Richard William Bass (July 7, 1906 – February 3, 1989) was a Major League Baseball pitcher. Bass grew up in rural Tennessee, in the small town of Rogersville. A tall, right-handed pitcher, Bass attended Miami University in Ohio, where he was named to the All-Buckeye baseball teams during his junior and senior years. He signed with the St. Louis Cardinals organization, and made his pro debut with Shawnee, Oklahoma in 1930; he wound up in Louisville by 1932 and pitched parts of six seasons with the Louisville Colonels of the American Association, winning 17 games in 1934. After winning 19 games with the Chattanooga Lookouts of the Southern Association in 1939, Bass got the call to the majors, starting for the Washington Senators on September 21, 1939.