[3] Ruth held Ball in great respect, and because of their close friendship in baseball, he eventually became a fan of the New York Yankees.

[2] In the 1950s, an annual bowling tournament held at the Newfield Alleys near Bridgeport, Connecticut was named after Ball in order to honor the city's famous inhabitant.

[4] On February 12, 1952, at the age of 71, his health severely deteriorated due to a heart ailment and he was rushed to Bridgeport Hospital, where he was placed on the danger list and visitors were prohibited from seeing him.

Just think of the wonderful plays that Larry [Lajoie], Terry Turner and Bill Bradley have made since they have been in the major leagues, but yet they never had the chance to do what I, a utility man, a sub, did.

Ball was brought in to serve as the temporary replacement for Cleveland's injured starting shortstop Terry Turner, who suffered from a recurring arm injury that needed treatment.

[1] Although he was never famous for his defensive skills,[13] he achieved baseball history when he executed the first unassisted triple play in the MLB on July 19, 1909, doing so against the Boston Red Sox at League Park.

[2][14][15] In the second inning of the game, Ball, playing shortstop, caught Amby McConnell's line drive, stepped on second base to retire Heinie Wagner, and then tagged outfielder Jake Stahl as he was advancing towards second.

[20][21] He refused to play for the minor league team and this, coupled with the underperformance of the infielders brought in to replace him, resulted in the Naps repurchasing his contract.

He made a one-handed stop against the Chicago White Sox that was described as "marvelous" by The New York Times[23] and held the Yankees (his former team) to a 3–3 draw when Ball, serving as the cut-off man, successfully relayed the ball thrown from right fielder Shoeless Joe Jackson to catcher Gus Fisher.

In doing so, he nailed Birdie Cree (who represented the Yankees' winning run) at home plate and the game was immediately suspended due to darkness.

[24] However, in a rematch against the White Sox on May 5, 1912, Ball suffered a momentary defensive lapse that ultimately cost his team the game.

[30] Most notably, in May 1916, he was traded by the Toronto Maple Leafs to his hometown team, the Bridgeport Hustlers of the Eastern League, and became both their manager and second baseman.