Phil S. Dixon’s American Baseball Chronicles Great Teams: The 1910 Chicago Leland Giants Volume II


Book Description

A Galaxy of Stars best describes Andrew “Rube” Foster’s 1910 Chicago Leland Giants. In their only season together, this combination of players played their way into the heart and soul of a nation divided. They are proof positive that the National and American Leagues did not corner the market on athletic talent. Foster's unit began the season with a thirty-two and one record and ended with thirty-one consecutive victories. They scored nearly 1,000 runs and finished the season with a 124-7-1 record. Their win total is elevated to 138-11-2 when Cuban Winter League games are added. They played 64 games in the Chicago portion of their schedule. These games are equivalent to a home schedule for National and American League teams. Foster's Giants finished with a landmark 57-6-1 record for games played in Chicago. That Foster, John Henry Lloyd, and John "Pete" Hill, three members of the 1910 Leland Giants, are enshrined in Baseball's Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, is worthy of closer observation. And yet, Bruce Petway, Frank Wickware, and Grant "Home Run" Johnson should be there, too. Thus, Phil Dixon's American Baseball Chronicles, Volume II, Great Teams, enters the illustrious conversation. The Leland Giants story is uniquely told here in a day-to-day account of every exciting win and every memorable thrill. The comparative scores and related histories are a resourceful and entertaining aid for further analysis of the participation of African-American athletes in baseball as best represented by one legendary team in a single championship season.




Phil Dixon's American Baseball Chronicles Great Teams: The 1905 Philadelphia Giants, Volume III


Book Description

Philadelphia's 1905 African-American Giants were the first team of the last century to score 1,000 runs. Organized in 1902 by Harry A. Smith and H. Walter Schlichter, the Giants were managed by veteran player/manager Solomon 'Sol' White. In 1904 the Giants defeated the Cuban X Giants to claim their first Worlds Championship, a title that they held for many years. The White led 1905 Philadelphia Giants featured among others; outfielder Pete Hill, third baseman Bill Monroe, first baseman Mike Moore, second baseman Charlie Grant and pitchers Emmett Bowman and Dan McClellan. White, Hill and Foster are currently enshrined in Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame. Paced by Grant “Home Run” Johnson, the most powerful home run hitter in baseball, along with Andrew “Rube” Foster, one of baseball’s best pitcher, White’s 1905 Philadelphia Giants finished the season with a magnificent 134-23-2 record. This is their story, uniquely told here for the first time, in a day-to-day account of every exciting hit and every legendary strike out. In honor of the 1905 Philadelphia Giants' contribution to our American pastime, Dixon's American Baseball chronicles has compiled statistics and game notes from the entire championship season. Included within the book are written accounts for every game from the Philadelphia Giants’ entire 1905 schedule of nearly 158 contest, with scores, attendance figures and other seldom revealed information. The work includes additional information on more than 300 additional games played by the Cuban X Giants, Chicago Leland Giants, Brooklyn Royal Giants and other African-American teams in operation during that same 1905 season. The comparative scores and related histories are a resourceful and entertaining aid for further analysis, and assessment, on the participation of African-American athletes in baseball as best represented by one legendary team in a single championship season.




Phil Dixon's American Baseball Chronicles Great Teams: the 1931 Homestead Grays, Volume I


