The History of the Negro Leagues

Essay by yanksrule679Junior High, 8th gradeA+, April 2004

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Who do you think is the best baseball player of all time? I bet you are thinking Babe Ruth, Lou Gherig, or Cy Young. Well I know one baseball player who hit 972 homeruns and batted for a lifetime average of .400! I can guarantee you do not have a clue of who I am talking about. The reason you do not know him is because there was something wrong with him, a major problem. He was black. There were many other great black athletes, like one I just described, whose talent never got noticed. By the time my essay in over, you will be able to name several Negro League Hall of Famers!

Back in 1899 you couldn't find one black in the Major Leagues. Every owner agreed with no Negroes in the league, so therefore they were banned from baseball. There was many young, talented, black ball players back then who needed a place to play.

The effect was the first all Negro baseball team. They were called the Cuban Giants. The Giants would go from town to town looking for any competition possible. What they got paid was very little, but they could care less. Very quickly this idea had spread all across the country and black baseball was just getting started.

Then in 1919 a great thing happened! Rube Foster, manager of the American Giants, set up the first Negro baseball league. He called it the Negro National League. The N.N.L. featured 8 different black teams, including Fosters' Giants. The Giants completely dominated the first season with an astonishing 123-6 record. Soon fans all across America heard about this association of great black players and attended many Negro League games. The N.N.L. was booming with excitement! In the 1923 season, over 400,000 fans attended league...