THE NEGRO BASEBALL LEAGUE 1920-1950

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Professional baseball

Bud Fowler, the first professional black baseball player with one of his teams, Western of Keokuk, Iowa

Baseball featuring African American players became professionalized by the 1870s. The first known professional black baseball player was Bud Fowler, who appeared in a handful of games with a Chelsea, Massachusetts club in April 1878 and then pitched for the Lynn, Massachusetts team in the International Association. Moses Fleetwood Walker and his brother, Welday Wilberforce Walker, were the first two black players in the major leagues. They both played for the 1884 Toledo Blue Stockings in the American Association. Then in 1886 second baseman Frank Grant joined the Buffalo Bisons of the International League, the strongest minor league, and hit .340, third highest in the league. Several other black American players joined the International League the following season, including pitchers George Stovey and Robert Higgins, but 1888 was the last season blacks were permitted in that or any other high minor league.

Moses Fleetwood Walker, possibly the first African American major league baseball player

Moses Fleetwood Walker, possibly the first African American major league baseball player

The first nationally-known black professional baseball team was founded in 1885 when three clubs, the Keystone Athletics of Philadelphia, the Orions of Philadelphia, and the Manhattans of Washington, D.C., merged to form the Cuban Giants.

NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL1946 : Reece "Goose" Tatum, Indianapolis


The success of the Cubans led to the creation of the first recognized "Negro league" in 1887 – the National Colored Base Ball League. It was organized strictly as a minor league and founded with six teams: Baltimore Lord Baltimores, Boston Resolutes, Louisville Falls Citys, New York Gorhams, Philadelphia Pythians, and Pittsburgh Keystones. Two more joined before the season but never played a game, the Cincinnati Browns and Washington Capital Cities. The league, led by Walter S. Brown of Pittsburgh, applied for and was granted official minor league status and thus "protection" under the major league-led National Agreement. This move prevented any team in organized baseball from signing any of the NCBBL players, which also locked the players to their particular teams within the league. The reserve clause would have tied the players to their clubs from season to season but the NCBBL failed. One month into the season, the Resolutes folded. A week later, only three teams were left.

Because the original Cuban Giants were a popular and business success, many similarly named teams came into existence — including the Cuban X-Giants, a splinter and a powerhouse around 1900; the Genuine Cuban Giants, the renamed Cuban Giants, the Columbia Giants, the Brooklyn Royal Giants, and so on. The early "Cuban" teams were all composed of African Americans rather than Cubans; the purpose was to increase their acceptance with white patrons as Cuba was on very friendly terms with the US during those years. Beginning in 1899 several Cuban baseball teams played in North America, including the All Cubans, the Cuban Stars (West), the Cuban Stars (East), and the New York Cubans. Some of them included white Cuban players and some were Negro Leagues members.

 

[TRILLip Brooks]

Good thread, i feel like everything in MLB before integration should have asterisk next to it

 

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Brooklyn Royal Giants

The Brooklyn Royal Giants were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Brooklyn, New York. They were one of the prominent independent teams prior to World War I before organized league play began.

League play

In 1906, the Brooklyn Royal Giants joined the International League of Colored Baseball Clubs in American and Cuba (ILBCAC).[1] The league appears to have lasted a year or two and included the teams Philadelphia Giants, Cuban X-Giants, Cuban Stars, and the Cuban Giants of New York.

During the 1920s, under the ownership of Nat Strong, a white New York City booking agent, the team fell into somewhat of a decline, and did very poorly while in Eastern Colored League. The Giants played their home games while part of the Eastern Colored League at Dexter Park in Queens.

[edit]Final years and demise

The Giants returned to independent play in 1928 and rebuilt the roster, but the quality of the rebuilt team never matched that of the early years. By the mid-1930s, the quality was no better than that of a minor league team in the early 1940s the team had fallen to a semi-professional status. The team disbanded in 1942.

Significant players

Smokey Joe Williams

"Cannonball" Dick Redding

Frank Wickware

Charles "Chino" Smith

John Henry "Pop" Lloyd

 

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Professional baseball

The few players on the white minor league teams were constantly dodging verbal and physical abuse from both competitors and fans. Then the Compromise of 1877 removed the remaining obstacles from the South's enacting the Jim Crow laws. To make matters worse, on July 14, 1887, Cap Anson's Chicago White Stockings were scheduled to play the Newark Giants of the International League, which had Fleet Walker and George Stovey on its roster. After Anson marched his team onto the field, military style as was his custom, he demanded that the blacks not play. Newark capitulated, and later that same day, league owners voted to refuse future contracts to blacks, citing the "hazards" imposed by such athletes.[citation needed

In 1888, the Middle States League was formed and it admitted two all-black teams to its otherwise all-white league, the Cuban Giants and their arch-rivals, the New York Gorhams. Despite the animosity between the two clubs, they managed to form a traveling team, the Colored All Americans. This enabled them to make money barnstorming while fulfilling their league obligations. In 1890, the Giants returned to their independent, barnstorming identity, and by 1892, they were the only black team in the East still in operation on a full-time basis.

