The story of America cannot be told accurately without the Black institutions that have shaped it, said Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Find out more. Register now to join us on March 10-12, 2023, in Phoenix, AZ. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. 9 Baseball Stars From the Negro Leagues Who Dominated the Game Denied entry into Major League Baseball, power hitters Buck Leonard, Josh Gibson and five others were later enshrined in the Hall. List of Negro league baseball players (AD), List of Negro league baseball players (EL), List of Negro league baseball players (MR), List of Negro league baseball players (SZ), List of first black MLB players by team and date, List of player profiles from the Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lists_of_Negro_league_baseball_players&oldid=1087987010, This page was last edited on 15 May 2022, at 16:27. An additional 35 or so players played on a Negro league team after 1950. SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Tony Clark, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, hears the grumbling from the owners, the complaints about the massive payroll disparity, and. WANTED: INFORMATION ON DAVE BROWN. The list of teams with which he played includes the largely forgotten Miami Globetrotters, Hollywood Redbirds, Miami Red Sox, Belle Glade Redwings, Florida Cuban Giants, the Lucky Stars, the Danny Dodgers; Ft. Lauderdale Braves, Pompano Beach Yankees, Ft. Lauderdale Lucky Stars, Ft. Lauderdale Gray Sox, and the Buffalo Red Sox (a travelling team that appears to have played many of its games in West Virginia and Pennsylvania). The Negro American League of 1950 is the last major league in Riley's. He was known to be a great hitter, but I don't think it was fully appreciated how pivotal he was to the Monarchs' defense.. "You . Stars Park was in the center of Mill Creek Valley, within walking distance of many African Americans. Charlie Neal Hank Aaron George Altman Maury Wills Donn Clendenon John Wyatt Blue Moon Odom Paul Casanova See also [ edit] List of starting black NFL quarterbacks List of black NHL players HTTP POST example; Breakdown of Figure 8: POST data is made of random bytes. Join our linker program. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a mostly linear game, giving strong soulslike . Eventually, these two groups joined forces to create one comprehensive database. You know their stories, like how Paige once told his outfielders to sit down while he struck out the side. Some 35 "Negro Leaguers", including Foster, are among the 333 baseball figures currently enshrined in the Hall of Fame alongside White greats like Ruth. An outfielder and a solid hitter, Page resides in Pittsburgh, where he operates a bowling alley. Eventually, these two groups joined forces to create one comprehensive database. ***** That's almost 19 times what the Black players received. Of these, nine have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame and two of them (Greason and Mays) are still alive. For NPR News, I'm Doug Tribou in Ann Arbor, Mich. (SOUNDBITE OF A FOREST MIGHTY BLACK'S "REBIRTH"). They played most of their careers in the organized Negro leagues after the Great Depression. He grew up in Cuba and says it was tough to adjust to segregation and racism he saw in the U.S. PEDRO SIERRA: It wasn't easy to see all the problems with the race. They also represent something else. Baseball needs to retroactivelypay the newly recognized Negro League players and their surviving families. backlog intangible asset; west metro fire union contract. A baseball blog with a Mets bias, If this is your first visit, be sure to You can't really settle on a few sacred numbers the way you can for MLB records.. In 2020, MLB also decided to recognize the Negro League as a 'major league' and include their statistics, which was a mistake as they didn't play in the major leagues, they played in the Negro League. He is Dean of Men at Alcorn College in Lorman, Mississippi, and also serves as baseball coach. 1946 Propagandas Montiel. 1. Louis Stars, Southern League of Colored Base Ballists (1886), International League of Independent Professional Base Ball Clubs (1906), National Association of Colored Baseball Clubs of the United States and Cuba (19071909), West Coast Negro Baseball Association (1946), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Negro_league_baseball_players_who_played_in_Major_League_Baseball&oldid=1137262492, Short description with empty Wikidata description, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Served in the US Army during WWII 19421944, Served in the US Navy during WWII 19441945, Served in the US Army during WWII 19441945, Served in the US Marine Corp during WWII 19431945, Served in the US Army during Korean War 