Negro League Q&A

Question: Who was the first African-American player to play with a major league team?
Answer:
Most people believe that Jackie Robinson was the first player to appear on the roster of a major league team. While Robinson was the player who broke the major leagues' color barrier in 1947, a few African-American players had played on major league teams during the late 1800's before black players were banned from participation.Moses Fleetwood Walker became the first Negro major-leaguer in 1884 as a catcher with the Toledo club in the American Association, one of the two major leagues at that time. Later that year his younger brother, Weldy Walker, also played briefly with the Toledo club.

Question: Did Negro League teams ever play against major league teams?
Answer:
From the 1920s through the 1940s exhibition games between Negro League stars and major league stars were both common and very popular with fans. Typically, such games were played between squads of "all-stars" from both leagues. The most famous series of exhibition games was played in 1946 between a Negro League all-star squad organized by Satchel Paige and a squad of major league all-stars assembled by famed Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller.Throughout the years games between Negro League squads and major leaguers were fairly evenly split, demonstrating the relatively equal levels of competition that existed in the separate leagues.

Question: When did the Negro Leagues come to an end?
Answer:
The Negro National League disbanded after the 1949 season. Although the Negro American League continued to operate throughout the 1950s, the quality of play in that league diminished steadily as black baseball's best talent was siphoned off by the major and minor leagues.While it is true that the Negro American League fielded teams throughout the 1950s, most baseball hsitorians mark the end of Negro League baseball at 1950 or 1951, reasoning that the league did not offer true major league quality baseball after that time.

Question: When was the first Negro World Series played?
Answer:
The first Negro World Series was played in 1924 between the Kansas City Monarchs (Negro National League champions) and the Hilldale Club (champions of the Eastern Colored League). The Kansas City Monarchs won the championship series 5 games to 4.In order to maximize attendance, the 9-game series was played in several cities including Philadelphia (games 1 & 2), Baltimore (games 3 & 4), Kansas City (games 5, 6 & 7) and Chicago (games 8, 9 & 10). Although the series consisted of 9 games, 10 games were actually played. Game 3 at Baltimore ended in a 6-6 tie when it was called for darkness after 13 innings of play.

Question: Did Josh Gibson really hit 84 homeruns in a single season?
Answer:
The best currently available compilation of statistics shows that Gibson did, in fact, hit 84 homeruns during the 1936 season. However, it is important to realize that only a percentage of these homers came in games against top Negro League competition.The official league season for most Negro League teams was limited to 40 to 60 games during most years. The remainder of the games a Negro League team would play (up to an additional 150 games) were games against much weaker competition, including semi-professional teams.There is no question that Josh Gibson was a prodigious hitter and one of baseball's best all-time homerun sluggers, but the nature of the Negro League season and quality of existing statistics do not allow for direct comparison to the established records of major league baseball.

Question: Did Hank Aaron really play in the Negro Leagues?
Answer:
Hank Aaron began his professional baseball career as a shortstop with the Indianapolis Clowns in 1952. During his brief stay with the Clowns the young Aaron earned the nickname "Pork Chop" because of his particular liking for that entre.Although Aaron's speed, fielding ability and natural hitting ability quickly brought him to the attention of the Milwaukee Braves, he showed little of his homerun power while with the Clowns. In fact, when he first joined the Clowns he swung the bat with a cross-handed grip...an eccentricity that was quickly corrected by the Clowns' manager.

Question: Which major league stars began their careers in the Negro Leagues?
Answer:
Many Negro League players began their careers with Negro League teams. The following is a list of some of the most notable players (many of them Hall-Of-Famers) and the Negro League teams with which they were associated:Hank Aaron (Indianapolis Clowns)Willie Mays (Birmingham Black Barons)Jackie Robinson (Kansas City Monarchs)Monte Irvin (Newark Eagles)Larry Doby (Newark Eagles)Roy Campanella (Baltimore Elite Giants)Sam Jethroe (Cleveland Buckeyes)Orestes "Minnie" Minoso (New York Cubans)Leroy "Satchel" Paige (Kansas City Monarchs and many others)Joe Black (Baltimore Elite Giants)

Question: Is there a separate Hall of Fame for Negro League players?
Answer:
No, there is no separate Hall of Fame for former Negro League players. Just like the great stars of major league baseball, the greatest players of Negro League baseball are enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, NY.Several African-American players, such as Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson and Monte Irvin, have been inducted into the Hall Of Fame on the basis of their outstanding major league careers, even though their careers began in the Negro Leagues. The 18 players listed below have earned induction into the Hall Of Fame largely on the basis of their play in the Negro Leagues:Satchel Paige (1971)Josh Gibson (1972)Buck Leonard (1972)Monte Irvin (1973)Cool Papa Bell (1974)Judy Johnson (1975)Oscar Charleston (1976)John Henry Lloyd (1977)Martin Dihigo (1977)Rube Foster (1981)Ray Dandridge (1987)Leon Day (1995)Willie Foster (1996)Willie Wells (1997)Bullet Rogan (1998)Smokey Joe Williams (1999)Turkey Stearnes (2000)Hilton Smith (2001)