Norman Delaney Bass, Jr. (born January 21, 1939) is a former American college and professional football player and baseball player. He was a pitcher for the

Kansas City Athletics The history of the Athletics Major League Baseball franchise spans the period from 1901 to the present day, having begun as a charter member franchise in the new American League in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955 for 13 seas ...

from 1961 to 1963. A safety in football, he played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the University of the Pacific, and professionally in the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...

for the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

. Bass became an international table tennis player. His 2–sport athlete status came about because arthritis forced him to retire from baseball. His is the brother of NFL player

Dick Bass Richard Lee Bass (March 15, 1937 – February 1, 2006) was an American football running back from who played for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) from 1960 to 1969. Early life and education Born in Georgetown, Mississi ...

Baseball career

Bass pitched in 65 games (34 starts) for the

, finishing with a 13–17 record and a 5.32 career

ERA An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth. Compa ...

in his Major League career. In his rookie year with the Athletics he had 11 wins and 11 losses. Bass signed with the Athletics before the 1958 season and made his debut with the

Pocatello A's Pocatello () is the county seat of and largest city in Bannock County, Idaho, Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, Idaho, Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state o ...

. He worked his way to the major leagues, making his debut at age 22. As a hitter, he hit his lone major league home run in 1961. Bass pitched in one minor league game in 1965, a complete game victory, but his baseball career ended after that performance.

Football career

Bass played safety for the Denver Broncos in 1964 after arthritis cut short his 1964 baseball season. The Broncos were an

team that went 2–11–1 that season, with Bass playing Defensive Back and wearing uniform number 46. From 1960 to 1969, his brother,

, was a running back for the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

2–Sport athlete

Bass played both football and baseball in college and joined the Denver Broncos after he was unable pitch effectively in 1964, due to arthritis. The arthritis forced him to retire from football as well. Bass is one of the few players (there are less than 70) to play both baseball and football professionally.

Table Tennis

Bass took up table tennis in the 1970s and became a ranked player in his age groups. He played for the United States Paralympic table tennis team in 1998. He won a bronze medal at the 2000

Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

. Bass' table tennis career accomplishments led to him being elected to the Table Tennis Hall of Fame.https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Table-Tennis/History/Hall-of-Fame/Profiles/Norman-Bass-Jr

Personal

Bass was stricken with

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion or ...

at age 10 and had to be quarantined for a time after the illness almost took his life. The illness left him blind and deaf for three months. Bass followed his older brother Dick Bass in starring at Vallejo High School and attending the University of Pacific, where he was a multi–sport athlete. In signing with the

, Bass received a $4,000 signing bonus, which he used to support his young family. Norm Bass had a career working for

McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own merger with Boeing in 1997, it produ ...

, retiring after 30 years with the company. In 2005, Bass' son, Norman Delaney Bass, III, wrote a biography of his father. The book is titled "Color Him Father: An American Journey of Hope and Redemption." . Bass was elected to the Table Tennis Hall of Fame in 2018.

References

External links

Norm Bass NFL & AFL Football Statistics , Pro-Football-Reference.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bass, Norm 1939 births Living people African-American baseball players People from Laurel, Mississippi Pacific Tigers football players American football safeties Denver Broncos (AFL) players Kansas City Athletics players Pocatello Athletics players Albany Senators players Sioux City Soos players Amarillo Gold Sox players Portland Beavers players El Paso Sun Kings players Dallas Rangers players Toronto Maple Leafs (International League) players Major League Baseball pitchers Table tennis players at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Paralympic bronze medalists for the United States Pacific Tigers baseball players Baseball players from Mississippi Players of American football from Mississippi Paralympic medalists in table tennis Medalists at the 2000 Summer Paralympics Paralympic table tennis players of the United States Medalists at the 2007 Parapan American Games 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople