(2 of 2)
Last week, just before signing Paige (for a reported $10,000 for the rest of the season), Bill Veeck watched him throw about 50 assorted pitches to Manager Lou Boudreau, second best hitter in the American League. Only three or four were wide of the plate, and most of them had stuff. In his two-inning relief debut against the St. Louis Browns three days later, Satchel allowed two singles, no runs, struck out one, walked nobody.
Did he think he could last in the majors? Said Paige: "Plate's the same size."
* The Brooklyn Dodgers gave 27-year-old Negro Pitcher Dan Bankhead a brief trial last year, sent him back to a Dodger farm.
† His name is also arguable: it came perhaps from his suitcase-shaped shoes (size 12), perhaps from his early days as a Mobile redcap.