Meet Joe Black

Here's a quick post concerning a belated birthday gift to myself. This will probably be the last addition to my 1956 Topps set for a while, at least until my COMC order arrives sometime in the next month or so (I hope.)

I had this Joe Black card on my eBay watchlist on the off chance that the $25 coupon code worked a second(third?) time. It didn't, and so I expected to keep an eye on it until I sold some things and filled up enough PayPal cash to grab it at $27.50. 

Then two things happened at once: I got so caught up in cleaning the house and sorting through my expendable cards/memorabilia that I didn't have the energy to list anything for sale. And of course the seller discounted this card to $25. I decided to just Buy It Now and pay myself back later ;-)

Joe Black was born and raised in nearby Plainfield, NJ. He played several years with the Baltimore Elite Giants of the Negro Leagues before earning a role as Brooklyn's top reliefer in 1952. Black started and won game 1 of the 1952 World Series, becoming the first African-American pitcher to win a Fall Classic contest. (Who said wins are meaningless?)

15 wins and 15 saves were enough to earn Black NL Rookie of the Year honors over another bullpen ace, Hoyt Wilhelm. Joe finished third in NL MVP voting behind Hank Sauer and Robin Roberts in a close vote. 

Unfortunately that was the peak of Black's career. His sharp decline shortly after that 1952 season resulted in his trade to Cincinnati, and his career ended in 1957.

Joe Black died at age 78 in 2002. A few years ago I noticed that his Baseball-Reference page lists his final resting place as Hillside Cemetery in Scotch Plains, NJ. I was working in Scotch Plains at the time, right across from a cemetery. I asked my father-in-law (who visited every cemetery in NJ researching his Civil War book) if the cemetery I walked by every day was Hillside. Pop told me it was not; Hillside was on the other side of town.

Black signed for Fleer and Topps prior to his passing. This 2001 Fleer Greats of the Game on-card auto is going on my wantlist:

Do you know of any major leaguers born or buried in your area?

Thanks for reading!



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