on this button: |
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