I once read that before Jackie Robinson being the first black ball player playing mlb. He was almost a possible potential but it's sad he died before he could have played a mlb game.
Must’ve been easy in the Negro league. We’re happy outfielders were drunk because the others were either in jail or showed up late. You don’t actually believe the bullshit history been told, do you stupid?
@@johnnygunzfilmbuff7821 Josh didn’t have the go along to get along attitude compared to Jackie. He would have physically fought the blatant racist players back in the day.
@@Godfather-rn6rb SMH Jackie Robinson didn't have a go along to get along attitude, that's a b.s. narrative white media put on him to make the story palatable. Don't take my word for it, go and look up how he carried himself before, during & after his MLB career. Now what set him apart from the vast majority of all ball players during that era was that he was an educated man.
It would be enough for Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb, Roger Hornsby, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner, Ty Cobb or Hank Greenberg, Tris Speaker or Sam Crawford or Jimmie Fox or Mickey Cochrane or Left Grove or Joe or Bob Feller or Warren Spahn & Bill Dickey or Hack Wilson to show what they can do of the MLB they played for that were mostly or 98 to 99% white color race. Then of what the top Negro League Players had showed of the game of their playing of skills or surburbs expertise too. So it shows their all around playing of the game from one league of the white league or black league . So it's fear for their playing time of their own game playing way or style but if they played for the same MLG's all around year then it could be different. But it didn't start that way normally for any race or till a number of them had played for the white leagues before the MLB came with different leagues or teams and of whites were playing or hiring to play for the MLB after the 1800's so it was not anyone or drafts for negro leagues to officially play for the major leagues then . Till John McGraw or certain managers had assists of certain negro league players would of been a acception or excelled playing for the (in..) MLB then after success of their black negro leagues then the last great ones and finishing of the 30' and to the 40's and great players still playing or playing for top teams with younger top players and ending their careers and the last of the newer ones and starting mostly during the 1940's their was a talk or agreement of certain players to play for the MLB's or needing or having negro league baseball players to come to play for the White Leagues or a all color MLB though that all the great negro league baseball players had been finishing up the careers for the negro leagues of the top all around skill talented players. So the barrier had been broken for negro league baseball players to play for them too. Then their was a few of them mentioned then Satchel Paige came to their draft after pitching a number of years for the NL too and the same as much like "Smokey or Cyclone" Williams for 27 years with official pro league starting players then besides a lot more games that Satchel Paige and team or teams had played other baseball players of top players of the towns best players. Then he went to the MLB after a few had been drafted to play for the MLB then.
The records could be different but still in little trouble of success with both Major Leagues of the color ones and whites. But for a number of them to get MVPs as much won't probably been to achieve the MVP a number of times. Maybe like this of years for certain players throughout the early 1900's to 1940's.
While the color barrier is abhorrent to me, and the fact that these players should have been able to play according to their ability, I do have one point. I hear a lot of people say that major leaguers would not have played as well with these players in the league every day, and the same could be sad of the opposite. Certainly the caliber of play would be better, and players with lesser abilities of every race might not have made the league at all. I think that, with African-Americans making up something like 13% of the population, there would be a smaller pool to pick from. Lot of factors to consider, but the game would have been fun to watch.
If I had a time machine, the first thing I would do is watch some Negro League baseball, and possibly keep game records that have been lost to history.
One of my uncles who was a very old man at the time when I was a kid used to go to a lot of the negro League games and he told me that the negro League was more successful than the MLB and it was better talent.
Josh Gibson said that the GREATEST thrill he ever had during his sensational career was playing baseball in Puerto Rico: ''... my greatest thrill was not experienced through any particular circuit clout or any double or triple which produced the winning margin for our side. The greatest thrill of all my thrills came in the winter of 1941 in Puerto Rico ... “That particular season I was doubly honored as the batting champion and the most valuable player in the Puerto Rico league. Playing winter baseball out of the States in a foreign atmosphere has always struck me as something unique. But cashing in on two top awards out of the States - the batting championship and the most valuable player award - was something more than unique. It was definitely my greatest thrill ... “Receiving the cup symbolic of the most valuable player award at special ceremonies at the end of the season was a highly significant and pleasing event in my life. The fanfare, the cheering of the fans and the many congratulatory speeches from league officials and other dignitaries gave me a thrill unequaled in my career.” source: Andrew Martin My dad was a pitcher in the Puerto Rican league in the early 1930s when it was still semi pro. He and Josh were exactly the same age. Dad (a native of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico) was self taught and spoke excellent English. The two struck up a friendship that my dad never forgot. He said Josh was the nicest guy he ever met in his life.
amazing story...i live in Puerto Rico and this gives me so much joy and pride...PR Winter League has such a rich history!...it's yet another highlight of this blessed Island : )
My uncle conducted sleep studies in the 70s and one day he spent 3 hours talking baseball to a participant. A lanky older gentlemen who’s hands seemed to go down to his knees. His name was Leroy Robert Paige
If only people got to see Satchel when he was satchel. I"m thankful to San Diego Studios for bringing the Negro Leagues to MLB The show 23. Teaching a whole new generation about these legends.
I had an older uncle back in the 90s and he loved to talk baseball with me but he was extremely racist and would pretty much only talk about white players so I made a point to learn all I could about great negro league players. I would throw out so many stats at him he finally stopped talking baseball with me. He died years ago but because of him I learned a lot about these legends of baseball.
A dude like that in the Majors he would of probably hit 500. As good as Williams was even he would of had to be humbled. So sad that as many who died during the Civil War it still took a long long time for home grown Americans to be excepted as Americans.
The great Cardinals player developer George Kissell, who saw EVERYBODY play, said, "The three hardest hit balls I've ever heard hit are three, Mark McGuire, two, Babe Ruth, and number one Josh Gibson. Thanks so much for this excellent video
@@saviorself1164 I remember that, Buck was in the dugout when Bo who had just joined the Royals, smashed a pitch in BP off the crown at Kauffman. Yes, the one way up there above center field. 🤯lol
I had a conversation with a lady in here 80's about a baseball game her father took her to back in 1938 when she was a little girl. It was Dizzy Deans allstars vs Satchel Paige's allstars. IT was actually one of the few games in which Satchels team lost. It was held in Belleville illinois. She remembered vividly watching satchel paige kick his leg real high and throw a pitch.
