Willie Patterson

Willie Lee Patterson Jr.
(Pat, Birmingham)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 180 lb.

• Born April 1, 1919 in Americus, GA USA
• Died August 20, 2004 in Mobile, AL USA

Biographical Information

Willie Patterson played in the dying days of the Negro Leagues.

Patterson broke in with the 1950 New York Cubans as a 31-year-old backup catcher. He moved to the Birmingham Black Barons in 1951. He split 1952 between the Chicago American Giants and Philadelphia Stars. In the 1952 East-West Game, he hit 5th and played first base for the West. He went 2 for 4 with a run and two RBI in a 7-3 win. With the Memphis Red Sox a year later, he hit 6th and manned first in the 1953 East-West Game. He doubled home Hank Baylis with the tying run in the second and finished 1 for 3 with a run and a RBI before being replaced by Pancho Herrera in a 5-1 victory.

After his baseball career, Willie was a longshoreman, a member of the International Longshoreman's Union No. 1410, until his retirement in 1981. He loved to play checkers and dominoes in addition to baseball.

Sources

• The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues by James Riley
• Black Baseball's National Showcase by Larry Lester
• NLBPA obituary