Preacher Henry

Leo Henry

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 5", Weight 148 lb.

• Debut 1938
• Final Game 1948
• Born March 10, 1911 in Inverness, FL USA
• Died May 16, 1992 in Jacksonville, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Preacher Henry was a Negro League pitcher for nine years.

Henry got his start with the Jacksonville Red Caps in 1938. He had his best season with the 1939 Cleveland Bears, when the little right-hander went 9-2 with a 3.03 RA; he was second in the Negro American League in RA behind Smoky Owens. Henry fell to 4-6 in 1940. He was 4-2 with Jacksonville in 1941.

Preacher got 172,906 votes for the 1941 East-West Game, third among pitchers behind Satchel Paige and Hilton Smith. He relieved Double Duty Radcliffe in the 4th inning of the game with a 8-1 deficit and two outs. He gave up a single to Monte Irvin, who stole second and took third on a throwing error by catcher Larry Brown before Henry whiffed Roy Campanella. In the 5th, Rabbit Martinez singled, Dick Seay hit into a force, Dave Barnhill (the opposing hurler) singled, Henry Kimbro hit into a force and Pancho Coimbre flew out. Henry was relieved by Dan Bankhead for the 6th.

Henry was 0-1 with Jacksonville in 1942 and 1-0 for the Cincinnati Clowns in 1943. He served in the US Army in 1944-1945, then returned to go 0-5 for the Indianapolis Clowns over 1946 and 1947. He also appeared with Indianapolis in 1951.

Notable Achievements

• NAL All-Star (1941)
• NAL Games Pitched Leader (1940)
• NAL Innings Pitched Leader (1940)
• NAL Complete Games Leader (1940)
• NAL Shutouts Leader (1939)

Sources

• The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues by John Holway
• The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues by James Riley
• Black Baseball's National Showcase by Larry Lester