DICK "CANNONBALL" REDDING
"When Cannonball Dick Redding threw at you, you started to lean back and then dived forward. I mean you left your hat in the air." Jake Stephens, Negro League shortstop.
Born in 1891, Dick Redding was one of the best and fastest pitchers in all of baseball during the Teens and Twenties. As a teenager, the Atlanta-born right hander played semi pro ball in Georgia, where he was discovered and signed by the barnstorming Philadelphia Giants in 1911. They took him north, and awing his rookie year he went over to the Lincoln Giants, one of the stronger clubs of that era. He soon had tounges wagging about the 17 straight wins he amassed. Only 21 years old in his second season, he was already being compared to the reigning stike-out king of his league, Smokey Joe Williams A more apt comparison would be to major leaguer Smokey Joe Wood, who was also young, fast and had a career year in 1912---34-5 for Wood, 43-12 for Redding, who also fired seven no-hitters, one a 17 strikeout perfect game. Although that was his finest season, he had many more great ones, including 1915, when, pitching for the Lincoln Giants, he won 20 consecutive games against Negro Leaguers and barnstorming major leaguers By 1917, he had moved on to the legendary Chicago American Giants, a club that had future Hall of Famers Rube Foster, Pop Lloyd and Oscar Charleston, as well as Bingo de Moss, the fantastic catcher Bruce Petwav, pitching star Frank Wickware, and slugger Pete Hill. In World War One, Redding saw combat duty with his segregated unit in France, then bounced around with several clubs upon his return. He settled in Atlantic City from 1919-22, where he managed, pitched and played the outfield for the Bacharch Giants. From there he moved up to Brooklyn, where he stayed with the Brooklyn Royal Giants for the remainder of his career, 1923-38. As well as pitching, he managed the club and signed and developed such future stars as Buck Leonard, Gene Benson and a seven foot tall first baseman named Highpockets Hudspeth. He developed a hesitation pitch long before Satchel Paige had one, although his was a little different. He would turn his back to the batter for a couple seconds, while balancing on his right foot. Then he'd let go with a high hard one. The crowd-pleasing gesture took absolutely nothing off his fastball.Leave feedback on our message board.