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Oscar McKinley Charleston was an American center fielder and manager in Negro league baseball. In 1915,after serving three years in the U.S. Army,the Indianapolis,Indiana,native continued his baseball career as a professional with the Indianapolis ABCs;his career ended in 1954 as a player-manager for the Indianapolis Clowns. In addition to a forty-three-year career with more than a dozen teams,including the Homestead Grays and the Pittsburgh Crawfords,Negro league baseball's leading teams in the 1930s,he played nine winter seasons in Cuba and in numerous exhibition games against white major leaguers. Charleston was known for his strengths as a hitter and center fielder. To this day,he holds the record for the second-highest batting average of all-time among major league players. He also has the fourth-highest career OPS. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976.
Joseph Williams,nicknamed "Cyclone Joe" and "Smokey Joe",was an American right-handed pitcher in Negro league baseball. He is considered one of the greatest pitchers of all-time and was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999.
Norman Thomas "Turkey" Stearnes was an American baseball outfielder in the Negro leagues. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Cristóbal Torriente called Babe Ruth of Cuba,was a Cuban outfielder in Negro league baseball with multiple teams. He played from 1912 to 1932 and was primarily a pull hitter,though he could hit with power to all fields. He had a stocky and slightly bowlegged build,but was known for deceptive power and a strong,accurate arm from center field. Indianapolis ABC's manager C.I. Taylor stated,"If I see Torriente walking up the other side of the street,I would say,'There walks a ballclub.'" Torriente was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Bruce Franklin Petway was an American Negro league baseball catcher in the early 20th century who came to be known as having one of the best throwing arms in the league. He is also said to have been one of the first to have consistently thrown to second base without coming out of the squat. He was the brother of fellow Negro leaguer Howard Petway.
JoséColmenar del Valle Méndez was a Cuban right-handed pitcher and manager in baseball's Negro leagues. Born in Cárdenas,Matanzas,he died at age 43 in Havana. Known in Cuba as El Diamante Negro,he became a legend in his homeland. He was one of the first group of players elected to the Cuban Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in 2006.
John Christopher Beckwith,nicknamed The Black Bomber,was an American infielder in baseball's Negro leagues.
The Leland Giants,originally the Chicago Union Giants,were a Negro league baseball team that competed independently during the first decade of the 20th century. The team was formed via a merge of the Chicago Unions and the Chicago Columbia Giants in 1901,and then split in 1910 to form the Chicago Giants and what would become known as the Chicago American Giants. The team was named after its owner and manager,Frank Leland.
William Miller "Big Bill" Gatewood was an American Negro league baseball pitcher and manager for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League,and in its first few seasons. He pitched for the Leland Giants,Chicago Giants,St. Paul Colored Gophers,Chicago American Giants,New York Lincoln Giants,Cuban X-Giants,Philadelphia Giants,Brooklyn Royal Giants,St. Louis Giants,Indianapolis ABCs,Detroit Stars,St. Louis Stars,Toledo Tigers,Milwaukee Bears,Memphis Red Sox,Atlantic City Bacharach Giants,and Birmingham Black Barons.
Clinton Cyrus Thomas,nicknamed "Hawk",was a professional baseball player born in Greenup,Kentucky. He was an outfielder and second baseman in the Negro leagues from 1920 to 1938,where he earned the nickname "Hawk" for his sharp-eyed hitting and center field skills.
Charles Grant Jr. was an American second baseman in Negro league baseball. During his 20-year career,he played for some of the best teams in the Negro leagues. Grant nearly crossed the baseball color line in 1901 when Major League Baseball manager John McGraw attempted to pass him off as a Native American named "Tokohama".
George Walter Ball was an American baseball pitcher in the Negro leagues. Born in Detroit,Michigan,from 1893 he played ten years as the only black player on minor white teams in Minnesota and North Dakota. For more than a decade beginning 1903,he played for major teams,mainly in the Chicago region. Sources say he was given the nickname "The Georgia Rabbit" and "Diamond."
James Henry Lyons was a baseball player in the Negro leagues. He pitched and played outfield between 1910 and 1925. He played for the Brooklyn Royal Giants,Chicago Giants,Lincoln Giants,St. Louis Giants,and Detroit Stars. He is the brother of Bennie Lyons,another baseball player who played for the West Baden Sprudels and Indianapolis ABCs.
Henry William "Harry" Moore was an American baseball utility player in the pre-Negro leagues. He was known as "Harry Moore," "Henry Moore," and even "Mike Moore."
Wilson Connie Day was a Negro league infielder for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League,and in its first few seasons.
Eugene Scott was a Negro leagues catcher for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League.
José"Cheo" Hernández was a Cuban League and Negro leagues pitcher,who also spent time for several Minor League Baseball teams in a career that spanned 1915 to 1927.
Gifford Van Horn McDonald was a Negro leagues pitcher for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League.
William Green was a Negro leagues third baseman for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League,and in its first few seasons.
Jack 'Boss' Marshall was a Negro leagues pitcher and manager for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League,and in its first several seasons.
