William Hoy got his Diploma of the best school graduate in absolute silence. He could not hear his own footsteps, noise from the streets, rustling gown. The rest of the students applauded him and if Hoy knew how applause sounds, he would have fun with these non-simultaneous claps – his classmates were also deaf and could not clap synchronously. Their whole life was made from gestures, facial expressions and touches – the brain which was deprived of hearing, far better worked with imaginative thinking.
He was three years old when meningitis left William deaf and since that moment he has to communicate with the world only through symbols. Hoy was not dumb, but he could not speak because all he had heard up to 3 years, gradually faded and were replaced by signs that Will had learned at school for deaf. Then he simplified and improved them so his parents, friends, neighbors could communicate with the boy without words. In the course of time the whole class started to use his signs.
After graduation his Diploma with Honors flew into the cabinet – it was clear that the real words are difficult to replace by the signs even if you could use them pretty good. That is why a deaf guy from the American province by the end of XIX century could not even dream of a successful career. Much better was to find some profession where hands and brains are needed. Will become a cobbler.
Everyone knew Hoy: Hancock, Ohio consisted of a little more than ten thousand people, so the shoe master, as well as the barber, the doctor and the undertaker never left without work and contacts. But first of all Will was known as the best baseball player. People in the stands yelled and supported Hoy while he had been stealing another one base or been hitting a tricky kick. At the same time a baseball player could hear only the silence.
But he does not care about that. The only thing that prevented Will – inability to communicate with partners. Sometimes he could play without having any idea about the score. He did not hear announcements. He was fascinated only by the mechanical functions.
Cold-blooded athlete-shoemaker became a local celebrity. People come specifically to look at him, including agents of professional teams. After one game, “Oshkosh” team manager somehow explained to the deaf that he was invited to a professional club. Hoy took a couple of days to think about, and once his shoe shop did not open and at the “Oshkosh” training camp appeared a newcomer.
Hoy was playing in his first professional club for 2 years. He showed the results that were pretty high even for a healthy person: Will was incredible in defense, run perfectly and was unbelievable in base stealing. The only negative was the fact that he absolutely could not communicate with partners on the field so someone called him Dummy behind his back. Partners and fans called Will in that way all the time and were not even aware that Hoy could understand them by reading lips.
William Hoy was a universal baseball player that is still a rarity. In his first professional season, he became the leader on two main factors: the largest number of the stolen bases and he has become the second by walk. Because of his incredible speed Will put most of his records – after 55 years since the death Hoy still at the 17th place among the best base stealers in US history.
From 1890 to 1893 Will changed three clubs and in 1894 he got into the main club in his life – “Cincinnati Reds”. The new team fought only for the championship and deafness prevented Hoy to use his capabilities to the maximum. Then all players along with the general had stayed after the trainings and matches manager for several weeks till they created a system of signs which could help them with the deafness barrier.
In the first game under the new system “Cincinnati” got the victory and Hoy was the star of the match. The game had certain symbols already, but the new system has become a sensation and a breakthrough. Other teams were trying to use these signs, but they were still not so good as “Cincinnati” – they had no players with such a good skill as Dummy Willie has. Even judges started to use the signs of the first professional deaf baseball player.
Over the past 122 years the system repeatedly improved and supplemented – in every match players and judges usually send over a thousand silent signals, but the basic gestures have not changed since the triumph of William Hoy.
The Dummy played 14 seasons in the National Baseball League – the predecessor of MLB, set a few dozen records, entered into numerous tops. In the final season of his career awaited historical confrontation: Dummy Willie from “Cincinnati” faced with Dummy Taylor from the “New York Giants”. It was the first time when two deaf professionals have played against each other.
Even in longevity Hoy set a record – he died at the age of 99 in 1961 and utill 1973 was the main long-lived baseball player. Now he is on the 13th line. His ashes scattered by the family traditions, but Will still goes out on the field and makes the next home run every time as some players use gestures that made baseball more perfect game nearly half a century ago.
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