19521953, Served in the US Army during WWII 19431945, Served in the US Army during WWII 19421943, Served in the US Army during WWII 19411945, Served in the US Army during WWII 19441946, Served in the US Army during WWII 19431947, Served in the US Army during WWII 19431946, Served in the US Navy during WWII 19441946, Served in the US Army during Korean War 19511953, Served in the US Navy during WWII 19431946, Served in the US Navy during WWII 19431945, Served in the US Marine Corp during WWII 19431945 and the Korean War 19511952, Served in the US Army during Korean War 19511952, Served in the US Army during WWII 19421945, This page was last edited on 3 February 2023, at 18:10. It's where Josh Gibson, by far the greatest player Doby ever saw, played. Pedro Dibut). 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. What about the other great players? KENDRICK: These athletes never cried about the social injustice. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. I knew about it. Members of the Baseball Hall of Fame are noted with a . List of living major league players from the 1940s, List of living members of World Series-winning teams, List of living major league players from the 1950s, https://www.baseball-reference.com/bpv/index.php?title=List_of_living_major_league_players_from_the_1940s&oldid=1264856, Scores from any date in Major League history, Minor, Foreign, College, & Black Baseball, Frequently Asked Questions about MLB and Baseball. The records, as they proved with Suttles, are not static either. Not even 60 years old. Major league players received from $300 to $2,000 a month and about $15 a day for meals. Just this month, and nearly 80 years after Suttles career ended, Ashwill was able to add two more home runs to his tally, bringing his total to 32. Robinson became the first 20th Century black baseball player allowed in the all-white professional leagues. Basically, our earlier version of the 1926 Negro National League relied heavily on the Black weekly newspapers for games played in St. Louis -- in this case the Chicago Defender (which was distributed nationally) and the St. Louis Argus, Ashwill wrote. A native of Texas, Brown is reported to have pitched as early as 1917 with the Dallas Black Giants. Born May 6, 1931, Willie Mays is the youngest. MINNIE FORBES: It was terrible for the players at that time. This page was last edited on 27 January 2023, at 00:27. Much of the play-by-play, game results, and transaction information both shown and used to create certain data sets was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by RetroSheet. Copyright 2020 NPR. Jackie Robinson - 1947-1956. They didn't care about making history. I am Venus DeMilo - NO ARM! But more interesting, in my opinion, are some of the larger patterns we've found. In a meeting held at the Paseo YMCA in Kansas City, Mo., Foster and a few other Midwestern team owners joined to form the Negro National League. Some high school data is courtesy David McWater. They were there as professionals and are the last that have the stories to tell about the league when it was going. 555 N. Central Ave. #416 The end of Stars Park wasnt the end of black baseball in St. Louis. From 1940 to 1949, 1,705 men played at least one game in the National League or American League plus hundreds, maybe thousands, more in the Negro Leagues. Simkus says the work taught him how important major league recognition would be for the families of Negro Leagues veterans, few of whom are still alive. List of Negro league baseball players who played in Major League Baseball. The fact that it happened 100 years ago should not be forgotten. In 1954, he signed with the Indianapolis Clowns at the age of 16. He jumped to the Lincoln Giants of the Eastern Colored League in 1923 and pitched with them for 2 years. I wanted to see them as flesh and blood people, real players who had the same kinds of complex profiles we have for players today. Lester said the average monthly salary of a Black player in the early 1920s was $175 a month. A select few were All-Stars and one (Aaron) was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Dennis Biddle lives down the street from my grandparents. Nat Rogers: Now 78 years old and a waiter at Memphis Peabody Hotel, Nat writes that he played for 45 consecutive seasons in organized baseball, compiling a batting average of over .340. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Pre-integration players Below is a list of 52 players who played for major Negro league teams up to 1950 and eventually saw playing time for a Major League team. And they couldn't go in places to eat, so one person would go to the back door and get the food for all the players. FORBES: And I just wonder if I'm worthy of representing, speaking about the Negro League because when I got involved, things was easier for me than it was for the one before me. Well Hank Aaron and Willie Mays are still alive. SIERRA: Yeah, a hundred dollars a month. