The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and,to a lesser extent,Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in 1920 that are sometimes termed "Negro Major Leagues".
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.
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 first Negro National League (NNL) 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 Kansas City Monarchs were the longest-running franchise in the history of baseball's Negro leagues. Operating in Kansas City,Missouri and owned by J. L. Wilkinson,they were charter members of the Negro National League from 1920 to 1930. J. L. Wilkinson was the first Caucasian owner at the time of the establishment of the team. In 1930,the Monarchs became the first professional baseball team to use a portable lighting system which was transported from game to game in trucks to play games at night,five years before any major league team did. The Monarchs won ten league championships before integration,and triumphed in the first Negro League World Series in 1924. The Monarchs had only one season in which they did not have a winning record. The team produced more major league players than any other Negro league franchise. It was disbanded in 1965.
John Henry Lloyd,nicknamed "Pop" and "El Cuchara",was an American baseball shortstop and manager in the Negro leagues. During his 27-year career,he played for many teams and had a .343 batting average. Lloyd is considered to be the greatest shortstop in Negro league history,and he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.
James Allen "Candy Jim" Taylor was an American third baseman and manager in Negro league baseball. In a career that spanned forty years,he played as an infielder in the early years of the 20th century for over a dozen black baseball teams;by the mid 1920s,he would play less regularly,with his final game came at 58. In 1920,the same year of the start of the golden era of Negro league baseball,he would take on the responsibilities of manager,where he would manage 1,967 games for twelve teams. Described as one of the great strategists of his era,Taylor is the all-time winningest manager in the Negro league era,having 955 wins along with two Negro World Series titles and one additional pennant in 27 seasons as manager. He has the most seasons managed by an African American manager along with having the seventh most for a manager in the history of baseball.
The Chicago American Giants were a Chicago-based Negro league baseball team. From 1910 until the mid-1930s,the American Giants were the most dominant team in black baseball. Owned and managed from 1911 to 1926 by player-manager Andrew "Rube" Foster,they were charter members of Foster's Negro National League. The American Giants won five pennants in that league,along with another pennant in the 1932 Negro Southern League and a second-half championship in Gus Greenlee's Negro National League in 1934. The team ended in 1956.
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.
The St. Louis Stars,originally the St. Louis Giants,were a Negro league baseball team that competed independently from as early as 1906 to 1919,and then joined the Negro National League (NNL) for the duration of their existence. After the 1921 season,the Giants were sold by African-American promoter Charlie Mills to Dick Kent and Dr. Sam Sheppard,who built a new park and renamed the club the Stars. As the Stars,they eventually built one of the great dynasties in Negro league history,winning three pennants in four years from 1928 to 1931.
The Indianapolis ABCs were a Negro league baseball team that played both as an independent club and as a charter member of the first Negro National League (NNL). They claimed the western championship of black baseball in 1915 and 1916,and finished second in the 1922 NNL. Among their best players were Baseball Hall of Fame members Oscar Charleston,Biz Mackey,and Ben Taylor.
Frank C. Leland was an American baseball player,field manager and club owner in the Negro leagues.
The Indianapolis Clowns were a professional baseball team in the Negro American League. Tracing their origins back to the 1930s,the Clowns were the last of the Negro league teams to disband,continuing to play exhibition games into the 1980s. They began play as the independent Ethiopian Clowns,joined the Negro American League as the Cincinnati Clowns and,after a couple of years,relocated to Indianapolis. Hank Aaron was a Clown for a short period,and the Clowns were also one of the first professional baseball teams to hire a female player.
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.
Theodore Reginald Strong,Jr.,was an American Negro league baseball player who played from 1936 to 1942 and again from 1946 to 1951 for the Chicago American Giants,Indianapolis Athletics,Kansas City Monarchs,Indianapolis ABCs,and Indianapolis Clowns.
Samuel Crawford was an American pitcher and manager in baseball's Negro leagues.
Tullie McAdoo was an American baseball first baseman in the Negro leagues. He played from 1908 to 1924 with several teams,playing mostly with the St. Louis Giants.
William Lindsay,nicknamed "The Kansas Cyclone" and "Lightning",was a Negro leagues pitcher for several years before the founding of the first Negro National League.
The Kansas City Giants were a professional Negro leagues baseball team,based in Kansas City,Kansas from 1909 to 1911. The Kansas City Giants teams played as a member of the Western Independent Clubs. The Kansas City Giants played home games at Riverside Park.
