Episode 296 of “The Sports Experience Podcast” is here & we’re continuing our block of episodes on the greatest players in the history of the Negro Leagues.
Arguably one of the greatest pitchers of all-time, Satchel Paige was an absolute legend on the mound.
After he ran into legal trouble in his youth in Alabama, Paige focused on his love of baseball and learned to pitch in a reform school. Upon his release, the young right-handed Paige became a star in the Negro Leagues. Armed with a devastating fastball, an array of breaking pitches and multiple release points, Paige dominated the competition as a member of the Pittsburgh Crawfords and Kansas City Monarchs.
Paige was a six-time All-Star, won a World Series in 1942 and even displayed his talents in the California Winter League against legends like Joe DiMaggio. Paige even found success outside the Negro Leagues in places like Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
In 1947, Paige and Bob Feller went on a barnstorming tour of the country which played integrated exhibition games between some of the top talent in baseball.
Though a past injury had limited his fastball, Paige became the first African American pitcher in Major League Baseball in 1948 for the Cleveland Indians. What made that even sweeter was the fact that he pitched in and was part of Cleveland’s World Series winning team that season.
Paige then made two All-Star teams in 1952 and 1953 as a member of the St. Louis Browns in 1952 and 1953, and even pitched at age 59 for the Kansas City Athletics in 1965!
Paige ultimately received the highest honor in the sport in 1971 when he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
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