Piersall (Jimmy) is born in Waterbury, Connecticut.

Jimmy Piersall plays his first game for the Boston Red Sox in 1950, is sent back to the minor leagues, returns in 1952, but experiences a series of emotional outbursts, is diagnosed with bipolar disorder and treated at Westborough State Hospital. He returns to the Red Sox in 1953, becomes a two-time All-Star, ais traded to the Chicago White Sox in 1958, and after retiring becomes the team’s longtime announcer. A book based on Piersall’s battle with mental illness is published in 1955,* and a movie released in 1957,* which prompts him to subsequently joke, “The best thing that ever happened to me was going nuts. Nobody knew who I was until that happened.” Piersall dies on June 3, 2017 in Wheaton, Illinois.