This is one of your greatest videos, Erik. Excellent research and presentation by the Humm Baby Baseball channel. Yes, as a baseball fan of only 62 years I’ve heard of all of these great men who played and starred in the Negro Leagues !!! ⚾️⚾️⚾️ ROGER, The LOS ANGELES DODGER (from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex)
I was very fortunate and to have actually have met Mr. Buck Leonard and Cool Papa Bell in 1974 at the Hall of Fame Game after the induction of Cool Papa Bell, Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford and got the two Gentlemen's autographs. In fact I was fortunate enough to sit next to Buck Leonard the whole game. What a great gentleman and National Treasure he was. I was just a kid then and didn't have much knowledge of the Negro League. Too bad that we were very ignorant of that part of history. If I had known then what I know now I would have appreciated the moment a lot more and I would have picked his brains and then listen to his invaluable stories from his past. I was so glad the MLB had finally started to recognize those wonderful ballplayers and honor them back then as they should. Thank you for posting this story. I really enjoyed it and would love to see more postings like this.
I was there... I didn't see the HOF game. But I saw the induction, and all the greats across the street at the Otesaga Hotel. Buck Leonard, Satchel, Mickey Mantle, Phil Rizzuto, so many others.
Great video. This popped up a few days after MLB the show announced the Negro Leagues will be coming to The Show. Good on San diego Studio's for doing this. This time in baseball history is Legendary and a must know about. It seems the news is spreading.
Great job with this video! Thank you for recognizing these great players that history may have forgotten or not recorded their accomplishments as accurately as they deserved.
Before he made his mark in Country music, Charlie Pride was a player, one of the last Negro League players. He played in the New York Mets organization before starting his HOF music career.
Pop Lloyd was the recreation director in Atlantic City and worked at city hall when I was a boy. My dad was an avid amateur softball and baseball player, and played in games at the rec field on Bacharach Boulevard, home of at least one Negro League team.. He was at all the games and was the nicest man you ever met. He would talk with all the players and the kids and would talk your ear off about baseball. My dad introduced me to him and said he would have been one of the best shortstops who ever played if he wallowed to play in the majors.
He was one of the best shortstops to ever play. I believe what you meant was one of the best in MLB- but the negro leagues’ talent was on par with mlb.
Robert “School Boy” Griffith broke into MLB in 1933 with Tom Wilson”s Nashville Elite Giants. Griffith stood 6”5 and pitched right-right handed. He threw just as hard as Paige and others but lacked control at times. In 1937 and 1938 Grif suited up with the Negro League Allstars that ran through the Denver Post Tournament featuring MLB Hall A Famers like Sammy Baugh and Roger Hornsby just to name a few. Robert was asked by Paige to play on an Allstar team that toured the Dominican Republic and won the championship. For years he played winter ball in Mexico, (was the leading pitcher for a few seasons) Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Venezuela (1947 Champions). Griffith was the winning pitcher in the 1945 NL Allstar Game. For most of his career he toiled on subpar teams. After the NL met his demise he continued to play in Canada until he retired and resided in Indianapolis, Indiana where he died in 1977.
Do a video about Satchel Paige there is a curious episode of his life. In 1937 a Dominican dictator called Rafael Leónidas Trujillo sent an emissary to the Negro Leagues to recruit good players, Satchel was one of them. Trujillo send an emissary to the Negro Leagues to recruit good players, Satchel was one of them. They form a team called “Dragones Ciudad Trujillo” they got big money (the players). Played that season in 1937. The tyrant wants to keep them but Satchel and others take a plane to leave the country because they saw atrocities done by that regime. Greetings from Juan Marichal’s land (Dominican Republic), let's go Giants!!!!!!!
The Negro League players, would rather have come, back to Amerikkka and deal with overt racism, racial injustice, race terrorism, and live under an unjust system of segregation of Jim Crow!!!! That seems odd to me!!!!
Here's what's missing from this list: Martin Dihigo "The Maestro". He was good enough to be the only man in history to be elected to 5 different hall of fames in different countries. Think about that. He's top 5.
Oscar Charleston’s known stats against MLB opposition: 37 G, 158 PA, 10 HR, .355 AVG, .420 OBP, .738 SLG, for a 1.158 OPS (Stats from foolish baseball’s vid about Satchel Paige). Him and all of the guys on this list most certainly would’ve dominated against MLB competition had they been allowed the chance.
When Honus Wagner was told that reporters had taken to calling Pop Lloyd the “black Honus Wagner” (as was the ignorant way of the day) Wagner is said to have replied, “sir, Hans Wagner is the white Pop Lloyd.” Such a shame that ignorance, stupidity and fear not only denied these men of the chance to truly make mlb the top league, but also denied true baseball fans of seeing the best against the best.
Willard Brown, Alonzo Perry and Wilbur Wood. Brown hit 397, 27 HR and 87 BI in 1942 in 54 games with Santurce, that’s production. Perry and Wood played for the champions Mayaguez in 1939, the inaugural season of winter ball in PR.
On OOTP, I went back to 1947 and made the dodgers a full negro league team, will continue to add a couple guys each draft too. Rn we are 73-14, safe to say that the talent is that of a All-MLB esque team. So damn good we have as many complete game shutouts as wins. Triple other teams home runs etc. Such Amazing talent, it’s truly sad basically none got a chance at all let alone in their primes
At 1:36 Hank Aaron is wearing the uniform of the Caguas Criollos, a team of the Puerto Rico Winter Baseball League. The winter leagues at Cuba, the Dominican Republic, México, Venezuela, Panamá and PR offered those Negro League players the chance to play in a friendly environment in which they felt at home, were respected by the fans, the press and the local authorities, earned good money, were treated like royalty, they could interact with white players with no problem, some of them even established their families in those countries. Negro Leagues players are fondly remembered by their contributions to the success of those leagues. The plaques of Willard Brown and Raymond Brown at Cooperstown mention their feats during their time playing in Puerto Rico, and Leon Day's plaque, besides alluding to what he accomplished in various of those countries, depicts him wearing the Aguadilla Sharks cap, the only case in the HOF in which the cap does not belong to a MLB or a Negro Leagues club. Josh Gibson still holds the record for the highest batting average in PR (.480 !) Blessings to all from San Juan 🇵🇷.
I absolutely love this video. All 10 are very worthy inclusions and I can't argue against any of them. There is one player I've heard snippets about and I wondered if maybe you could do something on him bc I really would like to know more about Martin Dihigo.
