Cool Papa Bell: Fast man in baseball

It is the birthday of baseball legend James Thomas “Cool Papa” Bell (1903), one of the fastest players in the game. He played in the Negro Leagues, where he began in 1922 as a pitcher for the St. Louis Stars but eventually moved to center field, where he could play close in and still was fast enough to catch hits behind him. As a baserunner he was legendary. Satchel Paige told a story about him that may have been a tall tale: “One time, he hit a line drive right past my ear. I turned around and saw the ball hit his rear end as he slid into second.” He was a power hitter with a .400 record for several seasons. The Sporting News ranked him one of the 100 greatest players in baseball. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.