THE CUBAN GIANTS

The Cuban Giants were the first African-American professional baseball club.

The team was originally formed in 1885 at the Argyle Hotel, a summer resort in Babylon, New York. The team was so skilled in the game, and achieved victory over so many of the nearby amateur "white" teams that they attracted the attention of a promoter, Walter Cook. To appeal to a broader audience, Cook styled them the "Cuban Giants," a common ploy to avoid referring to the players as "black" or "Negro." There were rarely Cubans on the Cuban Giants. The team remained one of the premier Negro league teams for nearly 20 years.

The team went on to become the "world colored champions" of 1887 and 1888, and spawned imitators.

Though there were no actual Cuban men on the Cuban Giants, the team had played in Cuba in the fall or winter of 1885–1886.

In the September 1938 issue of Esquire Magazine, Sol White recounts the early days of the team: "…when that first team began playing away from home, they passed as foreigners—Cubans, as they finally decided—hoping to conceal the fact that they were just American Negro hotel waiters and talked a gibberish to each other on the field which, they hoped, sounded like Spanish" (Coover, 3).

It was a popular practice in the sporting press at the time to refer to African-American players as Cuban, Spanish, or Arabian instead of admitting to the truth.

In 1896 ownership issues would lead to a new offshoot team being created, calling themselves Cuban X-Giants. The older owner's team was then referred to as Genuine Cuban Giant or Original Cuban Giants.

 

[Maximus Rex]

Good thread, i feel like everything in MLB before integration should have asterisk next to it

I had to none co-sign that because it takes away from pre-integration players accomplishments. Babe Ruth still would have hit a shit load of homeruns. Ty Cobb still would gotten a shit load of hits, Cy Young still would have won hell games. Joe DiMaggio arguably would have went on a fifty-six game hitting streak, and Ted Williams probably still would have batted .406 in '41.

To say great players wouldn't have been great is a specious argument at best, if anything their numbers would be close to where they are now, and they still would be in Cooperstown.

 

[greenwood1921]

Got a Great-uncle that played for the Monarchs for a mintue. My Great-Aunt's husband. Nikka said Satchel an' them was overrated...

...He was a Uncle Ruckus ass nikka tho to be honest. lol

 

[Ibex]

Buck O'Neil smashed my great aunt...other than that I have no contribution to this thread

 

[northside7]

Great thread.

I hate when people, sometimes black people, act like there were no brothas outside of Jackie Robinson and Hank Aaron playing baseball. I know that mentality exist here in the cheap seats.

 

[aneed123]

baseball will put asterisks by the steroid era but hispanics and blacks werent allowed to play but no asterisks?

 

[Mantequilla]

@Matt

 

[greenwood1921]

baseball will put asterisks by the steroid era but hispanics and blacks werent allowed to play but no asterisks?

Co-mutha fuggin-sign.

I don't trust any of the pre-integration legends in any sport.

Only pre-integration football player I respect is Jim Thorpe. And he was Native American and had to "pass for white" to stay in the league.

By the time they figured him out he was already HOF status. lol

 

[aneed123]

baseball will put asterisks by the steroid era but hispanics and blacks werent allowed to play but no asterisks?

Co-mutha fuggin-sign.

I don't trust any of the pre-integration legends in any sport.

Only pre-integration football player I respect is Jim Thorpe. And he was Native American and had to "pass for white" to stay in the league.

By the time they figured him out he was already HOF status. lol

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black.... Babe Ruth wouldn't have been the best. Ole good ole boy fuck shit

 

[Chef_Taylor]

baseball will put asterisks by the steroid era but hispanics and blacks werent allowed to play but no asterisks?

Co-mutha fuggin-sign.

I don't trust any of the pre-integration legends in any sport.

Only pre-integration football player I respect is Jim Thorpe. And he was Native American and had to "pass for white" to stay in the league.

By the time they figured him out he was already HOF status. lol

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black.... Babe Ruth wouldn't have been the best. Ole good ole boy fuck shit

Exactly!...thats the shit "they" dont want you to hear.

 

[MeekMonizzLLLLLLe14]

Im a 3rd gen yankee fan and even i ain't never respected babe ruth's records for shit cause it was all white folk. Hell all the white players from the 70's would straight shit on ruth. Babe ruth was facing 80 mph "fastballs" back in the day and they hardly had as much rotation and movement on breaking ball pithces back then.

 

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COOL PAPA BELL

James Thomas "Cool Papa" Bell (May 17, 1903 – March 7, 1991) was an American center fielder in Negro league baseball, considered by many baseball observers to have been one of the fastest men ever to play the game. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974

Baseball Hall of Fame - Biographies: Cool Papa Bell .


