Sports history is made every day of the year. We will preserve at least a small sampling from some great athletes every day based on the uniform number they wore. 44 - 36 May 17, 1925 - Cleveland Indians centerfielder Tris Speaker reached his 3,000th hit in his MLB career. In 1...
Born May 17, 1903, in Starkville, Missouri was BAseball Hall of Fame Center Fielder and Pitcher James Thomas "Cool Papa" Bell. Cool Papa played in Negro league baseball from 1922 to 1946. He is considered to have been one of the fastest men ever to play the game, and the legend of his speed still is remembered to the modern day. His pro ball debut was with the St. Louis Stars of the Negro National League (NNL) as a pitcher in 1922. Bell earned his nickname in his first Negro league season; he was referred to as "Cool" after striking out standout player Oscar Charleston and added "Papa" to the nickname because it sounded better. He also played on the Detroit Wolves (1932), Kansas City Monarchs (1932–1934), Santo Domingo (1937), Homestead Grays (1932, 1943–1946), Pittsburgh Crawfords (1933–1938), Alijadores de Tampico (1938–1939), Algodoneros de Unión Laguna (1940), Rojos del Águila de Veracruz (1940), Sultanes de Monterrey (1941), Memphis Red Sox (1942), Chicago American Giants (1942). Bell's career highlights and awards include: 2-time Negro World Series champ (1943, 1944), 8-time All-Star (1933–1936, 1942 (2)-1944), and a Lifetime batting average: .337 (Negro leagues). He was placedinto the Washington Nationals Ring of Honor.
