CLEVELAND —  Perhaps you've heard of Negro League legends, like Josh Gibson—often referred to as the “Black Babe Ruth." or Jackie Robinson, the first African American to break the color barrier in 1947 with the Dodgers.

 

What You Need To Know

  • The Negro Leagues gave rise to many stars like Josh Gibson who never had the chance to make it to the Major Leagues

  • Besides Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby and Satchel Paige of the Cleveland Indians are among the first African Americans to integrate into the Major Leagues

  • Evidence shows Moses Fleetwood Walker, who was born in Ohio, may be the first black man to ever play Major League Baseball in 1884

 

Rube Foster was a manager, an executive and recognized as the “Father of Black Baseball.”

Cleveland was also a big part of the mix. In fact, the Buckeyes were one of 11 teams in the Negro League that called the city home.

“The first team arrived, 1922, The Cleveland Tate Stars and teams were here through 1950. The Buckeyes are unique in that they stayed the longest, and they were the most successful. In most cities were Negro League teams were, there was an industrial base. So, people had jobs. Baseball games were an opportunity for them to spend their free time and their money. Perhaps more importantly, Negro League Baseball was an industry. In the 1940s, Negro League baseball was the third largest black business in this country,” says baseball historian Ike Brooks.

Brooks grew up in Baltimore and was raised as an Orioles fan.

It wasn't until the 1990s when he moved to Cleveland that his interest in Negro League baseball grew and led to his passion.

“Had an opportunity as an Indians season ticket holder to work on some community projects and they were inviting in some of the players that played with Larry Doby when he was in the Negro Leagues. And that peaked my interest because I had not known much about them, and went on a pursuit of learning as much as I possibly could,” says Brooks.

In 1945, the Cleveland Buckeyes swept the Homestead Grays in the Negro League World Series, but were perhaps overshadowed by the integration of baseball in 1947 after years of resistance.

“Some researchers will say resistance is based on Jim Crow laws that existed in the country. Others would say that economics played a part in that. Because in many cities, Major League ball clubs were renting their stadiums to Negro League teams, so they were a separate revenue,” says Brooks.

A year later, Negro League stars and later Hall of Famers Larry Doby and Satchel Paige joined the Cleveland Indians and led them to the city's last World Series Championship in 1948.
Brooks says it's a little know fact that the Cleveland Buckeyes, who played first at League Park, then Municipal Stadium, was the first team to integrate.
   
“There was a white player in 1946 that played for the Cleveland Buckeyes, a guy from Erie named Eddie Klep. And strangely enough, or perhaps ironically enough, when the team would have spring training, especially in Birmingham Alabama, Eddie Kelp was denied being able to play with his teammates,” says Brooks.

Brooks says as he looks back at the last 100 years, Negro League Baseball was both an alternative and an opportunity.

And although many players faced hardships and limitations, its impact remains present in today's game.

"It's an opportunity for players, and in the Negro Leagues, it was men and women to display their athletic skills. Many of the things that we see in baseball todays such as small ball, bunting, advancing runners, hit and run, came from Negro League Baseball,” says Brooks.