I always wonder how good Pedro Cepeda, would have been if he accepted to play in the Negros leagues. Some of those Winter Leagues Cepeda was able to go toe to toe with Gibson who was insane in those MX and PR leagues. Such great talent especially to see these guys were able to play in these leagues.
I worked with a security guard in the 1980s that was from Pittsburgh and his grin was so priceless that I said a bunch of names from that era that he seen play.
This video was awe inspiring! I love the passion and enthusiasm the Narrator possessed in bringing the narration to this great history lesson. Great for any presentation on Negro League Baseball (I plan to give at Fresh Start Academy, East Orange, NJ on 2/29/24). I absolutely loved it! Great job and thanks for sharing this information.
I have a partially written movie script about two kids (black and white) from New Orleans in the 50s trying to find Josh Gibson by going up the Mississippi to Chicago and then finally to Pittsburgh only to find out he died. The tentative title is "My Apologies, Mr. Gibson" and explores both the early civil rights period in the south and the north and the unfairness of the world through a child's eyes and his demands for redress on behalf of Mr. Gibson.
You can add a few names to that top 10 from the Cuban players from the 1920's. I got these names from some cigar cards of that era. Cristobal Torriente, Jose Mendez, Andy Cooper, and John Henry "pop" Lloyd were some of the greats from Cuba. I believe also a few from South America Venezuela and Argentina had some great ball players as well. Baseball was quite popular. Even if you want to get outside of Black players, some Japanese had greats as well, Sadahuru Oh, I believe was a great home run hitter.
I really enjoyed this highly educational video. As a life long baseball fan (80 years old) I feel frustrated and cheated that these great players were not permitted to play in MLB. It would have been so great to have known what that would have accomplished if that had happened.
Great video, thanks so much. I knew of some of these men, but didn't fully appreciate their stats until watching this. When I was a kid living on Long Island (New York), I was a devoted Mickey Mantle fan. My dad knew a lot about baseball and told me only one person ever hit a ball OUT OF Yankee Stadium, and it was not Mickey or the Babe...it was Josh Gibson! Is so sad that Josh died so young.
I am working on getting a patent for my baseball card game. It works with dice in person or online. Adding these players to my field of dreams teams. Josh Gibson has the best season ever in my game. Wish there were recording strike outs during this time but baseball reference does not show.
Opinion: Before announcing your number one pick, I would have a few honorable mentions. Such as pitcher John Wesley Donaldson. Personally, I would rank him at number two on this list. Great list though!
Wow! Thank you for bringing this piece of baseball history to us! I love baseball stories/history! It's unfortunate that exclusionary practices back then almost make me see these baseball players, moreso, in a mythological capacity now. I feel like MLB finally "recognizing" them was really more of a gesture of admitting the mistakes that were made by excluding these great players rather than actually validating what they did. IMO, these players should not have needed MLB's validation. The stats that you mentioned for each speak for themselves! I love the sound of the nickname "Cool Papa Bell!" 😅 Great video and presentation!! Thanks Erik! ❤❤
Didn't know much of the Negro League but I could imagine the competition being mighty stiff and I'll bet if given the opportunity to go up against the Major League Champion it would have been quite an excellent exhibition with the Majors losing many. Kinda wish it would of happened. Surely would of knocked the Yanks a peg or two steps down. Imagine Paige against Ruth or Mantle. Definitely a memory one would of never forgotten
@Bread and Circuses Like Ohtani, he both pitched well, and was in the batting order on days he wasn't pitching and did that very well. Whereas Ohtani only DHs and occasionally plays the outfield, Dihigo was able to play every defensive position except catcher (although, on rare occasion, he did that, too) like Zobrist. Also like Zobrist, his primary defensive position was second base.
There were a few I was unaware of. Thanks for giving them a fraction of their due. Every time I come back to the states (Columbia Missouri) from New Zealand I try to go to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. Every damn time it is clised for some reason. One day...
These guys hit so well since it’s a fact that other than a handful of talented pitchers, the rest of the pitchers were bush league pitchers who anyone would hit well against.
There were many allegations about Ty Cobb being a racist yet he once said that Willie Mays who just passed away was the only player he'd pay to see. He also said black players should be given every opportunity to play in the majors. And I think that while 9 Innings was an amazing documentary Ken Burns did he didn't really do much research on Cobb as a person. It didn't help that AL Cobb made Cobb to be this horrible person when in fact what Stump did to Cobb was horrible. Yes Cobb was said to have been a difficult man even to his family stern yet was capable of affection. He held high regard for many players regardless of skin colour.
When I worked at the Beth Israel Hospital in Boston in the early 80's I met a gentleman who said he was a Negro League player. His name was Moody "Big Train" Agnew. Has anybody heard of him? He lived in Fermoy Heights in the Franklin Field projects.
The best were some of the best but they faced COLLECTIVELY minor-league talent. That’s a huge reason why guys hit 60-120 points higher in average. 460 isn’t possible in a league with pro talent at every position.
I'm not really into Pitchers but my favorite pitcher of all time is Satchel Paige. He did play in the Majors but he came in what today is considered as an "old man" of 42 and 59 when he retired. I loved reading about him and watching him on old reels when I was a kid. Josh Gibson belongs in the 700+ Club.
Very very doubtful…he was a catcher…the BEST !…but he died at 35? he would have been worn down by 154 game schedule.He played 60 gm schedule…a different type of experience …white ,black, brown, yellow
I would go with the Cuban Martín Dihigo, he was a pitcher/player and we all missed his talent. Others are Judy Johnson and Ray Dandridge. These guys never played in the MLB.
