Don Black No Hitter July 10, 1947 Signed Game Used American League Baseball PSA

Rare Cleveland IndiansDon Black No Hitter July 10, 1947 Signed Game Used American League HarridgeBaseball With PSA DNA COA

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Donald Paul Black(July 20, 1917[1] April 21, 1959) was an American right-handedpitcher inMajor League Baseball who played for six seasons in theAmerican League with thePhiladelphia Athletics andCleveland Indians. In 154 career games, Black pitched 797innings and posted awin-loss record of 3455, with 37complete games, fourshutouts, and a 4.35earned run average (ERA).

Born inSalix, Iowa, he played minor league baseball inFairbury, Nebraska, andPetersburg, Virginia, before signing with the Philadelphia Athletics. He played with them for three seasons before being released. Black signed with the Cleveland Indians at the end of 1945, and after a season with them joinedAlcoholics Anonymous. After completing the program, he played two more seasons with Cleveland, pitching ano-hitter on July 10, 1947. On September 13, 1948, Black suffered acerebral hemorrhage on the field, which marked the end of his professional career. After a comeback attempt, Black went on to become a sports announcer and salesman. He died in 1959.

Contents[hide]

• 1Early life and minor leagues
• 2Philadelphia Athletics
• 3Cleveland Indians
• 4Later life
• 5See also
• 6References
• 7External links

Early life and minor leagues[edit]

Black was born in Salix, Iowa. He had his first taste of professional baseball in 1937, when he was signed by theFairbury Jeffs of theNebraska State League. The Jeffs were the rookie-level minor league team of theSt. Louis Browns farm system. He played alongside two others who would later make the major leagues,George Bradley andJohnny Lucadello. Black pitched in 26 games for the Jeffs, posting a 5-11 record, 154 innings pitched, and a 4.85 ERA.[2]He spent the next three years out of professional baseball, then signed a contract with thePetersburg Rebels of theVirginia League.

Black spent the 1941 and 1942 seasons with the Rebels. In 1941, he pitched in 19 games, starting 16 of them. He won 11 games, lost five, and had an ERA of 2.35.[2]He also threw the firstno-hitter of his career that season.[3]The following season, Black pitched in 34 games for the rebels, tying for the team lead withLou Knerr. He pitched 235 innings, winning 18 games, losing 11, and finishing with an ERA of 2.49.[2]Black was selected for the 1942 Virginia League all-star game, but did not attend. Instead, he was at the hospital where his wife gave birth to his second child, a daughter.[4]He also threw the second no-hitter of his career, which led to a tryout with the Philadelphia Athletics.

Philadelphia Athletics[edit]

When he was called up by the Athletics, Black worked to earn a spot on the roster inspring training. After performances which included a 20 victory over theUniversity of Delaware baseball team where he struck out three in an inning,[5]he was awarded a spot on the Athletics roster for the1943 Philadelphia Athletics season. That pitching rotation featured many other rookie pitchers includingJesse Flores. Black made his major league debut on April 24, 1943 and was in the Athletics starting rotation most of the season. He had some early success in his career, pitching a one-hitter on May 30 against theSt. Louis Browns in a 30 victory.[6]Black finished the season with a 616 record, a 4.20 ERA, and 208innings pitched.[7]He also pitched 110bases on balls, andhit six batters with pitches; both numbers were second highest in theAmerican League.[7]Black remained in the starting rotation at the beginning of the1944 Philadelphia Athletics season, despite possibility of him being drafted into theUnited States Army for World War II. He was rejected for military service after a physical examination on June 22, and remained with the team throughout the season.[8]His win total improved from last season; however, he went a span of about a month, from June 28 until late July, without a victory.[9]He finished the season with a 1012 record, a 4.06 ERA, and 27 games started, second highest on the team behindBobo Newsom.[7]At the end of the season, there were rumors that managerConnie Mack was planning to trade Black andFrankie Hayes to Cleveland forJim Bagby, Jr. andJeff Heath, though Mack stated that there was no substance to the rumors.[10]

The following season, Black was part of an optimisticAthletics team, so much so that coachEarle Mack felt that Black, Newsom, Flores, andRuss Christopher were the best quartet of starting pitchers in the league.[11]He started the season being considered the ace of the staff, as the others in the rotation were either battling injury or not yet conditioned.[12]His third season in the majors, however, ended with little success. Early on in the season, Black missed some playing time as a result of a badly bruised finger.[13]He was later suspended for a month for violation of team rules. Upon his return, Connie Mack noted that it would be Black’s “last chance” to avoid trouble.[14]He finished the season with a 511 record and a 5.17 ERA.[7]This was Black’s final season on the Athletics. At the conclusion of the season, he was sold to theCleveland Indians for an undisclosed amount.[15]Connie Mack later stated that he regretfully fired him due to his alcohol use, leading to him not being dependable as a pitcher.[3]

Cleveland Indians[edit]

