Classification | Major league |
---|---|
Sport | Negro league baseball |
First season | 1933 |
Ceased | 1948 |
No. of teams | ~18 |
Country | United States |
Most titles | Homestead Grays (10) |
The second Negro National League (NNL II) was one of the several Negro leagues that were established during the period in the United States when organized baseball was segregated. The league was founded in 1933 by businessman Gus Greenlee of Pittsburgh.
The second Negro National League was established in 1933 by Gus Greenlee, an African-American businessman of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, two years after the first Negro National League had disbanded, after the start of the Great Depression. [1] The second Negro National League lasted until 1948, the year after Major League Baseball integrated. After that, its surviving teams merged into the Negro American League. [2]
To distinguish between the two Negro National Leagues, they are usually referred to as the first Negro National League (NNL I) and the second Negro National League (NNL II).
†The Brooklyn Eagles and Newark Dodgers merged to form the Newark Eagles in 1936.
From 1937 and 1938, 1940, and 1942 through 1946, the team in first place at the end of the season was declared the pennant winner (league champion). Due to the unorthodox nature of the schedule (and little incentive to enforce it), some teams frequently played many more games than others did in any given season. In 1933, Cole's Chicago American Giants claimed the first half title, but the Pittsburgh Crawfords won the second half and had an overall better record. The following year saw the Stars have a better winning percentage that saw them compete against the third place Chicago team despite the fact Pittsburgh played (and won) more games. This led to some disputed championships and two teams claiming the title. Generally, the team with the best winning percentage (with some minimum number of games played) was awarded the pennant, but other times it was the team with the most victories. The "games behind" method of recording standings was uncommon in most black leagues.
Year | Winning team | Manager | Reference |
---|---|---|---|
1933 | Pittsburgh Crawfords | Oscar Charleston | [3] |
1934† | Philadelphia Stars | Webster McDonald | [4] |
1935† | Pittsburgh Crawfords (2) | Oscar Charleston | [5] |
1936 | Pittsburgh Crawfords (3) | Oscar Charleston | [6] |
1937 | Homestead Grays | Vic Harris | [7] |
1938 | Homestead Grays (2) | Vic Harris | [8] |
1939† | Baltimore Elite Giants | Felton Snow | [9] |
1940 | Homestead Grays (3) | Vic Harris | [10] |
1941† | Homestead Grays (4) | Vic Harris | [11] |
1942 | Homestead Grays (5) | Vic Harris | [12] |
1943 | Homestead Grays (6) | Candy Jim Taylor | [13] |
1944 | Homestead Grays (7) | Candy Jim Taylor | [14] |
1945 | Homestead Grays (8) | Vic Harris | [15] |
1946 | Newark Eagles | Biz Mackey | [16] |
1947 | New York Cubans | José Fernández | [17] |
1948† | Homestead Grays (9) | Vic Harris | [18] |
† – Pennant was decided via a split-season schedule with the winner of the first half of the season playing the winner of the second half of the season.
* – Pennant was decided via a 2-round play-off between the top four teams.
‡ – Pennant winner went on to play in the Negro World Series.
On five occasions, the League held a postseason series to determine the pennant champion.
1933 would have been the first to match the first and second half champions, but the Pittsburgh Crawfords were instead awarded the pennant over the first half champion Chicago American Giants. 1936 had an array of games that may or may not have been formal postseason games. For example, the Washington Elite Giants won the first half after beating the Philadelphia Stars 7–5 in a one-game match on September 17. [19] Pittsburgh (who had a better record overall) faced the Newark Eagles from September 12–15 and won 3–1–1 in either a second-half playoff or a regular series-turned-playoff. Washington and Pittsburgh played three games from September 21–27, but no box scores exist for the games (which Washington won two of three) in a series that was evidently abandoned. [20]
In one year (1939), the top four teams (Homestead Grays, Newark Eagles, Baltimore Elite Giants, Philadelphia Stars) were matched together in a best-of-five tournament. The Grays beat the Stars in five games while the Elite Giants beat the Eagles in four games to set up the Championship Series. The New York Cubans won the second half of the 1947 season but advanced to the Negro World Series over the Newark Eagles (first half champions). 1948 ended prematurely after a controversial finish to a disputed tie game in the third game.
Year | Winning team | Games | Losing team | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|
1934 | Philadelphia Stars (second half) | 4–3–(1) | Chicago American Giants (first half) | [21] |
1935 | Pittsburgh Crawfords (first half) | 4–3 | New York Cubans (second half) | [22] |
1939 | Baltimore Elite Giants (third place) | 3–1–(1) | Homestead Grays (first place) | [23] |
1941 | Homestead Grays (first half) | 3–1 | New York Cubans (second half) | [24] |
1948 | Homestead Grays (second half) | 2–1–(1) | Baltimore Elite Giants (first half) | [25] |
For the duration of the league, a Negro World Series took place seven times, from 1942 through 1948. The Negro National League's pennant winner met the champion of the rival Negro American League. Five out of the seven years, the Negro National League team (below in bold) prevailed.
