Richard William Seay (November 30, 1904 – April 6, 1981) was an American
Negro league baseball player who played from 1925 to 1947 for the
Brooklyn Royal Giants
The Brooklyn Royal Giants were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 1905 by John Wilson Connor (1875–1926), owner of the Brooklyn Royal Cafe, the team initially played against white semi-pro teams. ...
,
Newark Stars,
Baltimore Black Sox
The Baltimore Black Sox were a professional Negro league baseball team active between 1913 and 1936, based in Baltimore, Maryland.
Founding
The Black Sox started as an independent team in 1913 by Howard Young. They were one of the original six ...
,
Philadelphia Stars,
Newark Eagles
The Newark Eagles were a professional Negro league baseball team which played in the Negro National League from 1936 to 1948. They were owned by Abe and Effa Manley.
History
Formation
The Newark Eagles were formed in 1936 when the Newark Do ...
,
Pittsburgh Crawfords
The Pittsburgh Crawfords, popularly known as the Craws, were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team, previously known as the Crawford Colored Giants, was named after the Crawford Bath House, a recre ...
, and
New York Black Yankees
The New York Black Yankees were a professional Negro league baseball team based in New York City; Paterson, New Jersey; and Rochester, New York. Beginning as the independent Harlem Stars, the team was renamed the New York Black Yankees in 1932 and ...
.
Seay was born in
West New York, New Jersey
West New York is a town in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 52,912. The Census Bureau's Population Estimat ...
, and died in
Jersey City, New Jersey. He started his baseball career with the independent
Pennsylvania Red Caps of New York The Pennsylvania Red Caps of New York were an independent baseball club that played in the Negro leagues during 12 seasons spanning 1916–1934.
The title of this team had little to do with the state of Pennsylvania, but it did have a close connect ...
, where he played
shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...
alongside second baseman
Chino Smith. Both Seay and Smith went to play professionally in the Negro leagues. Seay also served in the military during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
from 1943 to 1944.
While a player with the Eagles, Seay was part of the "Million Dollar Infield," consisting of Seay,
Ray Dandridge
Raymond Emmitt Dandridge (August 31, 1913 – February 12, 1994), nicknamed "Hooks" and "Squat", was an American third baseman in baseball's Negro leagues. Dandridge excelled as a third baseman and he hit for a high batting average. By the time t ...
,
Mule Suttles
George "Mule" Suttles (March 31, 1901 – July 9, 1966) was an American first baseman and outfielder in Negro league baseball, most prominently with the Birmingham Black Barons, St. Louis Stars and Newark Eagles. Best known for his power hitting ...
, and
Willie Wells
Willie James Wells (August 10, 1906 – January 22, 1989), nicknamed "The Devil," was an American baseball player. He was a shortstop who played from 1924 to 1948 for various teams in the Negro leagues and in Latin America.
Wells was a fast ...
.
References
External links
an
Baseball-Reference Black Baseball statsan
Seamheads
1904 births
1981 deaths
American military personnel of World War II
Baltimore Black Sox players
Baseball players from New Jersey
Brooklyn Royal Giants players
New York Black Yankees players
Newark Eagles players
Newark Stars players
Pennsylvania Red Caps of New York players
Philadelphia Stars players
Pittsburgh Crawfords players
People from West New York, New Jersey
Sportspeople from Hudson County, New Jersey
20th-century African-American sportspeople
African Americans in World War II
Baseball infielders
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