Wilmer Fields
Encyclopedia
Wilmer Leon Fields was a pitcher
and third baseman
in baseball
's Negro Leagues
. Wilmer was often referred to as "Red" or Wilmer "The Great" Fields.
Fields was born in Manassas, Virginia
.
at Virginia State University
in Petersburg
but left school when he was recruited to play for the Washington Homestead Grays
in 1939
.
The Grays were one of the finest teams in the Negro League, winning nine league championships before folding in the wake of desegregated professional baseball. The Grays played many of their home games at the old Griffith Stadium
in Washington, D.C.
and some in Homestead, a neighborhood of Pittsburgh
. After Jackie Robinson
joined the Brooklyn Dodgers
in 1947
and broke the color line
in Major League Baseball
, the Negro Leagues began to shutter.
service in Europe
during World War II
.
an unprecedented eight times in various baseball leagues. Fields, who also had been an outfielder
and third baseman, accepted offers from teams in Latin America
, the Toronto Maple Leafs of the AAA International League
in 1952 and the competitive Intercounty Baseball League
in southwestern Ontario
, Canada
(Brantford Red Sox
in 1951).
As an outfielder for the Cervecería Caracas club in the Venezuelan Winter League, Fields helped his team to win the championship title in the 1951-52 season en route to the Caribbean World Series
. He won the batting
title with 74 hits
in 207 at bat
for a .357 BA
; led the league in RBI
(45), runs
(48), hits and doubles
(21), and was second in home run
s (8). In the series, Fields won the home runs (2), RBI (7) and hits (9) titles, and finished second in BA (.333).
Fields was also named as part of the All-Time All-Star Team for the Indios de Mayagüez
of the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League
.
players. The athletic genes were passed to his son, who attended Providence College on a full Basketball scholarship.
Wilmer Fields died of a heart ailment at his home in Manassas, Virginia
. He was 81.
for his playing days with the Brantford Red Sox
of the Intercounty Baseball League
in 1951.
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
and third baseman
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...
in baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
's Negro Leagues
Negro league baseball
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams predominantly made up of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in...
. Wilmer was often referred to as "Red" or Wilmer "The Great" Fields.
Fields was born in Manassas, Virginia
Manassas, Virginia
The City of Manassas is an independent city surrounded by Prince William County and the independent city of Manassas Park in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Its population was 37,821 as of 2010. Manassas also surrounds the county seat for Prince William County but that county...
.
Recruited to play for the Homestead Grays
At 6-foot 3-inches and 220 pounds (100 kg), Fields played quarterbackQuarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
at Virginia State University
Virginia State University
Virginia State University is a historically black and land-grant university located north of the Appomattox River in Chesterfield, in the Richmond area. Founded on , Virginia State was the United States's first fully state-supported four-year institution of higher learning for black Americans...
in Petersburg
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...
but left school when he was recruited to play for the Washington Homestead Grays
Homestead Grays
The Homestead Grays were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and would remain in continuous operation for 38 seasons. The team was based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, adjacent to Pittsburgh.-Franchise...
in 1939
1939 in baseball
-Headline Event of the Year:*On May 17, 1939, Princeton University and Columbia University played the first televised baseball game. On August 26, the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers played the first televised Major League Baseball game...
.
The Grays were one of the finest teams in the Negro League, winning nine league championships before folding in the wake of desegregated professional baseball. The Grays played many of their home games at the old Griffith Stadium
Griffith Stadium
Griffith Stadium was a sports stadium that stood in Washington, D.C. from 1911 to 1965, between Georgia Avenue and 5th Street, and between W Street and Florida Avenue, NW. An earlier wooden baseball park had been built on the same site in 1891...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and some in Homestead, a neighborhood of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. After Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...
joined the Brooklyn Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
in 1947
1947 in sports
-American football:* Chicago Cardinals beat the Philadelphia Eagles 28-21 to win the NFL championship.-Association football:England* First Division – Liverpool win the 1946-47 title.* FA Cup – Charlton Athletic beat Burnley 1-0 after extra time...
and broke the color line
Baseball color line
The color line in American baseball excluded players of black African descent from Organized Baseball, or the major leagues and affiliated minor leagues, until Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization for the 1946 season...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
, the Negro Leagues began to shutter.
