2003 Re-discovery
Ford did not appear in any official records of Major League baseball during his lifetime. Then in 2003, research by Rick Benner of SABR (the Society for American Baseball Research) discovered that Bill Ford's September 27, 1936 appearance had been incorrectly attributed to Gene Ford, who had appeared in one game for Boston earlier that year. (Gene Ford would also play in 4 games for the Chicago White Sox in 1938.) The official records have now been corrected to show Gene Ford having pitched in one game for the 1936 Bees (on June 17), and Bill Ford also having pitched in one game for the 1936 Bees (on September 27).
Although researchers will very occasionally find a previously undocumented major league baseball player to add to the official records, such players are usually from the 19th century. Finding one who played as late as 1936 is extremely rare.
Read more about this topic: Bill Ford (baseball)