James Thomas Nichols was born May 17, 1903, in or near Starkville, Mississippi. The 1910 U.S. Census shows him as the fourth of seven children living with his widowed mother, Mary Nichols, in Sessums Township, just outside of Starkville. When and why he changed his name to "Bell" is unknown. His brother Fred Bell, also played baseball. He joined the St. Louis Stars of the Negro National League as a pitcher in 1922. By 1924, he had become their starting center fielder, and was known as an adept batter and fielder, and the "fastest man in the league". After leading the Stars to league titles in 1928, 1930, and 1931, he moved to the Detroit Wolves of the East-West League when the Negro National League disbanded. Detroit soon folded, leaving Bell to bounce to the Kansas City Monarchs and the Mexican winter leagues until finding a home with the Pittsburgh Crawfords in the reorganized NNL. In Pittsburgh, he played alongside Ted Page and Jimmie Crutchfield to form what is considered by many to have been the best outfield in the Negro leagues. Bell left the Crawfords in 1938 to return to Mexico, coming back to baseball in the United States in 1942 to play for the Homestead Grays, who won Negro league titles in 1942, 1943, and 1944 with his help. He last played for the semi-pro Detroit Senators in 1946. He coached for the Monarchs in the late 1940s, managing their barnstorming "B" team, scouting for the club, signing prospects, and teaching the ins and outs of the game to future major-league baseball greats Ernie Banks, Jackie Robinson, and Elston Howard, among others.

Stories and tales

Because of the opposition the Negro leagues faced, and because of the lack of reliable press coverage of many of their games, no statistics can be given for Bell with any accuracy. What is undeniable is that Bell was considered to be one of the greats of his time by all the men he played with (including Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson). He is recorded as having fully rounded the bases in 12 seconds. As Paige himself noted in his autobiography, Maybe I'll Pitch Forever, "If Cool Papa had known about colleges or if colleges had known about Cool Papa, Jesse Owens would have looked like he was walking."

Paige also liked to tell a tall tale referencing one hotel at which he and Bell stayed, in which there was a short delay between flipping the light switch off and the lights actually going off due to faulty wiring, sufficient for Bell to jump into bed in the interim. Leaving out the explanatory details, Paige liked to say that Bell was "so fast you can turn off the light and be under the covers. before the room gets dark!" Paige also joked of a time when facing Bell that the outfielder hit a line drive up the middle that went screaming past Paige's ear, and hit Bell in the buttocks as he was sliding into second base.

Many tales exist of "Cool Papa". For example, one claims that Bell scored from second base on a sacrifice fly. Another states that he went from first to third on a bunt, which is possible for a speedy runner if the fielded ball was thrown to first for the sure out and the first baseman, who rarely have strong throwing arms, was unable to make the long throw to third in time. More astonishing is the claim related in Ken Burns' Baseball that he once scored from first on a sacrifice bunt. In an exhibition game against white all-stars, Bell broke for second on a bunt and run, with Satchel Paige at the plate. By the time the ball reached Paige, Bell was almost to second and rounded the bag, seeing the third baseman had broken towards home to field the bunt. The catcher, Roy Partee of the Boston Red Sox, ran to third to cover the bag and an anticipated return throw from first. To his surprise, Bell rounded third and brushed by him on the way home; pitcher Murry Dickson of the St. Louis Cardinals had not thought to cover home with the catcher moving up the line, and Bell scored standing up. Another states that he stole two bases on a single pitch, which is difficult but feasible if a catcher making the throw to second made a mediocre throw and had a shortstop unable to catch the runner at third with a throw. There are many other, possibly exaggerated anecdotes about Bell, such as running a full trip around the bases in 11 seconds.

 

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Speed to burn

Bell was the fastest player ever

By Ken Mandel/MLB.com

COOL PAPA BELL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on-Y2cWl_ag

Born: May 17, 1903, Starkville, Miss.

Died: March 7, 1991, St. Louis, Mo.

Bats: Both

Throws: Left

Hall of Fame induction: 1974

Those who have heard the tale of the man so fast he could turn out the light in the room and be in bed before the room got dark, have heard the legend of James Thomas "Cool Papa" Bell.

While Bell's legendary speed may have been exaggerated at times, his quickness made him one of the most feared base runners, shattering the confidence of infielders who helplessly watched him leg out two-hoppers.

The son of an Oklahoma Indian and farmer, Bell may have been the fastest man to play professional baseball. His talents propelled him to one of the longest active careers in the Negro Leagues. He hit .341 in 25 seasons, including summers of .396 and .373 for the Homestead Grays in the mid-1940s. He was also said to have hit .400 a few times.

Fans love him too, selecting him to 11 East-West All-Star teams, beginning with its inception in 1933.