Black began the1946 Cleveland Indians season as a member of the roster, looking to get playing time in an established starting rotation. His season began inauspiciously when he was hit on the chin with a ball, causing him to miss a week during spring training.[16]The 1946 season marked the first time that Black did not finish on the major league roster. After pitching in 18 games for the Indians, he was sent to theMilwaukee Brewers of theAmerican Association.[17]While with the Brewers, Black failed to win any games, and at one point was suspended after he disappeared during a road trip.[18]At the conclusion of the season, Indians ownerBill Veeck had a talk with Black, who admitted he had a problem with drunkenness.[19]He agreed to spend the winter with Alcoholics Anonymous with Veek’s help, and by the time the1947 Cleveland Indians season began, Black was sober.[19]

The year 1947 became a career year for the now-sober Black. There was optimism in the Indians clubhouse regarding his talent, with managerLou Boudreau saying that Black was “a leading candidate for one of our starting jobs.”[20]In his first pitching appearance of the season against theDetroit Tigers, a tough 53 victory, someone in the press box said, “I wonder what hed give for a slug of bourbon”, to which he replied, “All I wanted in that situation was a fresh stick of chewing gum. Bourbon doesnt even tempt me.”[19]He followed this with a 10shutout win against theChicago White Sox.[21]A game against his former team, thePhiladelphia Athletics, became the highlight of his career. On July 10, 1947, Blackno-hit the Athletics 3-0 atCleveland Stadium,[22]allowing six walks and five strikeouts in bestingBill McCahanhimself a no-hit pitcher on September 3 of that 1947 season. OnlyEddie Joost came close to getting a hit on Black, hitting a ball in the eighth inning that just barely went foul.[23]On top of his no-hit performance, Black had twosingles and asqueeze bunt that day. He was modest about his performance afterwards, saying “My control was pretty bad. I got behind on a lot of hitters, but they didn’t seem to hit me.”[3]Black finished the season with ten wins, 12 losses, a 3.92 ERA, eightcomplete games, and three shutouts.[7]At the end of the season, he was planning to play in theCuban Winter League along with fellow IndiansBob Feller andAl Lopez,[24]though this did not eventuate. During the off-season, Black returned to his hometown of Salix, where he was given a key to the city and made honorary mayor for a day.[25]

The1948 Cleveland Indians season began with Black maintaining a spot in the starting rotation. He had spent the off-season selling tickets for the Indians inHot Springs, Arkansas.[26]After signing a new contract, Black earned his first victory of 1948 on May 23 in a doubleheader against theNew York Yankees, winning 51 in the second game.[27]Early on in the season, due to the Indians’ pitching depth, Black, along withAl Gettel andBob Muncrief, lost their starting jobs and were moved to thebullpen, though there were plans to still use Black occasionally as a starter.[28]He missed some playing time in June as the result of a bone chip in his left big toe, suffered during batting practice.[29]He pitched for the Indians for most of the rest of the season, making ten starts in 18 total appearances, finishing the season with two wins and losses, a 5.37 ERA, and 52 innings pitched.[7]

About a month before the end of the season, Black pitched his final professional baseball game. During the height of the 1948 pennant race, on September 13 in Cleveland, Black suffered acerebral hemorrhage while batting in the second inning during a home game against theSt. Louis Browns.[30]He had fouled off a pitch into the upper deck of the stadium, and then collapsed holding onto his neck. He was able to walk to the dugout under his own power, but had lost consciousness by the time an ambulance arrived.[30]Black was taken to St. Vincent Charity Hospital and was conscious for a time, but lapsed into a coma.[31]His doctor noted that he was likely to make a full recovery, though he was “through with baseball for this year and possibly for good.”[31]After a few days in critical condition, he had begun to recover and his condition was reported to have improved greatly.[32]

In response to Black’s injury, the Indians hosted a “Don Black Night” on September 23 in a game against theBoston Red Sox to help raise money for his medical bills.[33]In a game watched by 76,772 fans, the Indians raised $40,370 for Black as they won the game, 52.[34]The Indians went on to defeat the Red Sox in a one-game playoff for theAmerican League pennant and theBoston Braves in six games in the1948 World Series as Black recovered in the hospital. After the Indians won the World Series, Lou Boudreau said that the Indians won the title in his honor.[35]

Later life[edit]

After a stay of six weeks, Black was released from the hospital in late October 1948.[36]He continued to suffer from headaches, however, and had to have further surgery done in December to remove a weak spot in an artery near his head.[37]He was released from the hospital shortly afterward, but by the start of 1949 his time with the Indians was over, as Bill Veeck stated he would not accept the responsibility of allowing Black to pitch again, though said “If Black is determined to try it again, I won’t stand in his way.”[38]This statement, however, did not keep Black away, as he signed a contract in late January with the Indians for the same amount as the previous season.[39]After pitching with the Indians in Florida for spring training, he returned to Cleveland and decided to retire temporarily, citing that he felt too weak to be effective.[40]He made one final pitching appearance before retiring in an exhibition game against thePittsburgh Pirates on July 13, pitching two innings for the Indians in a 10 loss.[41]

After his retirement from baseball, Black went on to become a sportscaster, automobilesalesman, and insurance salesman.[42]He lived with his wife, Joyce, and his two daughters, Stevie and Donna, inCuyahoga Falls, Ohio.[42]In December 1957, Black was injured in a car accident in Virginia, leaving him in critical condition.[43]He recovered and spent the following summer teaching for the city recreation department.[42]The following year, on April 21, 1959, Black died in Cuyahoga Falls while watching an Indians game at his home.

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