Loved desegregating baseball in 1921 with older versions of Out of the Park Baseball. Oscar Charleston, Pop Lloyd & Cristobal Torriente were pioneers for position players while Smokey Joe Williams and Andrew 'Rube' Foster were the Pitching pioneers. I think, Lloyd, Biz Mackey, Monte Irvin, Turkey Stearnes & of course Satchel Paige were the ones who usually made my HOF. Josh Gibson gets all the accolades but by many accounts, he could not really hit the breaking ball, so he usually hit some bombs but his batting average and low OBP gave him a short career. Rube Foster was usually quickly made a manager then a GM. I only recall one sim where he and Ty Cobb with Stearnes finally got the Tigers to the promised land 3 times in the mid 20s...their ace was Dazzy Vance. Another thing one must realize is that the Negro League teams usually had only 2 Great teams composed of All Stars while the rest of the league were essentially the 1920s Phillies, so stats are inflated depending on what team they were on, so Biz Mackey & Charleston were more impressive than guys who played with Chicago (later Pittsburgh took their place) or Homstead (which grabbed KCs stars)
From my country, martin dihigo, the most versatile ball player EVER, played every single position and did so outstandingly, once called by the great buck leonard “the best ball player ever black or white” is the only player in baseball history to be inducted into 5 different countries baseball hall of fame and once got the batting title as well as the equivalent of the cy young in the same season in the mexican league… a true master of the sport nicknames El maestro
Great video. Your list could actually have been even longer. One player in particular was the great Spotswood Poles. Poles was referred to as "The Black Ty Cobb." Cobb easily could have been referred to as "The white Spotswood Poles." Many said that his speed was even greater than Cool Papa Bell. Apparently both men could turn off a light and get into bed before the room got dark! Bell to this day may have been the fastest man ever to play baseball. And Poles may have been even faster! A great contact hitter, Poles routinely batted over .400. Many thought Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth were these untouchable giants. Oscar Charleston and Josh Gibson were quite probably better. Playing in the major leagues both men would have created numbers surpassing even those of Hank Aaron and Willie Mays. Many old timers ranked Charleston ahead of Mays. And Mays was considered by many to be the greatest player in MLB history. Gibson was so good that Hall of Famer Roy Campanella called him "Not only the greatest catcher, but the greatest ballplayer I ever saw." As for the rest of the men on this list, I will happily take these players against any group of players to play. Before or since. Their numbers they compiled under the conditions they played under speaks for itself. Yet, there is one man omitted from this list that may have been the greatest to ever play the game. The legendary Cuban Martin Dihigo. Known as "El Maestro" and "The Immortal." Dihigo could play every position on the diamond and led the Negro Leagues simultaneously in batting and pitching. The great Buck Leonard said of him "You can keep your Cobbs, Gehrigs.and Ruths. If he's not the best, I don't know who is." Were it not for blind racism, these men and countless others would have competed with and outshone most of their white counterparts.
I have been researching Negro League players and I too came across Martin. Obviously no way to judge but I agree he's gotta be up there. But he didn't play Catcher 😂.
a friend and me did a list of the top ten by position. i infuriated him three times when i put gibson over bench, satchel paige as my no. 1 pitcher (we broke even i was mad he put koufax no.1 and didnt include nolan ryan) the thrid time has nothing to do with this category it was putting concepcion over ozzie smith. if i had a time machine i would love to go back and watch these 10 guys play
I assume any superstar in Negro leagues would be superstars in MLB…but please, certain % stats like Battiing avg, Slugging % , OBP % ERA, all can t fairly be compared for a 60 game/yr season to 154 game season. When u play that many games, the numbers change. I’m sure Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige would have been at the very apex of MLB in their primes
There is a true story about how fast Cool Pap Bell was. He was playing in Latin America somewhere and he went from first to third on a bunt. The opposing team stopped the game and tried to accuse Bell of cutting across the diamond to get to third. Funny, that dude must have been fast.
"When i come to the plate im in scoring position." -Josh Gibson
What a baller quote.
I once read that before Jackie Robinson being the first black ball player playing mlb. He was almost a possible potential but it's sad he died before he could have played a mlb game.
Must’ve been easy in the Negro league. We’re happy outfielders were drunk because the others were either in jail or showed up late.
You don’t actually believe the bullshit history been told, do you stupid?
@@johnnygunzfilmbuff7821 Josh didn’t have the go along to get along attitude compared to Jackie. He would have physically fought the blatant racist players back in the day.
@@Godfather-rn6rb interesting. I did not know that. I went to the hall of fame yesturday I saw his plaque. It was awesome.
@@Godfather-rn6rb SMH Jackie Robinson didn't have a go along to get along attitude, that's a b.s. narrative white media put on him to make the story palatable. Don't take my word for it, go and look up how he carried himself before, during & after his MLB career. Now what set him apart from the vast majority of all ball players during that era was that he was an educated man.
Just imagine what the MLB all time record books would look like if these guys were able to have full major league careers..
That's EXACTLY WHY they weren't allowed to play....white jealousy and baby soft fragile egos. B1 #REPARATIONSNOW
It would be enough for Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb, Roger Hornsby, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner, Ty Cobb or Hank Greenberg, Tris Speaker or Sam Crawford or Jimmie Fox or Mickey Cochrane or Left Grove or Joe or Bob Feller or Warren Spahn & Bill Dickey or Hack Wilson to show what they can do of the MLB they played for that were mostly or 98 to 99% white color race. Then of what the top Negro League Players had showed of the game of their playing of skills or surburbs expertise too. So it shows their all around playing of the game from one league of the white league or black league . So it's fear for their playing time of their own game playing way or style but if they played for the same MLG's all around year then it could be different. But it didn't start that way normally for any race or till a number of them had played for the white leagues before the MLB came with different leagues or teams and of whites were playing or hiring to play for the MLB after the 1800's so it was not anyone or drafts for negro leagues to officially play for the major leagues then . Till John McGraw or certain managers had assists of certain negro league players would of been a acception or excelled playing for the (in..) MLB then after success of their black negro leagues then the last great ones and finishing of the 30' and to the 40's and great players still playing or playing for top teams with younger top players and ending their careers and the last of the newer ones and starting mostly during the 1940's their was a talk or agreement of certain players to play for the MLB's or needing or having negro league baseball players to come to play for the White Leagues or a all color MLB though that all the great negro league baseball players had been finishing up the careers for the negro leagues of the top all around skill talented players. So the barrier had been broken for negro league baseball players to play for them too. Then their was a few of them mentioned then Satchel Paige came to their draft after pitching a number of years for the NL too and the same as much like "Smokey or Cyclone" Williams for 27 years with official pro league starting players then besides a lot more games that Satchel Paige and team or teams had played other baseball players of top players of the towns best players. Then he went to the MLB after a few had been drafted to play for the MLB then.
The records could be different but still in little trouble of success with both Major Leagues of the color ones and whites. But for a number of them to get MVPs as much won't probably been to achieve the MVP a number of times. Maybe like this of years for certain players throughout the early 1900's to 1940's.
While the color barrier is abhorrent to me, and the fact that these players should have been able to play according to their ability, I do have one point.
I hear a lot of people say that major leaguers would not have played as well with these players in the league every day, and the same could be sad of the opposite. Certainly the caliber of play would be better, and players with lesser abilities of every race might not have made the league at all. I think that, with African-Americans making up something like 13% of the population, there would be a smaller pool to pick from.
