Born on June 12, 1904 in Calvert, Texas; Willie Hendrick Foster is regarded to have been the best left handed pitcher in Negro League baseball history. Playing for his half- brother Andrew “Rube” Foster’s Chicago American Giants (1923 – 1930), Willie baffled hitters with a variety of pitches; a fastball that supposedly tailed smoke, a slider, a side armed curve, and a change-up that kept batters off balanced. With Foster as their leading pitcher, the American Giants were Negro League World Series champions in 1926 and 1927.
Foster received 40,637 votes to participate in the inaugural Negro League Baseball East-West All Star Game (1933); surpassed only by Oscar Charleston’s 43,793. The lefthander pitched the entire game for the West All Stars, a feat accomplished by no other pitcher in Negro League All Star game history, and they won 11 – 7.
Although not a part of Negro League baseball lore as the legendary Satchel Paige, Willie Foster received the honor of being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame (Cooperstown, NY.) in 1996.
No comments:
Post a Comment