Book Description

The "Greatest Baseball team of all-time" easily describes the 1931 Homestead Grays. They remain a team never to be forgotten—a team that rates with the greatest teams in all of baseball history. Organized in 1910, baseball’s Homestead Grays of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania—an exclusively African-American team—held claim to a regional championship and also a legitimate claim to baseball’s World Championship. The Grays’ well-known leader was Hall of Famer Cumberland “Cum” Posey. His 1931 Grays featured among others; Hall of Fame third baseman Jud Wilson, Hall of Fame infielder Oscar Charleston, a Hall of Fame catcher in Josh Gibson and two Hall of Fame pitchers in Willie Foster and Joseph “Smokey Joe” Williams—a total of five legendary players. Paced by young Josh Gibson, age 18 and the most powerful home run hitter in baseball, Posey’s 1931 Homestead Grays finished with a magnificent 143-29-2 record. This is their story told here for the first time. Included within the text are written accounts for every game from the Homestead Grays’ entire 1931 schedule of nearly 175 contest, with scores, attendance figures and player biographies. The work includes score and locations on more than 300 additional games played by the Kansas City Monarchs, Hilldale, Baltimore’s Black Sox, the Cuban House of David, New York’s Harlem Stars and other African-American teams in operation during that same 1931 season. The comparative scores and their related histories are a resourceful and entertaining aid for further analysis and assessment on the participation of African-American athletes in baseball as best represented from the perspective of a single championship season.




The Dizzy and Daffy Dean Barnstorming Tour


Book Description

This book follows Dizzy and Daffy Dean’s All-Stars as they barnstormed across the country in 1934, taking the field against the greatest teams in the Negro Leagues. It shows the glory of the games as well as the disingenuous journalistic tactics that proliferated during the tour with an introspective look at its impact on race relations. In 1934, brothers Dizzy and Daffy Dean were stars of Major League Baseball’s regular season and World Series. Following their St. Louis Cardinals’ victory over the Detroit Tigers in Game Seven, Dizzy and Daffy went on a fourteen game barnstorming tour against the best African-American baseball players in the country. The Dizzy and Daffy Dean Barnstorming Tour: Race, Media, and America’s National Pastime examines for the first time the full barnstorming series in its original and uncensored splendor. Phil S. Dixon profiles not only the men who were part of the Deans’ All-Star teams but also the men who played against them, including some of baseball’s most monumental African-American players. Dixon highlights how the contributions during the tour of Negro League stars such as Satchel Paige, Chet Brewer, Charlie Beverly, and Andy Cooper were glossed over by sports writers of the day and grants them their rightful due in this significant slice of sports history. The Dizzy and Daffy Dean Barnstorming Tour gives careful consideration to the social implications of the tour and the media’s biased coverage of the games, providing a unique window for viewing racism in American sports history. It is more than a baseball story—it is an American story.




Phil Dixon's American Baseball Chronicles, Volume III


Book Description

Philadelphia's African-American Giants were organized in 1902 by Harry A. Smith and H. Walter Schlichter. Smith, a former baseball player and writer for the Philadelphia Tribune, had conceived the idea of organizing a team and approached Schlichter, the sports editor of the Philadelphia Evening Item, for financial backing. Veteran player/manager Solomon 'Sol' White was hired as captain of the newly organized Giants and immediately placed in charge of player recruitment. By continually fazing out the old ballplayers and introducing new ones, Smith, Schlichter and White built the Philadelphia Giants into one of the strongest baseball teams in the country. Their record of games won was unparalleled. In 1904 this same Philadelphia Giants team defeated the Cuban X Giants to claim their first Worlds Championship, a title that they held for many years. As an independent organization, one that was totally seperated from National and American League connections, the Philadelphia Giants operated with the utmost of integrity and sportsmanship from 1902-1910. In honor of the 1905 Philadelphia Giants' contribution to our American pastime, Dixon's American Baseball chronicles has compiled statistics and game notes from the entire championship season of 1905. This series, the first of its kind, is a unique offering of an in-depth series of publications about the greatest baseball teams in African-American sports history. What makes this work unique is it's easy to read format and depth of information. Included within the book are written accounts for every game from the Philadelphia Giants' entire 1905 schedule of nearly 158 contest, with scores, attendance figures and other seldom revealed information. The work includes aditional information on more than 300 additional games played by the Cuban X Giants, Chicago Leland Giants, Brooklyn Royal Giants and other African-American teams in operation during that same 1905 season, as well as additional historic information as it related to the National and American baseball Leagues. The comparative scores and their related histories are a resourceful and entertaining aid for further analysis and assessment on the participation of African-American athletes in baseball as best represented from the perspective of a single Championship season.