Lot of factors to consider, but the game would have been fun to watch.
They do include their records in the record books though
My dad saw Josh Gibson play in Puerto Rico and called him the Greatest hitter he ever saw!!!!!
That's awesome.
Overrated. Played against subpar pitching rags his entire career. I mean sure, he was descent. But he would never have raked in the MLB.
He never saw Babe Ruth or Ted Williams then…
@ minnesotafats1840. My dad did see Ted Williams BUT! GiBSON is the GOAT Eat it!!!!!!
@@eddierivera1860 I think you and your dad are retarded
If I had a time machine, the first thing I would do is watch some Negro League baseball, and possibly keep game records that have been lost to history.
One of my uncles who was a very old man at the time when I was a kid used to go to a lot of the negro League games and he told me that the negro League was more successful than the MLB and it was better talent.
That's really the first thing you would do?
@@jerryklooster438 Yes. It would be fun and it wouldn't interfere with history.
@@evrbody I don't know what to say. Good luck?
@@JarvisJonesakaTheeFlyyGuyy no comment this way you can’t call me a racist!
Josh Gibson said that the GREATEST thrill he ever had during his sensational career was playing baseball in Puerto Rico:
''... my greatest thrill was not experienced through any particular circuit clout or any double or triple which produced the winning margin for our side. The greatest thrill of all my thrills came in the winter of 1941 in Puerto Rico ... “That particular season I was doubly honored as the batting champion and the most valuable player in the Puerto Rico league. Playing winter baseball out of the States in a foreign atmosphere has always struck me as something unique. But cashing in on two top awards out of the States - the batting championship and the most valuable player award - was something more than unique. It was definitely my greatest thrill ... “Receiving the cup symbolic of the most valuable player award at special ceremonies at the end of the season was a highly significant and pleasing event in my life. The fanfare, the cheering of the fans and the many congratulatory speeches from league officials and other dignitaries gave me a thrill unequaled in my career.”
source: Andrew Martin
My dad was a pitcher in the Puerto Rican league in the early 1930s when it was still semi pro. He and Josh were exactly the same age. Dad (a native of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico) was self taught and spoke excellent English. The two struck up a friendship that my dad never forgot. He said Josh was the nicest guy he ever met in his life.
amazing story...i live in Puerto Rico and this gives me so much joy and pride...PR Winter League has such a rich history!...it's yet another highlight of this blessed Island : )
Josh Gibson had a really illustrious career for a guy who only lived to the age of 35.
"Cool Papa Bell" that's the coolest nickname ever.
My uncle conducted sleep studies in the 70s and one day he spent 3 hours talking baseball to a participant. A lanky older gentlemen who’s hands seemed to go down to his knees.
His name was Leroy Robert Paige
Awesome!
Great story! Your Uncle spending time with Satchel! Amazing! 👍🏽
If only people got to see Satchel when he was satchel. I"m thankful to San Diego Studios for bringing the Negro Leagues to MLB The show 23. Teaching a whole new generation about these legends.
Mam this is awesome & beautiful! Must have been an amazing day!
I’m watching this documentary because MLB the show 2023 , I’m 30 and never heard about it till recently , really cool story
I had an older uncle back in the 90s and he loved to talk baseball with me but he was extremely racist and would pretty much only talk about white players so I made a point to learn all I could about great negro league players. I would throw out so many stats at him he finally stopped talking baseball with me. He died years ago but because of him I learned a lot about these legends of baseball.
You’re the Josh Gibson of Baseball TH-camrs. A masterpiece as always.
Thank you! I absolutely love Cool Papa Bell! He was so good and too many young people have no idea who he is.
Yeah… imagine if Rickey Henderson was an even better hitter… that’s Bell.
Cool Papa Bell instantly became my favorite baseball name when I found out about him lol.
I just wanting to type something of my one idea of sport people or athletes of negro baseball.
A dude like that in the Majors he would of probably hit 500. As good as Williams was even he would of had to be humbled. So sad that as many who died during the Civil War it still took a long long time for home grown Americans to be excepted as Americans.
Thank you for tis valuable piece of journalism. MLB The Show now features some of these great ball players on their game for 2023!
The great Cardinals player developer George Kissell, who saw EVERYBODY play, said, "The three hardest hit balls I've ever heard hit are three, Mark McGuire, two, Babe Ruth, and number one Josh Gibson. Thanks so much for this excellent video
Buck O'Neil said something similar, only replace Mark McGwire with Bo Jackson
@@saviorself1164 I remember that, Buck was in the dugout when Bo who had just joined the Royals, smashed a pitch in BP off the crown at Kauffman. Yes, the one way up there above center field. 🤯lol
I had a conversation with a lady in here 80's about a baseball game her father took her to back in 1938 when she was a little girl. It was Dizzy Deans allstars vs Satchel Paige's allstars. IT was actually one of the few games in which Satchels team lost. It was held in Belleville illinois. She remembered vividly watching satchel paige kick his leg real high and throw a pitch.
This is one of your greatest videos, Erik. Excellent research and presentation by the Humm Baby Baseball channel. Yes, as a baseball fan of only 62 years I’ve heard of all of these great men who played and starred in the Negro Leagues !!! ⚾️⚾️⚾️
ROGER, The LOS ANGELES DODGER (from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex)
I was very fortunate and to have actually have met Mr. Buck Leonard and Cool Papa Bell in 1974 at the Hall of Fame Game after the induction of Cool Papa Bell, Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford and got the two Gentlemen's autographs. In fact I was fortunate enough to sit next to Buck Leonard the whole game. What a great gentleman and National Treasure he was. I was just a kid then and didn't have much knowledge of the Negro League. Too bad that we were very ignorant of that part of history. If I had known then what I know now I would have appreciated the moment a lot more and I would have picked his brains and then listen to his invaluable stories from his past. I was so glad the MLB had finally started to recognize those wonderful ballplayers and honor them back then as they should. Thank you for posting this story. I really enjoyed it and would love to see more postings like this.
Very well said, sir ! 🤔 ⚾️⚾️⚾️
ROGER, The LOS ANGELES DODGER
I was there... I didn't see the HOF game. But I saw the induction, and all the greats across the street at the Otesaga Hotel. Buck Leonard, Satchel, Mickey Mantle, Phil Rizzuto, so many others.
