totally random, vol. 5

Today’s subject: Atley Donald. Donald, nicknamed Swampy, was born in Morton in 1910 but moved to Louisiana at a young age. The right-hander, who pitched eight years in the big leagues, all with the New York Yankees from 1938-45, compiled a 65-33 record with a 3.52 ERA. That’s good stuff. And he won a World Series ring in 1941. There are two interesting tidbits from Donald’s career that bear mention. Though he reportedly threw a 95 mph fastball, he struck out just 369 batters, exactly the same number that he walked in 932 1/3 innings. And in the ’41 Series against Brooklyn, he stood to get the loss in Game 4, the game made famous — or infamous — by Mickey Owen’s ninth-inning passed ball that allowed the Yankees to mount a winning rally. On Mississippi’s all-time team, there’d have to be a place for Donald in a five-man rotation.