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. current white nba players; imagery in act 2, scene 1 of julius caesar; tammany trace subdivision covington la; nombres que combinen con alan; exemple d'analyse d'un article scientifique ppt; catherine sarrazin mother; ex council playground equipment for sale; houses for rent in north augusta, sc; jesi lilas macaninch; 2003 missouri quarter . Major League Baseball has a day to honor the leagues set for next month. Or write about sports? Only a few cars passed by during the lunch hour, with businesses closed and people staying home due to the coronavirus pandemic. At that meeting, they created the Negro National League. I wish I would have gotten to more of them while they were living. Nat remembers a 31-game hitting streak as his best moment in baseball. There were other examples over the years of Negro Leagues teams having their own parks, in Pittsburgh, Memphis and Cleveland, but the Stars were the earliest example. Robinson broke the color barrier 73 years ago, ushering in the end of the Negro Leagues. HOFers Monte Irvin (who is in based on his NL play, while the others in this list were there as stops along the way), Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and Ernie Banks that I know of off hand. Forbes is 88 and worries about being one of the last left to tell this story. Off the top I would include: (East-West All-Stars) Monte Irvin, Minnie Minoso, Bill Cash, Art Pennington, Artie Wilson, Bill Greason and Willie Williams. The grandstands and trolley car barn are no longer there, of course, but if you look closely, the grassy area just beyond left field is still slightly indented where the building used to be. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account. 41-Newton Henry "Newt" Allen. Release date: March 2, 2023. Born average. Some of these sets include: 1931 Doble Aguila. Mythical SF Chronicle scouting report: "That Jeff runs like a deer. The Negro Leagues are now part of official MLB stats. Remembered as one of the few hurlers Josh Gibson had trouble hitting against, Lee writes that Martin Dihigo was the greatest player he ever saw. Newt Allen, Dobie Moore, and Nip Winters (75.0%) Again, of those 13, all but Harris and Winters were among the 39 candidates. There's also Charley Pride (3/18/1935), famous country singer and one of the only black people to perform on Grand Ole Opry. Between 1995 and 2001, Leon Day, Bill Foster, Willie Wells, Bullet Joe Rogan, Smokey Joe Williams, Turkey Stearnes, and Hilton Smith all earned the votes necessary for induction. Richard Kent, Sam Sheppard, Dr. J.W McClelland and Dr. G.B. Of them, only 9 are still alive as of Janury 26, 2023. In 1920, an organized league structure was formed under the guidance of Andrew "Rube" Fostera former player, manager, and owner for the Chicago American Giants. Major League Baseball was segregated from 1887 until 1946. Racial segregation in professional baseball was sometimes called a gentlemen's agreement, meaning a tacit understanding . Rube Foster Full-year historical Major League statistics provided by Pete Palmer and Gary Gillette of Hidden Game Sports. A charity baseball game that paid tribute to the Negro Leagues and their significance to the sport was held at Sacramento State's John Smith Field on Oct. 9. windermere high school graduation 2021; ham farm eastleigh history; women's health magazine target audience The plaque states that Stars Park was the first professional baseball park owned exclusively by African Americans, and ballparks built for a Negro Leagues team were rare; many teams had to rely on Major League or Minor League ballparks to play. What's more, in recent years American-born Black players have made up only 7% to 8% of major league rosters. Buck lives in Rocky Mount, N.C., where he owns a realty agency. Paige, now 65 and a Kansas City resident, is by far the best known of these old stars. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. http://www.blackbetsy.com/movies/joeatbat.mpg, NY Sports Day Independent Gotham Sports Coverage, Talking Mets Baseball. "All Star" teams consists of major leaguers from multiple teams. Now 71, and a Pittsburgh resident, Sam says that Smokey Joe Williams was the greatest pitcher he ever saw while slugger Mule Suttles gave him the most trouble at the plate. An excellent all-round ballplayer and a teammate of such greats as Josh Gibson and Oscar Charleston, Jimmie is a Chicago resident where he is employed at the post office. mexican league transactions mexican league transactions (No Ratings Yet) . The stories, however, keep alive the memory of a man who became bigger than the game. how many ww2 german veterans are still alive 2021mr patel neurosurgeon cardiff 27 februari, 2023 / i how old was stewart granger when he died / av / i how old was stewart granger when he died / av We already knew they were equals, of course, it's just official now. