Lloyd "Pepper" Bassett (August 5, 1910 – December 28, 1980) was an American

baseball catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catche ...

in the

Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

and the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

. He played professionally from 1934 to 1954, playing mainly with the

Birmingham Black Barons The Birmingham Black Barons were a Negro league baseball team that played from 1920 until 1960. They shared their home field of Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama, with the white Birmingham Barons, usually drawing larger crowds and equal pres ...

; he was All-Star seven times. Bassett was 15 years old when began his career in 1934 with the minor league

New Orleans Crescent Stars The New Orleans Crescent Stars were an independent Negro league baseball club that existed from 1933 to 1934. The New Orleans team helped produce several players as Pepper Bassett, Gene Bremer, Lloyd Davenport, Harry Else, Barney Morris, Tom P ...

; while playing for New Orleans, he suggested to the team owner that as a stunt to draw a larger audience, he should catch some games while sitting in a

rocking chair A rocking chair or rocker is a type of chair with two curved bands (also known as rockers) attached to the bottom of the legs, connecting the legs on each side to each other. The rockers contact the floor at only two points, giving the occupant ...

; the stunt was a success, and he would occasionally resort to that stunt throughout his career. During the

1944 Negro World Series In the 1944 Negro World Series, the Washington Homestead Grays, champions of the Negro National League were matched against the Birmingham Black Barons, champions of the Negro American League, for the second year in a row. The Grays won the seri ...

, Bassett was injured in a car accident, along with Tommy Sampson, John Britton, and

Leandy Young Leandy "Lee" Young (June 10, 1909 – February 4, 1997) was an American baseball outfielder in the Negro leagues. He played from 1940 to 1946. During the 1944 Negro World Series In the 1944 Negro World Series, the Washington Homestead Grays, cha ...

References

External links

an
Baseball-Reference Black Baseball stats
an
Seamheads

Baseball players from Louisiana Mexican League baseball players Birmingham Black Barons players Chicago American Giants players Cincinnati Clowns players Philadelphia Stars players Pittsburgh Crawfords players Homestead Grays players New Orleans Crescent Stars players 1910 births 1980 deaths 20th-century African-American sportspeople Baseball catchers {{Negro-league-baseball-catcher-stub