Born in Salix, Iowa, he played minor league baseball in Fairbury, Nebraska, and Petersburg, Virginia, before signing with the Philadelphia Athletics.

[3] Black was selected for the 1942 Virginia League All-Star game, though did not attend as, instead, he was at the hospital where his wife gave birth to their second child, a daughter.

Black made his major league debut on April 24, 1943, and was in the Athletics' starting rotation most of the season.

[8] Black remained in the starting rotation at the beginning of the 1944 Philadelphia Athletics season, despite the possibility of him being drafted into the United States Army for World War II.

[12] He started the season being considered the ace of the staff, as the others in the rotation were either battling injury or not yet fully conditioned.

[16] Connie Mack later stated he regretfully fired him due to his alcohol use, leading to him not being dependable as a pitcher.

[4] Black began the 1946 Cleveland Indians season as a member of the roster, looking to see playing time in an established starting rotation.

His season began inauspiciously when he was hit on the chin with a ball, causing him to miss a week during spring training.

[19] At the conclusion of the season, Indians owner Bill Veeck had a talk with Black, who admitted he had a problem with drunkenness.

[20] He agreed to spend the winter with Alcoholics Anonymous with Veek's help, and by the time the 1947 Cleveland Indians season began, Black was sober.

There was optimism in the Indians clubhouse regarding his talent, with manager Lou Boudreau saying that Black was "a leading candidate for one of our starting jobs.

"[21] In his first pitching appearance of the season against the Detroit Tigers, a tough 5–3 victory, someone in the press box said, "I wonder what he'd give for a slug of bourbon", to which he replied, "All I wanted in that situation was a fresh stick of chewing gum.

[8] At the end of the season, he was planning to play in the Cuban Winter League along with fellow Indians Bob Feller and Al López,[25] though this did not eventuate.

During the off-season, Black returned to his hometown of Salix, where he was given a key to the city and made honorary mayor for a day.

[27] After signing a new contract, Black earned his first victory of 1948 on May 23 in a doubleheader against the New York Yankees, winning 5–1 in the second game.

[29] He missed some playing time in June as the result of a bone chip in his left big toe, suffered during batting practice.

During the height of the 1948 pennant race, on September 13 in Cleveland, Black suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while batting in the second inning during a home game against the St. Louis Browns.

[35] The Indians went on to defeat the Red Sox in a one-game playoff for the American League pennant and the Boston Braves in six games in the 1948 World Series as Black recovered in the hospital.

[40] After pitching with the Indians in Florida in spring training, he returned to Cleveland and decided to retire temporarily, citing that he felt too weak to be effective.