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Bell, who regularly went from 1st base to 3rd on sacrifice bunts, enjoyed his peak years with the St. Louis Stars and Pittsburgh Crawfords in the early 1930s. Soon he became involved in the Negro League Researchers and Authors Group and helped with an extensive study commissioned by the Hall of Fame and Major League Baseball. Hopefully folks dont forget that impact.. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. If baseball (rightfully) believes that recognizing those players is important (and it is) then why not fully recognize them? We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. I think its important for baseball fans to remember that this is their history, no matter what color they are, said Dr. Ray Doswell, the curator at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. I have always been drawn to blank spaces on maps, blank spaces in record books, Ashwill said. Team Ninja, the creators of Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden, are bringing this new action RPG set in a dark fantasy version of China's late Three Kingdoms period. 25 Feb/23. "Major League Team" is a team with all or most of the players from the same team. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. list of negro league players still alive. Foster still retains a strong interest in baseball. The star pitcher for the Chicago American Giants of the Negro National League in the early 1920s was a young left-hander named Dave Brown. But Minnie Forbes sympathizes with the many athletes who were good enough to play in the major leagues but never got a shot. ucla environmental science graduate program; four elements to the doctrinal space superiority construct; woburn police scanner live. Off the top I would include: (East-West All-Stars) Monte Irvin, Minnie Minoso, Bill Cash, Art Pennington, Artie Wilson, Bill Greason and Willie Williams. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Jackie Robinson 1947-1956. Paige probably took a pay cut when he joined the Cleveland Indians in 1948.". On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Black baseball and its ballparks played a significant role in that story, but few remain standing today. ST. LOUIS -- At the corner of Market Street and Compton Avenue, nestled next to Harris-Stowe State Universitys baseball field, sits a black plaque that details a large part of St. Louis baseball history. From there, he started collecting box scores and compiling statistics pretty much right away, Ashwill said. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson mexican league transactions. Scott was born in Macon, Georgia, and made his Negro League debut at 16 after the New York Black Yankees signed him from the Macon Cardinals with his parents' permission. We know which were the pitchers' parks (Chicago's Schorling Park, for example) and which were the hitters' parks (Stars Park in St. Louis and the Catholic Protectory Oval in the Bronx, home of the New York Lincoln Giants). They were important pioneers to help pave the way for Jackie Robinson, and then of course theres the larger picture of paving the way for all kinds of different advancements in integration and civil rights.. Major League Baseball announced this week the 1920-1948 Negro Leagues was recognized as major league, meaning Black players who played during those years are officially acknowledgedas the same as their white counterparts. Michigan Radio's Doug Tribou spoke to the only surviving team owner and others about the legacy of the legendary leagues. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. The city was also preparing to widen Market Street, so the grandstands would have to be reconstructed. A good right-handed hitter, Duncan is always mentioned as one of black baseballs best catchers. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Center for Negro League Baseball Research, First black player for St. Louis Browns and New York Giants, First black player for Philadelphia Athletics, First black player for Pittsburgh Pirates, "Negro League Players Who Made the Major Leagues", "Negro Leaguers Who Served With The Armed Forces in WWII", List of Negro league baseball postseason games, Atlanta Black Crackers/Indianapolis ABCs (IV), Indianapolis ABCs (II)/New OrleansSt. The end of Negro League Baseball came quickly after World War II. check out the. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Because we compile fielding statistics, we're able to know that, for example, Dobie Moore, the Kansas City Monarchs shortstop in the 1920s, was a great fielding shortstop. . The businesses, the jazz music, the trolley line -- and there, right in the center of it: Stars Park. It is part of the reason why the game is played the way it is today because of the quality and talent of [Negro Leagues] players. What Negro league players played in the MLB? and daily newspapers in cities where games were played. They played during the decline of the Negro leagues, after the beginning of integration. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. Baseball Reference Adds Negro Leagues Statistics, Rewriting Its Record Book. Were there any white players in the Negro Leagues? TRIBOU: And they did. In 2020, MLB also decided to recognize the Negro League as a 'major league' and include their statistics, which was a mistake as they didn't play in the major leagues, they played in the Negro League. A lot of years they spent proving basically that they were some really good players, and the caliber of talent was equivalent to the National and American Leagues. Part of the Baseball Almanac family: 755 Home Runs | Baseball Box Scores | Baseball Fever | Today in Baseball History. That mission continues today. They also decided not to count the interleague games which were an important part of Negro League seasons, especially in the 1940s. (Though many seasons featured approximately 50 league games, "Negro League teams played 150-175 games a year overall -- the rest of the schedule being filled up with games against white semi-pro teams, lower-level Minor Leaguers, minor Black teams, and other teams whose games we haven't counted yet," Ashwill explained.). A lot of the earlier versions of Negro league statistics only gave you batting averages, home runs, pitchers' won-lost records, basic stuff," Ashwill said. But you've got to establish a basic record first.. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. It's just that you rarely get where are they nows on the guys who played 3-4 forgettable seasons,whether they were in 1930s or 1990s. The Encyclopedia and various books and projects over the years printed stats for a selection of Negro League stars," Ashwill explained -- picking and choosing what information to present, and often excluding players who appeared in fewer than 10 games. the Negro Leagues weren't even considered. Many thanks to him. The most important sources are the Black weekly newspapers (Chicago Defender, Pittsburgh Courier, Baltimore Afro-American, Kansas City Call, etc.) Is ampicillin good for respiratory infection? Buck lives in Rocky Mount, N.C., where he owns a realty agency. Although Brown was never formally charged, there was not much question that the police suspected him. ST. LOUIS -- At the corner of Market Street and Compton Avenue, nestled next to Harris-Stowe State University's baseball field, sits a black plaque that details a large part of St. Louis baseball history. The 2020 season marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Negro National League. Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. I heard about it, but I hadn't experienced it. is still working to incorporate Negro league statistics, but a popular website now lets fans put some of the . Still unsatisfied, the four bills were exhumed and concealed anew. The St. Louis Giants -- the forerunners to the Stars -- had their own ballpark across the street from OFallon Park, but that was still miles away from Mill Creek Valley, a prominent African American neighborhood that was demolished in the 1950s for an urban-renewal project that displaced many who lived there. An additional 35 or so players played on a Negro league team after 1950. Of them, only 9 are still alive as of Janury 26, 2023. And I really do mean today. Mays played. Unfortunately, he also hits AND throws like one." Is there any way to possibly send a baseball to try and get signed by Biddle. This List of Negro league baseball players who played in Major League Baseball is largely based on the research compiled by the Center for Negro League Baseball Research. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. TRIBOU: Bob Kendrick heads the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum there. Silas Simmons played in the pre-Negro League era, and he passed away just a decade ago. James Bell: Cool Papa Bell was probably the fastest ball player ever to don spikes. Do you have a sports website? Sam Jones. The Oldest Living Major League Baseball Players The 500 oldest living baseball players appears below in order from oldest to youngest. He says, faced with segregation, Black owners and players kept pushing for organized baseball. I've watched it shrink since I've been paying attention in 1994. After that we're looking at rookies and role players. Kevin Johnson, co-founder of Seamheads.com and co-chairman of the Society of American Baseball Research ballparks committee, says the Harris-Stowe field is still fairly close to where the original was in the 1920s. That year was also the end of the Negro National League. Josh Gibson in an undated file photo. The World Series winners that same year earned $5,959.64 and the losers $3,820.29. TRIBOU: Jackie Robinson played briefly in the Negro Leagues. They played primarily before the organized Negro leagues. Its a message of community, and heritage, and its a message of, If people who came before me could do it, why cant I? Here we have, in St. Louis, not only the Negro League Stars and the Giants and the Blue Stockings and the Black Stockings [the two forerunners to the Giants], but we have an incredibly rich history in the Tandy League. That started to change in the 1980s and early 90s as researchers like Dick Clark, Larry Lester, John Holway, James Riley and Phil Dixon began assembling a more robust statistical record. BOB KENDRICK: They had no idea they were making history. Jackie Robinson is one of the most famous baseball greats on this list. The list of teams with which he played includes the largely forgotten Miami Globetrotters, Hollywood Redbirds, Miami Red Sox, Belle Glade Redwings, Florida Cuban Giants, the Lucky Stars, the Danny Dodgers; Ft. Lauderdale Braves, Pompano Beach Yankees, Ft. Lauderdale Lucky Stars, Ft. Lauderdale Gray Sox, and the Buffalo Red Sox (a travelling team But what African American and Latino ballplayers accomplished before Robinson changed the world shouldnt be ignored. Copyright 2000-2022 Sports Reference LLC. America's Pastime. He played four seasons. Larry Doby. Based on the book by James and Deborah Fallows, the new HBO documentary film puts the husband and wife team front-and-center as our travel guides through six American towns: San Bernardino, CA . For example, here, courtesy of Ashwill, are the pages from a 1941-42 Baltimore Elite Giants scorebook showing the Elites beating the Philadelphia Stars on Aug. 16, 1942: The biggest myth of them all is that the history of Negro League baseball is nothing but blurry, hard-to-substantiate legends and tall tales, Ashwill wrote in an email to MLB.com. Josh Gibson holds the all-time home run record with 238 and Smokey Joe Williams struck out 1,571 batters in his 25-year career. I can play like a big leaguer, I can field like Luzinski, run like Lombardi. He continued his research with others like Kevin Johnson, Dan Hirsch, and Scott Simkus. Mike Trout A baseball park built for the Negro National League St. Louis Stars stood on these grounds.. The Negro National League folded after the 1948 season and the last Negro Leagues All-Star game was held in 1962. Lee lives in Washington, D.C. George Scales: One of the strongest-hitting 2nd basemen of his time and a .311 lifetime hitter, George played in the big-time for nearly 25 years with 6 different clubs. The team had three Hall of Famers: speedy James Cool Papa Bell, slugger George Mule Suttles and defensive wizard Willie Wells -- who later became a scout for Black talent and gave teams reports about Robinson. They are in order from oldest to youngest: Willie Mays, Whitey Herzog, Luis Aparicio, Sandy Koufax, Bill Mazeroski, Brooks Robinson, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, Billy Williams, Tony Oliva, Gaylord Perry, Jim Kaat, Carl Yastrzemski, Joe Torre, Bobby Cox. How Cool Papa Bell was so fast that he could hit the light switch and be in bed before the lights went out. 'THEY TRULY DESERVE IT:'Families of Negro Leaguers rejoice in MLB's decision to recognize league, OPINION:After vowing change, Black candidates shut out again of MLB front office jobs. Those four names aren't just pieces of data, or clickable things on a site, they are human beings who excelled despiteliving under the thick anvilof segregation. FORBES: Unfortunately, some of the good players, by the time that the time came, they were too old to play. Like O'Neil, Minnie Mioso was still alive when he was denied entry in 2006, mostly because his time was so short in the Negro Leagues. He turns 100 on December 20th, 2017. It's been a long time now since the Negro Leagues were operational. He played for the Louisville Clippers, and later was traded with Jesse Mitchell to the Birmingham Black Barons for a used team bus. Bill Evans: Bill (Happy) Evans enjoyed a brief career with the Homestead Grays in the early 1930s. But don't expect major changes in the record books O'Neil, who died in 2006 , also helped found the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas . A leading voice in keeping alive the memory of the Negro Leagues and co-founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Black players earnedless because they were Jim Crow'd.