Samuel Jethroe, nicknamed "The Jet" (January 20, 1918 - June 18, 2001), was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 center fielder

Center fielder

A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball fielding position between left field and right field...

 in Negro League

Negro league baseball

The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams predominantly made up of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in...

 and Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

. With the Cincinnati & Cleveland Buckeyes

Cleveland Buckeyes

The Cleveland Buckeyes were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro Leagues. They were established in 1942 in Cincinnati, Ohio . The following season, the team moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where they played their games at League Park...

 he won a pair of batting titles, hit .340 over seven seasons from 1942 to 1948, and helped the team to two pennants and the Negro League World Series

Negro League World Series

The Negro League World Series was a post-season baseball tournament which was held from 1924-1927 and from 1942-1948 between the champions of the Negro leagues, matching the mid-western winners against their east coast counterparts....

 title. He was named the National League

National League

The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...

's Rookie of the Year

MLB Rookie of the Year Award

In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is annually given to one player from each league as voted on by the Baseball Writers Association of America . The award was established in 1940 by the Chicago chapter of the BBWAA, which selected an annual winner from 1940 through 1946...

 in with the Boston Braves

Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

, and led the NL in stolen base

Stolen base

In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...

s in his first two seasons.

Nicknamed "The Jet" for his stunning speed, Jethroe was born in East St. Louis, Illinois

East St. Louis, Illinois

East St. Louis is a city located in St. Clair County, Illinois, USA, directly across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri in the Metro-East region of Southern Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 27,006, less than one-third of its peak of 82,366 in 1950...

.