"Smoky Joe" played his first amateur baseball for the local miners teams in Ouray, Colorado. Wood made his playing debut with the mostly-female "Bloomer Girls." There were many such teams across the country, which barnstormed in exhibition games against teams of men. Bloomer Girl rosters featured at least one male player.\n', '

Red Sox star Ted Williams, as a guest on the Bill Stern\'s Sports Newsreel radio program in 1950, told the story that Wood was posing as a girl on a girls\' team when The Red Sox signed him. The story ended: "The pitcher I\'m talking about was the immortal Smoky Joe Wood. A pitcher who can never be forgotten even though he did get his start posing as a girl".\n', '

After joining the Red Sox in 1908 at the age of 18, Wood had his breakthrough season in 1911 in which he won 23 games, compiled an earned run average of 2.02, threw a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns and struck out 15 batters in a single game. Wood once struck out 23 batters in an exhibition game. He earned the nickname "Smoky Joe" because of his blazing fastball. Wood recounted in the seminal book The Glory of Their Times, "I threw so hard I thought my arm would fly right off my body."\n', '

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