Champions of Black Baseball

This book on the 1939 Negro National League II champion Baltimore Elite Giants is part of a series of SABR books about the great Negro League teams of the first half of the twentieth century. The Giants were first formed in Nashville in 1921, but moved around from location to location over the years - Columbus and Washington, DC, became way stations for team founder Tom Wilson as he moved the team in search of a sizable and stable fan base that Nashville's Black population did not offer. Eventually, in 1938, after a poor showing in Washington, he found what he was looking for - a receptive environment for his Elites - and moved the team one more time, to Baltimore, less than 50 miles up the road. The following year, 1939, the Baltimore Elite Giants struck pay dirt and won the Negro National League championship in a four-team playoff, besting first the Newark Eagles and then the juggernaut Homestead Grays. They remained in Baltimore for the duration of their existence, until the team folded in 1950. This book provides a detailed account of the Elite Giants and an array of essays about the players and team officials behind them that resulted in Baltimore's 1939 crown. A complete season timeline, the story of Oriole Park, where the Elites often played, the historical context of the time, and articles about some of standout games are also included. They offer a backdrop for Tom Wilson's bio and player narratives ranging from the young Roy Campanella and the likes of Biz Mackey, Burnis "Wild Bill" Wright, Henry Kimbro, and player-manager Felton Snow to those serving as the supporting cast. This book is the collaborative work of 31 SABR members who have collaboratively and diligently researched and written each article.

The Kansas City Monarchs are arguably the best-known of all Negro League teams, thanks in part to the inimitable Satchel Paige's association with the team and longtime Monarch Buck O'Neil's role as an ambassador of Black baseball history. The Monarchs won the first-ever Negro League World Series against the Hilldale club in 1924. Black World Series play went on a 15-year hiatus after 1927, but when it returned, so did the Monarchs. That time, 1942, the team faced the perennial Negro National League champions, the Homestead Grays. In the clash between the two powerhouse squads, the Kansas Citians made mincemeat of the mighty Grays and turned 1942 into the year When the Monarchs Reigned. This book, the result of a collaborative effort by 32 SABR members, features biographies of Hall of Famers Satchel Paige, Hilton Smith, and Willard Brown; stalwarts such as Newt Allen and Buck O'Neil; and many other players. Also included are, biographies of principal owner and Hall of Famer J.L. Wilkinson and other front-office personnel, Ruppert Stadium (which was renamed several times over the course of its existence), and groundbreaking Kansas City Call reporter Willa Bea Harmon. Feature articles focus on topics such as the Call's coverage of the Monarchs, Wilkinson's role in helping to resuscitate Paige's career, and the fate of the Monarchs, during the World War II years. In addition to an extensive season timeline, game articles highlight a contest against Dizzy Dean's All-Stars, Satchel Paige Day at Wrigley Field, the two East-West All-Star Games, and the grand finale to the season, the World Series triumph over the Homestead Grays.

This book provides a detailed account of the 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes with biographies of the players and the team officials who led the team to its World Series triumph. Also included is a complete season timeline, articles about some standout games. the story of League Park and Cleveland Stadium (where the Buckeyes played), and an appreciation of the cultural context of the time. Until the emergence of the Buckeyes in 1942, no Negro League team formed in Cleveland survived more than a year. The high-water mark for the Buckeyes was undoubtedly 1945, when they won the Negro American League title and then, against all odds, defeated the perennial Negro National League champion Homestead Grays four games to none in the Negro League World Series. This book comprises contributions from 29 members of the Society for American Baseball Research. This history of the 1945 Cleveland Buckeyes is the eighth in a series of SABR books about the great Negro League teams of the first half of the twentieth century.