Johnny Ritchey

John Ritchey
Catcher
Born: (1923-01-05)January 5, 1923 San Diego, California
Died: January 14, 2003(2003-01-14) (aged 80) Chula Vista, California
Batted: Left Threw: Right
Teams
Chicago American Giants (1947)
Career highlights and awards
Negro leagues batting champ (1947) Breitbard Hall of Fame induction (2017)

John Franklin Ritchey (January 5, 1923 – January 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball catcher. Listed at 5' 10" (1.78 m) tall, weighing 180 lb. (82 k), he batted left-handed and threw right-handed.^[1]

Ritchey is recognized as one of the first African American men to play Minor League Baseball in the twentieth century, as he won batting titles in both the Negro leagues and Minor Leagues.^[2] Moreover, he was the first black player to perform in the Pacific Coast League in 32 years, when pitcher Jimmy Claxton passed as part Native American in 1916.^[3] Even though Ritchey never sought any laurels for integrating the PCL, he is commemorated with a bronze bust in Petco Park.^[3]

Biography

Ritchey was born and raised in San Diego, California, as the youngest son of a famed athletic family.^[4] At an early age, he learned to play baseball with blacks and whites integrated at San Diego High School and in youth leagues in the area, as his teammates dubbed him Johnny Baseball for his passion and enthusiasm for the game.^[2]

As a high school student from 1938 through 1940, Ritchey was a three-year letterman and played in the school team under coach Mike Morrow. In the same period, he also played for three years with American Legion Baseball clubs, also coached by Morrow.^[4] At age 15, Ritchey and another black player, Nelson Manuel, starred on the Post Six American Legion squad that won the Junior World Series held at Spartanburg, South Carolina in 1938, even though neither could play in the tournament because in Spartanburg they did not allow blacks to share the game field with white players.^[2] Two years later, the Post 6 club, again led by Ritchey and Manuel, returned to the American Legion finals held in North Carolina. The two boys were allowed to play in the semifinals in Shelby, NC. When the team advanced to the finals in Albemarle, NC, Legion officials asked that the players be kept on the bench. Without two of their top players, San Diego lost the championship series to Albemarle, two games to three.^[2]

After high school, Ritchey enrolled at

In 1947, Ritchey made his professional debut with the Chicago American Giants of the Negro American League. He posted a .381 batting average to lead the circuit, edging Birmingham Black Barons star shortstop Artie Wilson by just .008, as Jackie Robinson was making history and breaking the Color Barrier in Major League Baseball. Ritchey made history soon later, becoming the first ever African American to play in the Pacific Coast League.^[3]

With the color barrier already broken by Robinson, the

Ritchey came back to Vancouver in 1952 and hit .343/.504/.447 in 137 games, including career-highs with 96 runs, eight triples and 27 stolen bases, once more receiving again more walks than strikeouts (144 to 30). He almost repeated as batting champion, losing the title just by .009 points.^[7][11]

After that, Ritchey had a second stint in the PCL, playing three seasons for the

In between, Ritchey played winter ball with the Navegantes del Magallanes of the Venezuelan League in the 1948–49 and 1949–50 seasons.^[12] Overall. he hit .347 and slugged .469 during the two seasons.^[12] He also played three consecutive campaigns in the Mexican Pacific League, performing for the Ostioneros de Guaymas (1951–52), Naranjeros de Hermosillo (1952–53) and Tacuarineros de Culiacán (1953–54), batting .341 for Culiacán.^[13]

Ritchie spent his final season in the

After retiring from baseball, Ritchie returned to San Diego, where he and his wife Martina raised their three children. He got a job delivering milk for the Continental Baking Company, the maker of the Twinkie and Wonder Bread.^[1]

Ritchey later moved to Chula Vista, California where he died in 2003, nine days after his 80th birthday.^[1]

Throughout his playing days, Ritchey also remained a dedicated family man. When a reporter asked him whether he took his wife and infant daughter to Venezuela with him in the winter of 1948, he replied, "I take them everywhere I go."^[1]

According to preeminent baseball historian William Swank, "He just wanted to play baseball and be judged on his ability and not the color of his skin".^[1] Speaking at Ritchey's funeral, Swank relayed to mourners a conversation the two of them had not long before Ritchey's death. "I told Johnny," Swank recalled, "'I know you never made it to the Major Leagues, but you're going into the Major Leagues now. One way or another, your bust is going into that new ballpark they're building in downtown San Diego."^[1]

In 2005, the San Diego Padres unveiled the bust in the PCL Bar & Grill at Petco Park along the first base line.^[1] Other recognition came in 2017, when Ritchey gained induction into the Breitbard Hall of Fame.^[6]

References