William Dale Goodman was an American Major League Baseball infielder who played 16 seasons for the Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, and Houston Colt.
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29 Facts About Billy Goodman
2.
Billy Goodman was inducted posthumously into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in November 2004.
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3.
Billy Goodman was an outstanding hitter and fielder, he was one of the most versatile players of his era.
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4.
Billy Goodman played every position in the major leagues except catcher and pitcher and was an All-Star for two seasons.
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5.
Billy Goodman was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1969.
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6.
Billy Goodman was born in Concord, North Carolina, and played Textile League baseball in Concord before signing with the Atlanta Crackers of the Southern Association in 1944 at just eighteen years old.
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7.
Billy Goodman left baseball temporarily, serving in the United States Navy during World War II in 1945.
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8.
Billy Goodman entered his first Spring training battling Sam Mele for the open right field job.
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9.
Billy Goodman spent the spring with the Red Sox in 1947 playing in 12 games, 2 in the outfield, and 10 filling in at second base for an injured Bobby Doerr, He made his first start as a Major League third baseman on May 20,1948.
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10.
Billy Goodman's first Major League home run, and only home run of the season, was a grand slam off the Detroit Tigers' Virgil Trucks.
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11.
Billy Goodman was named to the first of two American League All-Star rosters in 1949, and appeared during the bottom of the 8th inning of the All-Star Game as a defensive replacement for Washington Senators first baseman Eddie Robinson.
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12.
Early in the 1950 season, Billy Goodman suffered a chip fracture in his left ankle that cost him a month of play.
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13.
Billy Goodman found himself without a starting position upon his return injuries to Bobby Doerr and third baseman Johnny Pesky kept Billy Goodman in the line-up semi-regularly.
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14.
Billy Goodman began the season playing first base when Dropo fractured his right wrist.
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15.
Billy Goodman was elected to start the All-Star Game as a second baseman that season despite being sidelined for a month by one of the more bizarre baseball injuries.
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16.
In 1954, Billy Goodman returned to his "jack of all trades" role with the Bosox.
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17.
Billy Goodman moved to left field when Ted Williams was sidelined by a virus infection in his right lung.
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18.
Billy Goodman had a starting job at second base again in 1955, and led the team with 100 runs scored while logging a team high 719 plate appearances.
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19.
Billy Goodman began losing playing time to Ted Lepcio at second base toward the end of the 1956 season.
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20.
Billy Goodman was relegated to pinch hitting duties early in the 1957 season before a mid-season trade sent him to the Baltimore Orioles for pitcher Mike Fornieles.
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21.
Billy Goodman was immediately inserted into the starting line-up in Baltimore, and hit a home run in his first game as an Oriole.
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22.
Billy Goodman mostly played third base, filling in for an injured George Kell, but played first, second, short, left field and right field.
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23.
At 33 years old at the start of the 1959 season, Billy Goodman was used in a lefty-righty platoon with Bubba Phillips at third base.
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24.
Billy Goodman went two-for-three in game three, and was hit by a pitch in the eighth inning to load the bases with the White Sox down by two runs.
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25.
Billy Goodman managed the Cocoa Astros of the Florida State League in 1965.
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26.
Billy Goodman became a scout for the Red Sox in 1966, then an instructor in the Kansas City Athletics organization in 1967 before moving over to the Atlanta Braves' organization in 1968, serving as first-base coach on the Braves Major League staff through 1970.
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28.
Billy Goodman died on October 1,1984 after a year-long battle with cancer.
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29.
Billy Goodman's best playing position according to fielding percentage was.
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