"Cool Papa was so fast that one time when we were playing with the (Pittsburgh) Crawfords against the Birmingham team, he hit a ground ball right past the pitcher and that ball hit Cool Papa as he slid into second base!" teammate Jimmie Crutchfield told James Riley, who wrote The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues.

Other stories were more believable. "If he bunts and it bounces twice, put it in your back pocket," Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe told Riley in the Negro League encyclopedia. The outfielder who once stole 175 bases in just under 200 games, and who was once clocked circling the bases in an astonishing 12 seconds, was simply that fast.

Like another southpaw, Babe Ruth, Bell began his career as a pitcher, competing on sandlots near his Starkville, Miss., birthplace before moving to St. Louis to live with his older brothers and finish high school. He worked at a packing plant and played with the Compton Hill Cubs, eventually signing a $90-a-month contract to hurl for the St. Louis Stars in the early 1920s.

While still a knuckleballing prospect in 1922, he earned his moniker by whiffing Oscar Charleston with the game on the line. His manager, Bill Gatewood, mused about how "cool" his young player was under pressure and added the "Papa" because it sounded better, though perhaps it was a testament to how the 19-year-old performed like a grizzled veteran.

Cool Papa Bell Biography


Cool Papa Bell appeared in 11 East-West All-Star Games.

The nickname stuck, though an injury robbed him of his strong throwing arm and converted him to an outfielder in 1924. He compensated for his lack of arm strength with a quick release, and the right-handed hitter also learned to switch-hit. His blazing legs also shielded his lack of power, as he routinely stretched slap hits into doubles and triples.

The leadoff hitter won three championships with the St. Louis Stars -- in 1928, 1930 and 1931. He starred for two other dynasties, the powerhouse Pittsburgh Crawfords of the '30s -- which boasted as many as five Hall-of-Famers in their lineup, including Josh Gibson and the ageless Satchel Paige -- and the Homestead Grays of the mid-'40s.

From 1938-41, Bell earned $450 a month to play in Mexico. He won the Triple Crown in 1940, splitting the season with Veracruz and Torreon and hitting .437 with 12 home runs and 79 RBIs. He also played 21 winter seasons in Mexico, Cuba and California.

Bell's career was largely over by 1947, the year Jackie Robinson debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Bell retired in 1950, at age 47, from the Kansas City Stars, a farm team of Robinson's Kansas City Monarchs. He worked for four years as a scout for the St. Louis Browns until they moved to Baltimore, and he then worked as a custodian and night security officer at the St. Louis City Hall until 1970. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 and died at age 88 in 1991.

 

[IamtheVILLE]

i aint read the thread cause im working but ill goat you cause this is the shit i like.

 

[Maximus Rex]

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black

These niggas ^^^^ don't look white to me. The best players are still black, they're just not from America.

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black.... Babe Ruth wouldn't have been the best. Ole good ole boy fuck shit

So Babe Ruth, Jimmie Fox, Al Simmons, Honus Wagner, Home run Baker, Mel Ott, and Carl Hubbel wouldn't be in the Hall of Fame, if MLB was intergrated?

 

[aneed123]

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black

There woulda been nigga and Hispanics that were better... Its easy to look good when the best ain't playing. White boys used to be good in basketball now they are all role players lol

[/img]harvardsportsanalysis.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/ortiz.jpg[/img]

These niggas ^^^^ don't look white to me. The best players are still black, they're just not from America.

Its crazy cuz today basball is majority Hispanic and in the 60s -80s they best players were black.... Babe Ruth wouldn't have been the best. Ole good ole boy fuck shit

So Babe Ruth, Jimmie Fox, Al Simmons, Honus Wagner, Home run Baker, Mel Ott, and Carl Hubbel wouldn't be in the Hall of Fame, if MLB was intergrated?

 

[waterproof]

The few players on the white minor league teams were constantly dodging verbal and physical abuse from both competitors and fans. Then the Compromise of 1877 removed the remaining obstacles from the South's enacting the Jim Crow laws. To make matters worse, on July 14, 1887, Cap Anson's Chicago White Stockings were scheduled to play the Newark Giants of the International League, which had Fleet Walker and George Stovey on its roster. After Anson marched his team onto the field, military style as was his custom, he demanded that the blacks not play. Newark capitulated, and later that same day, league owners voted to refuse future contracts to blacks, citing the "hazards" imposed by such athletes.

In 1888, the Middle States League was formed and it admitted two all-black teams to its otherwise all-white league, the Cuban Giants and their arch-rivals, the New York Gorhams. Despite the animosity between the two clubs, they managed to form a traveling team, the Colored All Americans. This enabled them to make money barnstorming while fulfilling their league obligations. In 1890, the Giants returned to their independent, barnstorming identity, and by 1892, they were the only black team in the East still in operation on a full-time basis