Ray Dandridge

Raymond Emmitt Dandridge (August 31, 1913 – February 12, 1994), nicknamed "Hooks" and "Squat", was an American third baseman in baseball's Negro leagues.

He focused on baseball, often playing with a bat improvised from a tree branch and a golf ball wrapped in string and tape.

While with the Eagles, Dandridge was part of the "Million Dollar Infield" that also consisted of Dick Seay, Mule Suttles, and Willie Wells.

[2] Pasquel died the next year in a plane crash, prompting Dandridge to return to the United States as a player-manager for the New York Cubans.

[2] Although more than capable of playing in the majors, he never got the call to the big leagues, instead spending the last years of his career as the premier player in Triple-A baseball, batting .362 and leading all American Association third basemen in fielding percentage in 1949.

After retiring from playing in 1955, Dandridge worked as a scout for the San Francisco Giants and later ran a recreation center in Newark, New Jersey.

Plaque of Ray Dandridge at the Baseball Hall of Fame