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this day in history ~ satchel paige

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On 09 Jul 1948, 42 year old Leroy "Satchel" Paige made his major league debut, entering in the fifth inning against the St. Louis Browns with the Indians trailing 4-1. Satchel Paige’s contract had been bought two days earlier by Bill Veeck’s Cleveland Indians on Satchel’s 42nd birthday.

Satchel gave up two singles in two innings, striking one man out and inducing one batter to hit into a double play. The Indians lost the game 5-3 in spite of Paige’s contribution. That year Satchel Paige went 6-1 with a solid 2.48 ERA for the World Champion Cleveland Indians. pitches two innings for the Cleveland Indians in his debut with the newly and barely integrated American League. The game came 21 years after the great pitcher’s first Negro League appearance.

Leroy Satchel Page was born on 07 Jul 1906, in Mobile, Alabama. Page’s family changed the spelling of their name to Paige to differentiate themselves from John Page, Leroy’s absent and abusive father. "Satchel" got his nickname as a boy while working as a luggage carrier at the Mobile train station. When he was 12, his constant truancy coupled with a shoplifting incident got him sent to the Industrial School for Negro Children in Mount Meigs, Alabama. It turned out to be a lucky break, as it was there that Paige learned to pitch. After leaving the school, he turned pro.

From 1927 to 1948 Satchel Paige was the baseball equivalent of a hired gun! He pitched for any team in the United States or abroad that could afford him. He was the highest paid pitcher of his time, and he wowed crowds with the speed of his fastball, his trick pitches and his considerable bravado. Satchel was arguably the Negro leagues' hardest thrower, most colorful character and greatest gate attraction. In the 1930s, the well-traveled pitcher barnstormed around the continent, baffling hitters with creatively named pitches such as the Bat Dodger and Hesitation Pitch.

Just for fun, Satchel would sometimes call in his outfield and then strike out the side. From 1939 to 1942, the Kansas City Monarchs paid up for his services and were justly rewarded: Paige led the team to four consecutive Negro American League pennants from 1939 to 1942. In the 1942 Negro League World Series, Satchel won three games in a four-game sweep of the Homestead Grays, led by famed slugger Josh Gibson.

Paige was named to Major League Baseball’s All-Star Team for the American League in 1952 and 1953, when he was 46 and 47 years old respectively. In late 1960 Satchel began working with David Lipman on his autobiography which was to be published in April of 1962, it was such a success that Doubleday authorized three printings!

In 1965, Paige pitched for the Kansas City Athletics, which made him, at 59 years, 2 months and 18 days, the oldest pitcher ever to play a game in the major leagues.

On 09 Aug 1971, Leroy "Satchel" Paige, the greatest pitcher of his era, was given the ultimate honor, he joined the very best in baseball history by being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

On 08 Jun 1982 Leroy Satchel Paige, the a legendary storyteller and one of the most entertaining pitchers in baseball history had a heart attack and passed away only one month before his 76th birthday.

On 28 Jul 2006 a statue of Satchel Paige was unveiled in Cooper Park, Cooperstown, New York commemorating the contributions of the Negro Leagues to baseball.

"Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching." ~ Satchel Paige