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Good Day Everyone:<br>
<br>
Happy Valentine's Day, it is a good day to stay cuddle next to a warm
fireplace or a warm heart - you decide. Today we placed the spotlight
on the <b>Negro Baseball Leagues. </b>These leagues formed by
all-black teams prior to the integration of professional baseball in
1947. The first salaried African-American ballplayer was John "Bud"
Fowler, hired in 1872 by an all-white club in New Castle,
Pennsylvania. But after touring with a black team, he was not allowed
to rejoin the white club.<br>
<br>
The first African-American professional team - the Cuban Giants - made
its debut in 1885. By pretending to be foreign, the players were able
to tour Florida and the Southwest at a time when native Hispanics were
also unwelcome in major league baseball. In an unsuccessful attempt to
undermine baseball's color line in 1901, Baltimore Orioles manager John
McGraw put black player <i><b>Charlie Grant</b></i> on his roster
under the name of Charlie Tokahama and tried to claim he was a Cherokee
Indian.<br>
<br>
Nationwide black baseball leagues were organized following World War I,
thanks partly to the efforts of star pitcher Rube Foster, who was
co-owner and manager of the Chicago American Giants. The pay was low,
traveling accommodations were poor, and the players, who usually played
in rented stadiums when the resident white teams were on the road,
often were not allowed to use "white" dressing rooms. Teams regularly
played schedules of 60 to 70 games. During the off-season, they often
played - and beat - major league white players in exhibition games.<br>
<br>
The Negro leagues produces some of baseball's finest players, among
them <i><b>Josh Gibson</b></i>, whose career statistics include over
900 home runs and a lifetime batting average of .423. Even better know
was pitcher <i><b>Satchel Paige</b></i>. Other legendary players
included <i><b>Leon Day, Chet Brewer, Oscar Charleston, Ray Dandridge,
John Henry "Pop" Lloyd, James "Cool Papa" Bell, Walter "Buck" Leonard,
and William "Judy" Johnson</b></i>. Among the major teams were the
Pittsburgh Crawfords, the Kansas City Monarchs, the Leland Giants, and
the St. Louis Stars.<br>
<br>
In 1947, the Brooklyn Dodgers under Branch Rickey signed <i><b>Jackie
Robinson</b></i> to a major league contract. It signified a turning
point in U.S. racial history and an end to the Negro leagues, even
though some white teams were slow to sign black players. The Red Sox
did not integrate until 1959. In 1971, the Baseball Hall of Fame began
to induct players from the Negro Leagues.<br>
<br>
Have a great afternoon.<br>
<br>
Marilynn, Brenton, Levenia, NAACP/Psycho Clubs<br>
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