Leon Day was an American professional baseball pitcher who spent the majority of his career in the Negro leagues. Recognized as one of the most versatile athletes in the league during his prime, Day could play every position, with the exception of catcher, and often was the starting second baseman or center fielder when he was not on the mound. A right-handed pitcher with a trademark no wind-up delivery, Day excelled at striking batters out, especially with his high-speed fastball. At the same time, he was an above-average contact hitter, which, combined with his effectiveness as a baserunner and his tenacious fielding, helped cement Day as one of the most dynamic players of the era.
The Negro American League was one of the several Negro leagues created during the time organized American baseball was segregated. The league was established in 1937, and disbanded after its 1962 season.
The Mutual Association of Eastern Colored Clubs, more commonly known as the Eastern Colored League (ECL), was one of the several Negro leagues, which operated during the time organized baseball was segregated.
The first Negro National League was one of the several Negro leagues that were established during the period in the United States when organized baseball was segregated. The league was formed in 1920 with former player Rube Foster as its president.
The Homestead Grays were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States.
The Baltimore Elite Giants were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues from 1920 to 1950. The team was established by Thomas T. Wilson, in Nashville, Tennessee as the semi-pro Nashville Standard Giants on March 26, 1920. The team was renamed the Elite Giants in 1921, and moved to Baltimore, Maryland in 1938, where the team remained for the duration of their existence. The team and its fans pronounced the word "Elite" as "ee-light".
The East–West All-Star Game was an annual all-star game for Negro league baseball players. The game was the brainchild of Gus Greenlee, owner of the Pittsburgh Crawfords. In 1933 he decided to emulate the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, using Negro league players. Newspaper balloting was set up to allow the fans to choose the starting lineups for that first game, a tradition that continued through the series' end in 1962. Unlike the MLB All-Star game which is played near the middle of the season, the Negro All-Star game was held toward the end of the season.
William Byrd was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues. Born in Canton, Georgia, he was a right-handed pitcher. He was named in eight All-Star games for six seasons. Byrd also saw action with the Criollos de Caguas and Cangrejeros de Santurce clubs of the Puerto Rico Winter League, where he was considered one of the best hurlers. He died at age 83 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Felton "Skipper" Snow was a Negro leagues professional baseball player who played for the Nashville Elite Giants that later became the Columbus Elite Giants, the Washington Elite Giants, and the Baltimore Elite Giants. Snow played on the West Squad in the East-West All-Star Games of 1935 and 1936. In 1940, he became a player-manager for the Baltimore Elite Giants.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1948 throughout the world.
James Raleigh "Biz" Mackey was an American catcher and manager in Negro league baseball. He played for the Indianapolis ABCs (1920–1922), New York Lincoln Giants (1920), Hilldale Daisies (1923–1931), Philadelphia Royal Giants (1925), Philadelphia Stars (1933–1935), Washington / Baltimore Elite Giants (1936–1939), and Newark Dodgers/Eagles.
Henry Allen Kimbro, nicknamed "Jimbo", was an American Negro league outfielder from the late 1930s through the early 1950s. He played for the Washington Elite Giants, Baltimore Elite Giants, and the New York Black Yankees and managed the Birmingham Black Barons from 1952-1953 before retiring from baseball.
Elander Victor Harris was an American professional baseball outfielder and manager in the Negro leagues. Listed at 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m), 168 lb., Harris batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
The following is a timeline of franchise evolution in Major League Baseball. The histories of franchises in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP), National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NA), Union Association (UA), and American Association (AA) before they joined the National League (NL) are also included. In 1900 the minor league Western League renamed itself the American League (AL). All of the 1899 Western League teams were a part of the transformation with the Saint Paul Apostles moving to Chicago and to play as the White Stockings. In 1901 the AL declared itself a Major League. For its inaugural major league season the AL dropped its teams in Indianapolis, Buffalo and Minneapolis and replaced them with franchises in Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore and the Kansas City Blues moved to Washington to play as the Senators.
The 1948 Negro World Series was the championship tournament for the 1948 season of Negro league baseball. It was the seventh edition of the second incarnation of the Negro World Series and the eleventh overall played. It was a best-of-seven playoff played between the Homestead Grays of the Negro National League and the Birmingham Black Barons, champions of the Negro American League. The Homestead Grays played home games in both Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh. It was the fifth appearance for the Grays in the Series, the most for any team; Birmingham made their third appearance in the Series, with each being against the Grays. The Grays won the series in five games. The Black Barons featured the 17-year-old Willie Mays in his first professional season.
The Negro American Association was the name of two different minor league Negro baseball leagues.
John G. Washington was an American Negro league first baseman in the 1930s and 1940s.