Just imagine what Josh Gibsons numbers would have been if he hadn't passed away in his prime, oh my God.....😢😢😢
Cool Papa Bell has a statue outside of Busch statium!
Great video. This popped up a few days after MLB the show announced the Negro Leagues will be coming to The Show. Good on San diego Studio's for doing this. This time in baseball history is Legendary and a must know about. It seems the news is spreading.
Great job with this video! Thank you for recognizing these great players that history may have forgotten or not recorded their accomplishments as accurately as they deserved.
Before he made his mark in Country music, Charlie Pride was a player, one of the last Negro League players. He played in the New York Mets organization before starting his HOF music career.
Thank you for bringing these players to light! Now I can appreciate them more!
I was at Cool Papa Bell's HOF induction. He went in with Whitey Ford and Mickey Mantle. What a day!
Best video yet by you because you are introducing a new big TH-cam audience to all these great players .
Thank You for posting this 😊The way you spoke showed pure excitement for the love of the game
Pop Lloyd was the recreation director in Atlantic City and worked at city hall when I was a boy. My dad was an avid amateur softball and baseball player, and played in games at the rec field on Bacharach Boulevard, home of at least one Negro League team.. He was at all the games and was the nicest man you ever met. He would talk with all the players and the kids and would talk your ear off about baseball. My dad introduced me to him and said he would have been one of the best shortstops who ever played if he wallowed to play in the majors.
He was one of the best shortstops to ever play. I believe what you meant was one of the best in MLB- but the negro leagues’ talent was on par with mlb.
Robert “School Boy” Griffith broke into MLB in 1933 with Tom Wilson”s Nashville Elite Giants. Griffith stood 6”5 and pitched right-right handed. He threw just as hard as Paige and others but lacked control at times. In 1937 and 1938 Grif suited up with the Negro League Allstars that ran through the Denver Post Tournament featuring MLB Hall A Famers like Sammy Baugh and Roger Hornsby just to name a few. Robert was asked by Paige to play on an Allstar team that toured the Dominican Republic and won the championship. For years he played winter ball in Mexico, (was the leading pitcher for a few seasons) Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Venezuela (1947 Champions). Griffith was the winning pitcher in the 1945 NL Allstar Game. For most of his career he toiled on subpar teams. After the NL met his demise he continued to play in Canada until he retired and resided in Indianapolis, Indiana where he died in 1977.
Thx for the Wikipedia entry😂
Great video. Thank you for putting this together. Turkey Stearnes is my favorite and love to see him get more recognition.
Do a video about Satchel Paige there is a curious episode of his life. In 1937 a Dominican dictator called Rafael Leónidas Trujillo sent an emissary to the Negro Leagues to recruit good players, Satchel was one of them.
Trujillo send an emissary to the Negro Leagues to recruit good players, Satchel was one of them.
They form a team called “Dragones Ciudad Trujillo” they got big money (the players). Played that season in 1937. The tyrant wants to keep them but Satchel and others take a plane to leave the country because they saw atrocities done by that regime. Greetings from Juan Marichal’s land (Dominican Republic), let's go Giants!!!!!!!
Los Gigantes
The Negro League players, would rather have come, back to Amerikkka and deal with overt racism, racial injustice, race terrorism, and live under an unjust system of segregation of Jim Crow!!!! That seems odd to me!!!!
Here's what's missing from this list: Martin Dihigo "The Maestro". He was good enough to be the only man in history to be elected to 5 different hall of fames in different countries. Think about that. He's top 5.
Oscar Charleston’s known stats against MLB opposition: 37 G, 158 PA, 10 HR, .355 AVG, .420 OBP, .738 SLG, for a 1.158 OPS (Stats from foolish baseball’s vid about Satchel Paige). Him and all of the guys on this list most certainly would’ve dominated against MLB competition had they been allowed the chance.
"When I come to the plate, I'm in scoring position " that's the confidence of a Legend, the Great Josh Gibson.
That not what his wife thought....lol
When Honus Wagner was told that reporters had taken to calling Pop Lloyd the “black Honus Wagner” (as was the ignorant way of the day) Wagner is said to have replied, “sir, Hans Wagner is the white Pop Lloyd.”
Such a shame that ignorance, stupidity and fear not only denied these men of the chance to truly make mlb the top league, but also denied true baseball fans of seeing the best against the best.
Fantastic video! I really appreciate you doing this video!
Glad to see this forgotten history being told.
Willard Brown, Alonzo Perry and Wilbur Wood. Brown hit 397, 27 HR and 87 BI in 1942 in 54 games with Santurce, that’s production. Perry and Wood played for the champions Mayaguez in 1939, the inaugural season of winter ball in PR.
On OOTP, I went back to 1947 and made the dodgers a full negro league team, will continue to add a couple guys each draft too. Rn we are 73-14, safe to say that the talent is that of a All-MLB esque team. So damn good we have as many complete game shutouts as wins. Triple other teams home runs etc. Such Amazing talent, it’s truly sad basically none got a chance at all let alone in their primes
At 1:36 Hank Aaron is wearing the uniform of the Caguas Criollos, a team of the Puerto Rico Winter Baseball League. The winter leagues at Cuba, the Dominican Republic, México, Venezuela, Panamá and PR offered those Negro League players the chance to play in a friendly environment in which they felt at home, were respected by the fans, the press and the local authorities, earned good money, were treated like royalty, they could interact with white players with no problem, some of them even established their families in those countries. Negro Leagues players are fondly remembered by their contributions to the success of those leagues. The plaques of Willard Brown and Raymond Brown at Cooperstown mention their feats during their time playing in Puerto Rico, and Leon Day's plaque, besides alluding to what he accomplished in various of those countries, depicts him wearing the Aguadilla Sharks cap, the only case in the HOF in which the cap does not belong to a MLB or a Negro Leagues club. Josh Gibson still holds the record for the highest batting average in PR (.480 !)
Blessings to all from San Juan 🇵🇷.
I absolutely love this video. All 10 are very worthy inclusions and I can't argue against any of them. There is one player I've heard snippets about and I wondered if maybe you could do something on him bc I really would like to know more about Martin Dihigo.
He was great!
I always wonder how good Pedro Cepeda, would have been if he accepted to play in the Negros leagues. Some of those Winter Leagues Cepeda was able to go toe to toe with Gibson who was insane in those MX and PR leagues. Such great talent especially to see these guys were able to play in these leagues.
I worked with a security guard in the 1980s that was from Pittsburgh and his grin was so priceless that I said a bunch of names from that era that he seen play.
