{{short description|American baseball player (1919–1987)}} {{distinguish|John Ricks}} {{Infobox baseball biography | name = Bill Ricks | image = Bill Ricks Baseball.jpg | position = Pitcher | birth_date = {{Birth date|1919|9|1|mf=yes}} | birth_place = Lexington, North Carolina, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|mf=yes|1987|7|15|1919|9|1}} | death_place = Brooklyn, New York, U.S. | bats = Right | throws = Right | debutleague = Negro league baseball | debutdate = | debutyear = 1944 | debutteam = Philadelphia Stars | finaldate = | finalyear = 1948 | finalteam = Philadelphia Stars | statyear = | statleague = | stat1label = | stat1value = | stat2label = | stat2value = | stat3label = | stat3value = | teams = * Philadelphia Stars ({{by|1944}}–{{by|1948}}) | highlights = * Negro National League ERA leader (1948) * Negro National League wins leader (1944) * Negro National League strikeout leader (1944) }} '''John William "Schoolboy" Ricks''' (September 1, 1919 – July 15, 1987) was an American professional baseball pitcher in the Negro leagues. He played from 1944 to 1950 with the Philadelphia Stars. He pitched for the Fort Wayne General Electric team in 1949. Ricks was named the MVP of the National Baseball Congress Tournament in 1949 after posting 3 wins and striking out 30 in {{frac|26|1|3}} innings. He signed with the Winona Chiefs in July 1950. He also played for the Granby Red Sox of the Provincial League in 1951.<ref name="Riley">{{Cite book |last=Riley |first=James A. | title=The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues |url=https://archive.org/details/biographicalency00rile |url-access=registration |place=New York |publisher=Carroll & Graf |year=1994 |isbn=0-7867-0959-6 |postscript=<!--None--> }}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Baseballstats|br=r/ricksbi01|brm=ricks-001wil}} and [https://www.seamheads.com/NegroLgs/player.php?playerID=ricks01bil Seamheads]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ricks, Bill}} Category:1919 births Category:1987 deaths Category:20th-century African-American sportsmen Category:20th-century American sportsmen Category:Baseball pitchers Category:Baseball players from North Carolina Category:Granby Red Sox players Category:Negro league baseball ERA champions Category:Negro league baseball strikeout champions Category:Negro league baseball wins champions Category:Philadelphia Stars players Category:Sportspeople from Lexington, North Carolina
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