Service in the U.S. Army
Fields's 11-year career with the Grays was interrupted -- but hardly harmed -- by ArmyUnited States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
service in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Played baseball throughout the Americas
Returning from the War, he found 1946 his best year as a right-handed pitcher. He was part of eight championship teams and was selected as Most Valuable PlayerMost Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
an unprecedented eight times in various baseball leagues. Fields, who also had been an outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
and third baseman, accepted offers from teams in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, the Toronto Maple Leafs of the AAA International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
in 1952 and the competitive Intercounty Baseball League
Intercounty Baseball League
The Intercounty Baseball League is a semi-professional baseball organization located in the Canadian province of Ontario. The league was formed in 1919....
in southwestern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
(Brantford Red Sox
Brantford Red Sox
The Brantford Red Sox are an independent, minor league baseball team of the, semi-pro, Intercounty Baseball League based in Brantford, Ontario. They play their home games at Arnold Anderson Stadium.-History:...
in 1951).
As an outfielder for the Cervecería Caracas club in the Venezuelan Winter League, Fields helped his team to win the championship title in the 1951-52 season en route to the Caribbean World Series
Caribbean World Series
The Caribbean Series , also called the Caribbean World Series is the highest baseball tournament at club level in Latin America. The league winners from the Winter Leagues of Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela participate in the tournament...
. He won the batting
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
title with 74 hits
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....
in 207 at bat
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...
for a .357 BA
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
; led the league in RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...
(45), runs
Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured...
(48), hits and doubles
Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice....
(21), and was second in home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s (8). In the series, Fields won the home runs (2), RBI (7) and hits (9) titles, and finished second in BA (.333).
Fields was also named as part of the All-Time All-Star Team for the Indios de Mayagüez
Indios de Mayagüez
The Indios de Mayagüez are a baseball team in the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League . Normally based in Mayagüez, the Indios have won 16 national championships and two Caribbean World Series...
of the Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League
Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League
The Puerto Rico Baseball League formerly known as Liga de Béisbol Profesional de Puerto Rico or LBPPR, is the main professional baseball league in Puerto Rico. In 2007, the LBPPR recessed for the first time since its creation...
.
After baseball
Fields left baseball in 1958 and initially took a job as a bricklayer's helper. Disappointed by the low pay, he found more promising work as an alcohol counselor with the District government. His work took him to reform schools and prisons. At the Lorton Correctional Complex, he organized baseball games between inmates and young Prince William CountyPrince William County, Virginia
-National protected areas:* Featherstone National Wildlife Refuge* Manassas National Battlefield Park* Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge* Prince William Forest Park-Government and politics:...
players. The athletic genes were passed to his son, who attended Providence College on a full Basketball scholarship.
Negro Leagues Baseball Players Association
He retired in the mid-1980s, worked briefly as a security guard and then became part of the new Negro League Baseball Players Association. As president since the mid-1990s, Fields organized autograph shows and held benefit auctions to raise money for many of his former colleagues from the diamond. He also wrote a memoir, My Life in the Negro Leagues (1992).Wilmer Fields died of a heart ailment at his home in Manassas, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. He was 81.
Black Hockey and Sports Hall Of Fame
Fields was inducted posthumously into the Black Hockey and Sports Hall of Fame along with 19 other Black athletes in August 2006 in Dartmouth, Nova ScotiaDartmouth, Nova Scotia
Dartmouth founded in 1750, is a community and planning area of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour, Dartmouth has been nicknamed the City of Lakes after the large number of lakes located in the city.On April 1, 1996, the provincial...
for his playing days with the Brantford Red Sox
Brantford Red Sox
The Brantford Red Sox are an independent, minor league baseball team of the, semi-pro, Intercounty Baseball League based in Brantford, Ontario. They play their home games at Arnold Anderson Stadium.-History:...
of the Intercounty Baseball League
Intercounty Baseball League
The Intercounty Baseball League is a semi-professional baseball organization located in the Canadian province of Ontario. The league was formed in 1919....
in 1951.