This video was awe inspiring! I love the passion and enthusiasm the Narrator possessed in bringing the narration to this great history lesson. Great for any presentation on Negro League Baseball (I plan to give at Fresh Start Academy, East Orange, NJ on 2/29/24). I absolutely loved it! Great job and thanks for sharing this information.
I have a partially written movie script about two kids (black and white) from New Orleans in the 50s trying to find Josh Gibson by going up the Mississippi to Chicago and then finally to Pittsburgh only to find out he died. The tentative title is "My Apologies, Mr. Gibson" and explores both the early civil rights period in the south and the north and the unfairness of the world through a child's eyes and his demands for redress on behalf of Mr. Gibson.
You can add a few names to that top 10 from the Cuban players from the 1920's. I got these names from some cigar cards of that era. Cristobal Torriente, Jose Mendez, Andy Cooper, and John Henry "pop" Lloyd were some of the greats from Cuba. I believe also a few from South America Venezuela and Argentina had some great ball players as well. Baseball was quite popular. Even if you want to get outside of Black players, some Japanese had greats as well, Sadahuru Oh, I believe was a great home run hitter.
Yes, Sadaharu Oh is probably the most prolific home run hitter baseball has seen. In 21 years of baseball in Japan, he hit 868 home runs.
I really enjoyed this highly educational video. As a life long baseball fan (80 years old) I feel frustrated and cheated that these great players were not permitted to play in MLB. It would have been so great to have known what that would have accomplished if that had happened.
Well, let's be clear: segregation hurt MLB and the Negro Leagues. The best of both of worlds should have been competing in one.
Bullet Rogan was not just great but a great two way player.
Great video, thanks so much. I knew of some of these men, but didn't fully appreciate their stats until watching this. When I was a kid living on Long Island (New York), I was a devoted Mickey Mantle fan. My dad knew a lot about baseball and told me only one person ever hit a ball OUT OF Yankee Stadium, and it was not Mickey or the Babe...it was Josh Gibson! Is so sad that Josh died so young.
Thanks for the excellence. To the players and the creator of this video.
I am working on getting a patent for my baseball card game. It works with dice in person or online. Adding these players to my field of dreams teams. Josh Gibson has the best season ever in my game. Wish there were recording strike outs during this time but baseball reference does not show.
Opinion: Before announcing your number one pick, I would have a few honorable mentions. Such as pitcher John Wesley Donaldson. Personally, I would rank him at number two on this list.
Great list though!
Got to see Bell inducted at Cooperstown. Must have been a hell of a player. Big eye opener for a 12 year old me.
Wow! Thank you for bringing this piece of baseball history to us! I love baseball stories/history! It's unfortunate that exclusionary practices back then almost make me see these baseball players, moreso, in a mythological capacity now. I feel like MLB finally "recognizing" them was really more of a gesture of admitting the mistakes that were made by excluding these great players rather than actually validating what they did. IMO, these players should not have needed MLB's validation. The stats that you mentioned for each speak for themselves! I love the sound of the nickname "Cool Papa Bell!" 😅 Great video and presentation!! Thanks Erik!
❤❤
Didn't know much of the Negro League but I could imagine the competition being mighty stiff and I'll bet if given the opportunity to go up against the Major League Champion it would have been quite an excellent exhibition with the Majors losing many. Kinda wish it would of happened. Surely would of knocked the Yanks a peg or two steps down. Imagine Paige against Ruth or Mantle. Definitely a memory one would of never forgotten
"Would've knocked the Yanks down a peg or two"
Unless the Yankees signed some Negro Leaguers themselves.
Very well done! Thx for the info
Cool Papa Bell seems like Rickey Henderson while Stearns seems like Mantle I was trying to think of comparisons throughout the video
Very interesting and informative.
Great video! Keep up the good work!
Hard to find anyone to bump off this list, but Martin Dihigo should be mentioned. Picture Shohei Ohtani with the defensive versatility of Ben Zobrist.
@Bread and Circuses Like Ohtani, he both pitched well, and was in the batting order on days he wasn't pitching and did that very well. Whereas Ohtani only DHs and occasionally plays the outfield, Dihigo was able to play every defensive position except catcher (although, on rare occasion, he did that, too) like Zobrist. Also like Zobrist, his primary defensive position was second base.
Martin Dihigo was the best of them all.
There were a few I was unaware of. Thanks for giving them a fraction of their due. Every time I come back to the states (Columbia Missouri) from New Zealand I try to go to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. Every damn time it is clised for some reason. One day...
If I could go back in time and watch each one of those guys play. I'd put on my best old-time looking suit, set my time machine and choose the teams.
Some of them might have been the goats of mlb if they allowed these men to play in the majors.
These guys hit so well since it’s a fact that other than a handful of talented pitchers, the rest of the pitchers were bush league pitchers who anyone would hit well against.
The '20's and '30's were the two worst decades in MLB history for pitching, fielding, and HOME TEAM official scoring! And that's a FACT, ROOKIE!
Damn, if you're a black baseball player and Ty Cobb says you could have won 30 games...you know Smokey Joe must have been incredible
There were many allegations about Ty Cobb being a racist yet he once said that Willie Mays who just passed away was the only player he'd pay to see. He also said black players should be given every opportunity to play in the majors. And I think that while 9 Innings was an amazing documentary Ken Burns did he didn't really do much research on Cobb as a person. It didn't help that AL Cobb made Cobb to be this horrible person when in fact what Stump did to Cobb was horrible. Yes Cobb was said to have been a difficult man even to his family stern yet was capable of affection. He held high regard for many players regardless of skin colour.
Martin Dihigo belongs on your astute list of baseball titans-Thanks for the video
What a shame that these talented men couldn't play in the major's, how exciting it would've been for true baseball ⚾ fans!!!
I’m so happy these mlb players are coming to light 🙏😊 and knowing they’re history
Wow this is so amazing and sad at the same time…. S/O to all those great ball players who never got the chance to play in the big show….
When I worked at the Beth Israel Hospital in Boston in the early 80's I met a gentleman who said he was a Negro League player. His name was Moody "Big Train" Agnew. Has anybody heard of him? He lived in Fermoy Heights in the Franklin Field projects.
Father seen Josh Gibson hit a home run in old Yankee stadium during batting practice. SITTING IN A ROCKING CHAIR...STANDING OVATION
The best were some of the best but they faced COLLECTIVELY minor-league talent.
