Don Black

Who was Don Black?

Donald Paul Black was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for six seasons in the American League with the Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians. In 154 career games, Black pitched 797 innings and posted a win-loss record of 34–55, with 37 complete games, four shutouts, and a 4.35 earned run average.

Born in Salix, Iowa, he played minor league baseball in Fairbury, Nebraska, and Petersburg, Virginia, before signing with the Philadelphia Athletics. He played with them for three seasons before being released. Black signed with the Cleveland Indians at the end of 1945, and after a season with them joined Alcoholics Anonymous. After completing the program, he played two more seasons with Cleveland, pitching a no-hitter on July 10, 1947. On September 13, 1948, Black suffered a cerebral hemorrhage on the field, which marked the end of his professional career. After a comeback attempt, Black went on to become a sports announcer and salesman. He died in 1959.