Wilmer Leon Fields (August 2, 1922 – June 4, 2004) was an American baseball player who was a household name in the Negro leagues and other baseball circuits between the 1940s and 1950s. Born in Manassas, Virginia, Fields was a versatile two-way player in the Negro leagues, and also played in Canada and several Latin American leagues, including Mexico, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Cuba, Panama, Colombia, and the Dominican Republic. In most leagues he was a pitcher, but played at third base or outfield in games when he was not scheduled to pitch. His consistent batting and pitching skills helped him capture the Most Valuable Player award on many occasions throughout the course of his distinguished career. Fields possessed a running fastball complemented by a curve, a slider and eventually a knuckler, and he had average control of his pitches. He was often referred to as ″Red″, ″Bill″, or ″Chinky″. Professional career Negro leagues At 6-foot 3-inches (1.92 m) and 220 pounds (100 kg), Fields played quarterback at Virginia State University in Petersburg, but left school when he was recruited to play for the Homestead Grays Negro league club in 1939. He spent his entire Negro league career with the Grays, but continued his college education in the off-seasons while also playing football and basketball. The Grays were one of the finest teams in the Negro league, winning nine league championships before folding in the wake of desegregated professional baseball. They played many of their home games at the old Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C. and some in Homestead, a neighborhood of Pittsburgh. After Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1947 season and broke the color line in Major League Baseball, the Negro leagues struggled, starting to die off. In 1940 Fields joined the Grays at the age of 17, showing records of 2–1, 13-5 and 15–3 in his first three seasons, but his promising career was interrupted —but hardly harmed— by Army service in Europe during World War II. Following his discharge in 1946, Fields posted a record of 72–17 record over the next five seasons, compiling a stunning record of 102 wins and 26 losses during his eight years in the league, helping his team clinch four pennant titles (1940–1942; 1948) and a World Series championship (1948). In 1948 he was selected to the East-West All-Star Game, which was played at Yankee Stadium. Besides, Fields led Homestead