On May 12th, 1955, at Wrigley Field, Toothpick Sam Jones achieved baseball immortality, becoming the first African-American to throw a no-hitter.
Jones was part of a few other pieces of history, as well. While with the Cleveland Indians, he formed the first all-African-American battery in American League history on April 3rd, 1959, along with catcher Quincy Trouppe. Jones was traded to Chicago by the Indians for two players to be named later – one of whom was Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner, who would play the final season of his career with the Indians before retiring at 32.
Mick Gillispie had more on the story in the sixth inning of Tennessee’s 8-6 loss to the Jackson Generals on Monday.
Andrew Green
James Rowe
Leave a Reply