Search Willie Wells Willie Wells Willie James Wells Born: August 10, 1906, Austin, Texas Died: January 22, 1989, Austin, Texas Bats: right Throws: right Elected to Hall of Fame by Committee on Baseball Veterans: 1997 The first shortstop in Baseball history to combine dazzling fielding with home run power, Willie Wells set a single-season Negro Leagues record with 27 homers in 88 games for the St.