That’s a huge reason why guys hit 60-120 points higher in average. 460 isn’t possible in a league with pro talent at every position.
I'm not really into Pitchers but my favorite pitcher of all time is Satchel Paige. He did play in the Majors but he came in what today is considered as an "old man" of 42 and 59 when he retired. I loved reading about him and watching him on old reels when I was a kid.
Josh Gibson belongs in the 700+ Club.
He won a world series too
🤣🤣🤣
@@bobbyg433 Ur right, Satchel Paige could spin a hilarious yarn. Read about him
@@braheme1260 I was laughing at the Gibson 700 club comment
@@bobbyg433 I mean, some legit baseball insiders say he's in the same air as Ruth.
Great list and great education gir our beloved national sport!
I love your channel mi pana great work papa
Thanks for sharing that history.That is so awesome.
amazing video!! wow I wished they played in mlb..
Why the negro League was a better League plus they didn't have to deal with all that BS that the white fans put black players through.
Josh Gibson would probably be the single season and all-time HR and RBI leader
Very very doubtful…he was a catcher…the BEST !…but he died at 35? he would have been worn down by 154 game schedule.He played 60 gm schedule…a different type of experience …white ,black, brown, yellow
I wish Hollywood would spend time telling the stories of these great players.
Just got a sports history lesson here. What great sports heroes.
I enjoyed this immensely tragic that they didn’t get the chance to play in the majors⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️
I would go with the Cuban Martín Dihigo, he was a pitcher/player and we all missed his talent. Others are Judy Johnson and Ray Dandridge. These guys never played in the MLB.
Just fantastic. You're the best.
Loved desegregating baseball in 1921 with older versions of Out of the Park Baseball. Oscar Charleston, Pop Lloyd & Cristobal Torriente were pioneers for position players while Smokey Joe Williams and Andrew 'Rube' Foster were the Pitching pioneers. I think, Lloyd, Biz Mackey, Monte Irvin, Turkey Stearnes & of course Satchel Paige were the ones who usually made my HOF. Josh Gibson gets all the accolades but by many accounts, he could not really hit the breaking ball, so he usually hit some bombs but his batting average and low OBP gave him a short career. Rube Foster was usually quickly made a manager then a GM. I only recall one sim where he and Ty Cobb with Stearnes finally got the Tigers to the promised land 3 times in the mid 20s...their ace was Dazzy Vance. Another thing one must realize is that the Negro League teams usually had only 2 Great teams composed of All Stars while the rest of the league were essentially the 1920s Phillies, so stats are inflated depending on what team they were on, so Biz Mackey & Charleston were more impressive than guys who played with Chicago (later Pittsburgh took their place) or Homstead (which grabbed KCs stars)
Tweakin with the breaking ball claim. I have in film Quincy Troupe and Jimmie Crutchfield saying Josh destroyed breaking balls.
Andrew RP ,was a a all around control pitcher and batter who batted ..300-.400 manager of two top known teams...et
Willie Walls " El diablo" 😈 fast and agressive player. Regards from México 🇲🇽
From my country, martin dihigo, the most versatile ball player EVER, played every single position and did so outstandingly, once called by the great buck leonard “the best ball player ever black or white” is the only player in baseball history to be inducted into 5 different countries baseball hall of fame and once got the batting title as well as the equivalent of the cy young in the same season in the mexican league… a true master of the sport nicknames El maestro
Excellent video, thanks!
Great video. Your list could actually have been even longer. One player in particular was the great Spotswood Poles. Poles was referred to as "The Black Ty Cobb." Cobb easily could have been referred to as "The white Spotswood Poles." Many said that his speed was even greater than Cool Papa Bell. Apparently both men could turn off a light and get into bed before the room got dark! Bell to this day may have been the fastest man ever to play baseball. And Poles may have been even faster! A great contact hitter, Poles routinely batted over .400. Many thought Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth were these untouchable giants. Oscar Charleston and Josh Gibson were quite probably better. Playing in the major leagues both men would have created numbers surpassing even those of Hank Aaron and Willie Mays. Many old timers ranked Charleston ahead of Mays. And Mays was considered by many to be the greatest player in MLB history. Gibson was so good that Hall of Famer Roy Campanella called him "Not only the greatest catcher, but the greatest ballplayer I ever saw." As for the rest of the men on this list, I will happily take these players against any group of players to play. Before or since. Their numbers they compiled under the conditions they played under speaks for itself. Yet, there is one man omitted from this list that may have been the greatest to ever play the game. The legendary Cuban Martin Dihigo. Known as "El Maestro" and "The Immortal." Dihigo could play every position on the diamond and led the Negro Leagues simultaneously in batting and pitching. The great Buck Leonard said of him "You can keep your Cobbs, Gehrigs.and Ruths. If he's not the best, I don't know who is." Were it not for blind racism, these men and countless others would have competed with and outshone most of their white counterparts.
I have been researching Negro League players and I too came across Martin. Obviously no way to judge but I agree he's gotta be up there. But he didn't play Catcher 😂.
a friend and me did a list of the top ten by position. i infuriated him three times when i put gibson over bench, satchel paige as my no. 1 pitcher (we broke even i was mad he put koufax no.1 and didnt include nolan ryan) the thrid time has nothing to do with this category it was putting concepcion over ozzie smith. if i had a time machine i would love to go back and watch these 10 guys play
Awesome historical video ... My all-time MLB OF..... Aarons, Mays and Clemente 👍
Great video 👍🏾
13:38 u can tell by his arms that Gibson was ded a big power hitter
I would’ve added Raymond Brown and Hilton Smith. 💪
I assume any superstar in Negro leagues would be superstars in MLB…but please, certain % stats like Battiing avg, Slugging % , OBP % ERA, all can t fairly be compared for a 60 game/yr season to 154 game season.
When u play that many games, the numbers change.
I’m sure Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige would have been at the very apex of MLB in their primes
Excellent video
There is a true story about how fast Cool Pap Bell was. He was playing in Latin America somewhere and he went from first to third on a bunt. The opposing team stopped the game and tried to accuse Bell of cutting across the diamond to get to third. Funny, that dude must have been fast.
Outstanding presentation. Expand your list to Include Bullet Rogan. Batter up.
SUPERB LIST !!!!!!!!!............Is this the same guy who does those great travel videos ?
What a great video. Thank you.
Picked up a Gibson Jersey a while ago 😂 ❤
Awesome. I hope my kids appreciate this.
Great information