|
 The
Negro Leagues: African-American Achievers
James A. Riley, 1997.
Chelsea House
Baseball, perhaps more than any other sport, is steeped in lore.
During the hot days and still nights of summer, at ballparks and in living
rooms, its fans delight in seemingly endless debates about the past and the
present: have today's players forgotten the fundamentals of the game? Could this
or that star of old shine against modern competition? Would a particular
championship team from the past teach last year's World Series winners a thing
or two?
Such questions take on a special poignancy when applied to the
great African-American players of the first half of this century. Barred from
major league baseball by an unwritten agreement among club owners, they played
in relative obscurity while their white peers won the adulation of millions.
Even today, many fans know little about black players before Jackie Robinson,
The Negro Leagues chronicles the history of black
baseball, from the early days of independent teams teams to the founding of the
professional leagues and their eventual decline after the integration of major
league baseball. It is a story filled with unforgettable personalities,
improbably performances, and magic moments. Most of all, it is a story
excellence in the pursuit of our national pastime.
 
The Negro Leagues |
