Billy Joe Davidson
You've probably never heard of Billy Joe Davidson (1933-2009). He was a baseball player in the 1950s who never made it out of the minor leagues.
But in 1951, he was big news when the Cleveland Indians signed the 18-year-old pitcher for a reported $150,000 bonus and sent him to their farm teams. The news got LIFE photographer Ralph Crane to do a photo shoot of the 6'3" 215-pound rookie.
Davidson obligingly let Crane photograph him in the shower, including some revealing side views. None of these photos were published in LIFE.
The photo shoot included photos away from the field and the locker room. This photo was probably taken in a hotel room shared with another player. Looks like Davidson has a bit of a bulge.
And in this hotel room view, Davidson, in the foreground, has a bulge that does not look like just the natural folds of his pants. Well, that happens to 18-year-olds.
In 1951, the hope was that Davidson would be "the new Bob Feller." Feller, above, was the Cleveland Indians' star pitcher, playing from 1936 to 1956.
But Billy Joe Davidson had an unspectacular career in the minor leagues from 1951 to 1956 and never made it to the major leagues.
3 comments:
Kind of a shame.... What did he do after?
He was employed by Burlington Industries (a textile manufacturer) in Greensboro, North Carolina, and later was the owner of a textile business in Greensboro.
He did fine afterall
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