In 2020, Commissioner Rob Manfred officially acknowledged the Negro Leagues and bestowed Major League status on the players that played during that period. Players such as Satchel Paige, Rube Foster, and Buck O’Neil were pioneers of the sport for Black ballplayers, and their significance to the sport is not recognized enough.
MLB The Show 23 has a special game mode that highlights prominent Black players that helped shape the future of baseball. Without these players, baseball would not be the sport we know and love today.
8 Leroy Satchel Paige
Leroy Satchel Paige is one of the most well-known pitchers from the Negro Leagues. He was practically unhittable, racking up 55 no-hitters in his career that spanned over 2,600 games. Paige would place the foil of a chewing gum wrapper on home plate and practice throwing his pitches over the wrapper.
The downside of Paige’s career is no one knows for certain how old he was. Paige kept his birth certificate in the back of a family Bible but a goat ate the certificate. He never told anyone his birthday but he was recorded to be 42 years old when he made his major league debut in 1948 with the Cleveland Indians. Paige would be the oldest rookie in the major league history.
7 Hilton Smith
Also known as the Forgotten Star, Hilton Smith pitched alongside Satchel Paige on the Kansas City Monarchs. Smith was more quiet and reserved compared to Paige always needing the spotlight, so Smith was often kept in Paige’s shadow. Fans would come to games to watch Paige pitch the first few innings, then Smith would finish the game.
Smith was a two-star who was a dominant pitcher and an amazing hitter. His curveball was one of the greatest ever seen as he won 20 games in 12 straight seasons. Smith threw a perfect game in his first game with the Monarchs. He was too old to join the major leagues after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier but Smith was responsible for introducing Robinson to the Monarchs and that started his career.
6 Rube Foster
Without Rube Foster, the Negro Leagues wouldn’t have existed. On February 13, 1920, Foster arranged a meeting with the other Black baseball leagues and formed the Negro Leagues. He was a visionary and one of the greatest minds in baseball, often referred to as the Father of Black Baseball.
Foster made his mark on the sport as a player, manager, and executive. He perfected the Screwball that he called the Fadaway and became the manager of the Chicago American Giants. Foster preached a fast style of play that involved a lot of bunts and aggressive base running, so he would fine players five dollars if they were called out without sliding or if they couldn’t perform a bunt properly.
5 Hank Thompson
Shortly after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Hank Thompson broke it with the St. Louis Browns. Before joining the Browns in 1947, Thompson was a five-tool star player for the Kansas City Monarchs. He excelled in power-hitting, contact-hitting, arm strength, defense, and base running.
Thompson fought overseas in World War 2 briefly, then returned to play for the Monarchs. Thompson formed the first all-Black outfield in the 1951 World Series with Monte Irving and Willie Mays. His career wasn’t as long and illuminating as others but he made his mark by also becoming the first player to integrate two MLB teams in St. Louis and then the New York Giants.
4 Buck O’Neil
In 1938, John Jordan “Buck” O’Neil joined the Kansas City Monarchs. He was a natural leader on the Monarchs who commanded a huge bat at the plate and a big glove at first base. When he played, O’Neil was one of the greatest defensive first-basemen in Negro League history.
O’Neil also served in World War 2, and after he was discharged, won the batting title the season he returned. O’Neil didn’t get the opportunity to play in the major leagues but he became the first Black scout and coach in 1962 with the Chicago Cubs. When asked what the greatest day of his career was, O’Neil said it was Easter Sunday in 1943 when he hit for the cycle, and then met his future wife that night in a restaurant. They were married for 51 years.
3 Jackie Robinson
Considered baseball’s greatest pioneer, Jackie Robinson officially broke the color barrier on April 15, 1947, with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Two years prior, Robinson made his Negro League debut with the Kansas City Monarchs. Although Robinson was an outstanding four-sport athlete from UCLA, he might’ve not had the opportunity to play for the Monarchs without World War 2.
Robinson served in the military in 1944 but received an honorable discharge later that year. He signed with the Monarchs because the roster was gutted with players fighting overseas in the war. He quickly made a name for himself in the Negro League and caught the eye of Branch Rickey and the Dodgers. Breaking the color barrier was viewed as more than just integrating Black people into the sport of baseball, but was the beginning of the Civil Rights movement.
2 John Donaldson
Before Satchel Paige was mowing down opposing lineups, there was John Donaldson. Donaldson terrorized teams before the Negro Leagues were formed and he was largely responsible for barnstorming. This was a method that referred to teams showcasing the game of baseball to places around the country that hadn’t seen the sport.
While Donaldson was a great hitter, he was an even better pitcher. He’s credited with inventing the Slider, using the pitch roughly 20 years before anyone even knew about it. Donaldson also threw with such force and intensity behind his fastballs, he once broke his catcher’s hand. Donaldson eventually played for the Kansas City Monarchs near the end of his career but he paved the road for other Negro League legends.
1 Martin Dihigo
One of the most decorated players in baseball history is also the sport’s most versatile. Martin Dihigo is enshrined in five different countries’ halls of fame: Mexico, Cuba, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and the United States. Known as El Maestro, Dihigo played all nine positions.
He excelled on the field, at the plate, and on the mound. In 1938, Dihigo won the pitching title with an 18-2 record and a 0.90 ERA. During that same season, he also won the batting title with a .387 batting average. Baseball historians have also considered Dihigo might’ve had a stronger arm than Roberto Clemente, making him one of the greatest fielders ever.