James "Peanut" Davenport (1933-2016) of Siluria, Shelby County, was a baseball and football standout at the University of Southern Mississippi before entering Major League Baseball in 1958. He played his entire career with the San Francisco Giants, retiring in 1970, and was awarded the Golden Glove in 1962. Davenport also briefly managed the Giants in 1985.
Baseball Players of Alabama Gallery
Though football dominates team athletics in Alabama, baseball has long been a close second in the state’s sports culture. During the first half of the twentieth century, the state’s Negro League teams produced some of the most famous names in baseball history, including Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Satchel Paige. Three Alabama cities currently have Double-A teams; the Birmingham Barons, the Mobile BayBears, and the Montgomery Biscuits, and local games are popular attractions.