Wayne State University Athletics

Baseball 2/5/2026 11:26:00 AM Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

WSU Hall of Fame Inductee Ron Teasley Has Passed Away

DETROIT -- Former Wayne State University baseball standout Ron Teasley, who was inducted into the WSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1986, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 99.

Viewing will be held on Friday, Feb. 13 at the St. Moses the Black (1125 Oakman Blvd. in Detroit) from 4 pm until 7:30 pm. The funeral service will take place the following day at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral (9844 Woodward Ave. in Detroit) beginning with the Family Hour Greetings at 10:30 am, followed by speakers and remarks at 11:15 am. The Funeral Mass is slated to start at noon.

Teasley, a Detroit native and graduate of Detroit Northwestern High School, was a two-sport letterman in baseball and basketball at Wayne University.

In a career interrupted by military service and ended prematurely by the signing of a professional baseball contract, Teasely received two letters in baseball in 1945 and 1947, and three letters for basketball in the 1945, 1947, and 1948 seasons. A first baseman and right fielder for the Tartar baseball teams, Teasley set five single season records in 1945. He collected 21 hits on 42 at-bats, batting .500, becoming the first Wayne player ever to hit over .400 in a season. He also scored 12 runs, and had a fielding average of .981.

After serving in the U.S. Navy in 1945-46, with a tour overseas to Saipan and the far Pacific areas, Teasley returned to Wayne to resume his collegiate athletic careers. On the ball diamond in 1947, he again led the team's regulars in batting with a .325 average on 13 hits and 40 at-bats, in a season marred by eight rain-outs. Set to return for the 1948 baseball season, Teasely instead accepted a tryout with the Brooklyn Dodgers for spring training in Vero Beach, Fla. He became the eighth Black player of the 1900s to sign with the major leagues on May 2, ahead of such former major leaguers as Minnie Miñoso, Dan Bankhead, Sam Jethroe, Al Smith, and Jose Santiago.

Teasley was assigned to the Olean (NY) Oilers of the PONY (Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York) League, breaking the color barrier in the Class D circuit. He was leading the PONY in home runs, and a .277 batting average, when he was released from the Oilers later than summer. He joined the New York Cubans of the Negro National League for the remainder of 1948, and from 1949 to 1951, Teasley played with several minor league teams in the MANDAK (Manitoba-Dakota) league.

After finishing his baseball career in 1951, he returned to Wayne to finish his Bachelor's of Physical Education degree, which he received in 1955. Teasley also received a Master's of Administration from Wayne State in 1963.

On the basketball court, Teasley was a three-year starter at guard and forward. He capped off his Tartar career being named as one of Wayne's Top Ten Outstanding Athletes by then-Detroit Collegian Sports Editor Paul Pentecost on May 26, 1947.

He joined the Detroit School System after 1955 in the junior high schools, and came on board the staff at Northwestern High School in 1968, where he taught health and physical education. He coached varsity basketball at Northwestern from 1973 to 1975, compiling a 44-4 record, capturing a PSL title in 1974, and a Class A District title in 1975. Among the players he coached were Terry Tyler and Alan Hardy.

Teasley also coached varsity baseball and golf at Northwestern.

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