Henry “Hank” Baylis (February 8, 1923 – December 17, 1980) was an American Negro league infielder in the 1940s and 1950s.

Hank Baylis
Infielder
Born: (1923-02-08)February 8, 1923
Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Died: December 17, 1989(1989-12-17) (aged 66)
Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
1948, for the Chicago American Giants
Last MLB appearance
1948, for the Chicago American Giants
MLB statistics
Batting average.429
Home runs0
Runs batted in3
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams

A native of Kansas City, Missouri, Baylis broke into the Negro leagues in 1948 with the Chicago American Giants. He went on to play for the Birmingham Black Barons the following two seasons, and finished his Negro leagues career with his hometown Kansas City Monarchs from 1951 to 1955. In 1952 and 1953, Baylis was selected to play in the East–West All-Star Game.[1] Baylis is credited with giving Mamie Johnson the nickname "Peanut" when he faced her in her first professional game for the Indianapolis Clowns in 1953; Baylis promptly struck out.[2]

In 1956 and 1957, Baylis played minor league baseball. He played for the El Paso Texans in 1956, and split time in 1957 between El Paso and the Yakima Bears and Tucson Cowboys.[3] Baylis died in Kansas City in 1980 at age 57.

References

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  1. ^ Lester, Larry (2001). Black Baseball's National Showcase: The East-West All-Star Game, 1933-1953. University of Nebraska Press. pp. 406, 412. ISBN 9780803280007.
  2. ^ "Baseball Americana". Baseball Americana. October 1, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  3. ^ "Hank Baylis". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
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