Lorenzo Piper Davis Biography

Lorenzo “Piper” Davis

a star infielder and manager for the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues; helped develop the future superstar Willie Mays; received the nickname Piper for his birthplace, Piper, Ala., played first, second and shortstop for the Black Barons in the early 1940's and managed the team in 1948–49; became the first black player signed by the Red Sox organization in 1950, assigned to Class A but was never called up and never made it to the major leagues; he also played basketball with the Harlem Globetrotters, was a baseball scout in the 1970's and 1980's; of a heart attack