Negro Leaguers and the Hall of Fame


Book Description

Since 1971, 35 Negro League baseball players and executives have been admitted to the Hall of Fame. The Negro League Hall of Fame admissions process, which has now been conducted in four phases over a 50-year period, can be characterized as idiosyncratic at best. Drawing on baseball analytics and surveys of both Negro League historians and veterans, this book presents an historical overview of NLHOF voting, with an evaluation of whether the 35 NL players selected were the best choices. Using modern metrics such as Wins Above Replacement (WAR), 24 additional Negro Leaguers are identified who have Hall of Fame qualifications. Brief biographies are included for HOF-quality players and executives who have been passed over, along with reasons why they may have been excluded. A proposal is set forth for a consistent and orderly HOF voting process for the Negro Leagues.




Pete Hill


Book Description

Among early 20th century baseball players, John Preston "Pete" Hill (1882-1951) was considered the equal of Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker--only skin color kept him out of the majors. A capable manager, Hill captained the Negro League's Chicago-based American Giants, led two expansion teams and retired from the sport as manager of the Baltimore Black Sox. Drawing on contemporary newspaper accounts, this first ever biography of Hill recounts the career of a neglected Hall of Famer in the context of the turbulent issues that surrounded him--segregation, women's suffrage, Prohibition and the Spanish flu.




Outsider Baseball


Book Description

Outsider Baseball is the story of a forgotten world, where independent professional ball clubs zig-zagged across America, plying their trade in big cities and small villages alike. Included among the former and future major leaguers were mercenaries, scalawags, and outcasts. This is where Babe Ruth, Rube Waddell, and John McGraw crossed bats with the Cuban Stars, Tokyo Giants, Brooklyn Bushwicks, dozens of famous Negro league teams, and novelty acts such as the House of David and Bloomer Girls. Legends emerged in this alternate baseball universe and author Scott Simkus sets out to share their stories and use a critical lens to separate fact from fiction. Written in a gritty prose style, Outsider Baseball combines meticulous research with modern analytics, opening the door to an unforgettable funhouse of baseball history. Scott Simkus is the founder and editor of the Outsider Baseball Bulletin. He is the winner of a research award from the Society of American Baseball Research for his work on the Negro League Database.




The Negro Leagues Were Major Leagues


Book Description

How good was Negro League Baseball (1920-1948)? Some experts maintain that the quality of play was equal to that of the American and National Leagues. Some believe the Negro Leagues should be part of Major League Baseball's official record and that more Negro League players should be in the Hall of Fame. Skeptics contend that while many players could be rated highly, NL organizations were minor league at best. Drawing on the most comprehensive data available, including stats from more than 2,000 interracial games, this study finds that black baseball was very good indeed. Negro leaguers beat the big leaguers more than half the time in head-to-head contests, demonstrated stronger metrics within their own leagues and excelled when finally allowed into the majors. The authors document the often duplicitous manner in which MLB has dealt with the legacy of the Negro Leagues, and an appendix includes the scores and statistics from every known contest between Negro League and Major League teams.




Baseball Barnstorming and Exhibition Games, 1901-1962


Book Description

Until 1947, professional ball players were paid only from opening day to season's end. Even during the season, a lot of their expenses came out of their own pockets. Even the best-paid players had trouble making ends meet. One answer to their money woes was barnstorming--tours out of season. Cities lacking their own major league teams were happy to host big-league players for such events, as well as for special exhibition games whose proceeds sometimes went to local charities. Here is a history of barnstorming and exhibition games from 1901 (when both of the two current major leagues began operating) through 1962 (when a team led by Willie Mays was unsuccessful in its attempt at a tour, signaling an end to true barnstorming). Decade by decade, it covers the teams, the games, and the players for a detailed look at how barnstorming and exhibition brought big-league baseball to the backyard ballparks of America.