Satchel Paige was the greatest asset the Negro Leagues ever had. Paige eventually took his talents to Major League Baseball, where he pitched until he was 59 years old.
It's hard to imagine a pitcher born in 1906 still pitching in the second half of the century, but Satchel Paige was no ordinary pitcher.
Paige, born in Mobile, Alabama, began playing semi-pro baseball in 1924 in his hometown. He jumped around to different Negro League teams and Caribbean teams in the late 1920s and 30s, including the Chattanooga Black Lookouts (his first professional team in 1926), the Birmingham Black Barons and the Pittsburgh Crawfords.
Paige was known mainly to have three pitches: Long Tommy and Little Tommy (two unhittable fastballs), and the Bee Ball, named by Paige because it would "Be where I want it to be."
When Paige pitched, the fans flocked to see him. He pitched nearly everyday because of his popularity, which resulted in a sore arm by 1939. To rehab his arm and give it some rest from the constant fastballs, Paige developed some new, slower pitches and a stuttered delivery that was just as distracting as his pitches.
In 1948, Bill Veeck, owner of the Cleveland Indians and known for taking unusual risks, signed Paige at the age of 42. Major League Baseball's oldest rookie drew over 78,000 fans in his first appearance, and over 72,000 in his first start. He finished the season with a 6-1 record and 2.47 ERA as the Tribe won the World Series over the Boston Braves.
When Bill Veeck sold the Indians in 1949, he later bought the St. Louis Browns, and took Paige with him. Paige, now 46 years old, won 12 games and was the oldest person ever selected to the All-star team.
Paige continued to pitch well into his 50s, and finally retired after his two-month contract expired in 1959. He finished his career with 123 Negro League wins and the greatest compliment a pitcher could ever receive from Joe DiMaggio: "He was the best I ever faced."
Paige was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1971, the first player ever selected by the Negro League Committee.
