Sports
Billy Pierce
1927–2015 · baseball pitcher
Detroit-born, Highland Park-raised left-hander who debuted with his hometown Tigers at 18 and became a seven-time All-Star for the Chicago White Sox.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
Palos Heights, Illinois
aged 88- Birth name
- Walter William Pierce
- Detroit years
- 1927–1948
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Pierce was born in Detroit, the son of a pharmacist, and grew up in Highland Park. He started out as a first baseman but switched to pitching to imitate his hero, the slightly built Tigers curveballer Tommy Bridges. At Highland Park High School he threw six shutouts as a junior in 1944, and by then he had already pitched in Briggs Stadium in city all-star games. The Tigers signed him in 1945, and he made the club out of spring training before finishing high school, pitching a few games for the team that went on to win that year's World Series. He pitched sparingly for Detroit and was traded to the White Sox in 1948. In Chicago he blossomed into one of the best left-handers of the 1950s, a seven-time All-Star who won 211 games and nearly pitched a perfect game in 1958. The White Sox retired his No. 19 and put up a statue in his honor.
Highlights
- Born in Detroit; starred at Highland Park High School
- Signed by his hometown Tigers in 1945, the year they won the World Series
- Seven-time All-Star with the Chicago White Sox
- 211 career wins
- White Sox retired No. 19 and erected his statue
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Played here · 1944–1948
Tiger Stadium site (Briggs Stadium)
Demolished · 1912–1999
Where he pitched in schoolboy all-star games and then for the Tigers; demolished in 2008–2009.
Studied here · early 1940s
Highland Park Community High School
Closed · 2015
His high school in Highland Park, where he threw six shutouts in 1944; the school closed in 2015.