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Lee Moody

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American baseball player Baseball player
Lee Moody
First baseman
Born: (1917-05-14)May 14, 1917
East St. Louis, Illinois
Died: July 4, 1998(1998-07-04) (aged 81)
Ferguson, Missouri
Batted: RightThrew: Right
Negro league baseball debut
1944, for the Kansas City Monarchs
Last appearance
1947, for the Birmingham Black Barons
Teams
 Minor Leagues/Independent
 Negro Major Leagues

Leicester Moody (May 14, 1917 – July 4, 1998) was an American Negro league first baseman in the 1940s.

Playing career

Kansas City Monarchs

1944

Lee Moody first broke into the Negro Leagues in 1944 with the Kansas City Monarchs as an outfielder, hitting .267 in 106 league at bats.

1945

When the Monarchs' regular first baseman Buck O'Neil left the team to serve in the United States Navy during World War II, Moody was quickly moved to first base. Moody appeared in 42 league games at his new position, hitting .331 with a .411 slugging percentage. Hitting aside, he attracted attention for his strong defensive play in the infield, teaming up with rookie Jackie Robinson.

1946

Moody began the season in Kansas City, primarily as a backup middle infielder before moving to the Birmingham Black Barons.

1947

The Monarchs brought Moody back again to battle with Chico Renfroe for the starting shortstop job. He made only three appearances in a Monarchs uniform before moving to Birmingham again.

1948-1950

Moody returned to the Monarchs in 1948, joining them on a barnstorming tours but not appearing in any recorded league games. In addition to barnstorming with the Monarchs, he was a member of the Kansas City Stars, a farm club of the Monarchs managed by Cool Papa Bell.

Birmingham Black Barons

1946

Moody was acquired by the Black Barons midway through the 1946 season for additional depth in left field. He hit just .182 with Birmingham, though combined with his time on the Monarchs earlier in the season Moody is credited with a total .375 batting average in recorded league play.

1947

Following another brief trial with the Monarchs in early 1947, Moody joined the Black Barons for a second stint. In his last recorded season at the top level of the Negro Leagues, Moody hit .224 as the club's starting first baseman.

California Winter League

In 1946 Moody participated in the integrated California Winter League as a member of Chet Brewer's Kansas City Royals.

Minor Leagues

Cairo Dodgers

In 1950, Moody played for the Class D Cairo Dodgers of the Kentucky-Illinois-Tennessee League, hitting .279 in 38 games.

Trois-Rivieres Royals

Now 34 years old, Moody moved up to Class C in 1951, hitting .242 in 60 games with the Trois-Rivieres Royals. Moody retired from baseball following the 1951 campaign.

Death and legacy

Lee Moody died in Ferguson, Missouri in 1998 at age 81. He was inducted into the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame in 1993.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Lee Moody". seamheads.com. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  2. ^ Riley, James (1994). The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues. Carroll & Graf. ISBN 9780786700653.
  3. "1946 Kansas City Monarchs - Seamheads Negro Leagues Database". www.seamheads.com. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  4. "Bid For Monarch Berths". The Kansas City Star. April 20, 1947. Retrieved May 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Famous Monarch Nine Loses 9-8 to Atwater Packers". Atwater Signal. Atwater, CA. August 13, 1948 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Kansas City Stars Play House of David Tonight". Sioux City Journal. Sioux City, IA – via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum: Personal Profiles: James "Cool Papa" Bell". nlbemuseum.com. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  8. "Chicago Giants Show Birmingham Boys in Rickwood Bill". The Birmingham News. August 1, 1946. Retrieved May 14, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "1947 Birmingham Black Barons - Seamheads Negro Leagues Database". www.seamheads.com. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  10. McNeil, William (2008). The California Winter League : America's first integrated professional baseball league. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3881-5. OCLC 429680785.
  11. ^ "Lee Moody Negro & Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
  12. "Obituary for Leicester "Lee" Moody". St. Louis Post-Dispatch – via Newspapers.com.

External links

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