Earl “Flat” Chase: Chatham-Kent Sports Black History Month

Born in Buxton, Ontario in 1910, Earl “Flat” Chase was one of the region’s top young baseball players in the first half of the 1900’s.

Chase was a powerful hitter, holding records across Southwestern Ontario for the longest home runs hit in several parks. He also was annually atop league batting statistics, including as a member of the 1934 Chatham Colored All-Stars.

As both a star hitter and pitcher, Chase led the Chatham league in 1934 with an incredible .525 batting average. He also pitched the final two games of the 1934 OBA Championship series, leading the Chatham Colored All-Stars to an OBA title. In 1935, Chase continued his winning ways in Chatham, helping them to yet another OBA Intermediate B title.

In 1939, Chase starred for the London Majors as they won the Amateur World’s Baseball Championship.

From there, he continued playing in the Chatham City League, helping the Chatham Arcades, Chatham Shermans, and Chatham Hadleys to OBA titles in 1945, 1947, and 1949 respectively. In 1947 he was again the city batting champion, hitting an impressive .471 average.

Sadly, Chase, who was inducted into the Chatham Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, died in 1954.

Continue to follow CKSN for more stories of Chatham-Kent’s influential and famous black athletes and team’s as a part of our Black History Month celebration.