Speed Whatley

David Samuel Whatley (November 10, 1914 – March 13, 1961), nicknamed "Speed" and "Hammer Man", was an American Negro league outfielder in the 1930s and 1940s.

A native of Griffin, Georgia, Whatley made his Negro leagues debut with the Birmingham Black Barons in 1937. He batted .396 and led the Negro American League in batting average in his second season in 1938. He played for the Homestead Grays from 1939 to 1942, being on the roster for three consecutive Negro National League II pennants. He then served in the United States Army during World War II. He returned to the Grays during their 1944 Negro World Series championship season, but finished the season with the New York Black Yankees. Whatley died in Oakland, California in 1961 at age 46.