From the 1920s to the '50s, Negro League Baseball was the home for Black players who were segregated from the other, whites-only, baseball clubs. And for decades, the stats of those Black players were kept separate from the official Major League Baseball record books.As a result, many MLB records have now been supplanted by the achievements of previously overlooked Black players.Josh Gibson, for example, now holds the records for highest career batting average, with .372, surpassing Ty Cobb.
My mom, Joyce, and my aunt, Rosalyn, have been advocating for so long – giving speeches, talking about things pertaining to my grandfather's legacy and talking about his story. And so to have everybody across the country be able to see Turkey Stearne's name and know that he can kind of become a household name now is just unbelievable.START HERE: Speaking of everybody seeing his name, your grandfather in these new stats is now sixth in all-time batting average.
We talked to Bob Kendrick, who's the president of the Negro League's Baseball Museum for the podcast, to get a better sense of the history behind the Negro Leagues.
It still hurts. It's like a bittersweet thing. It's amazing. The plaque is unbelievable outside, but we wish grandpa had been a Detroit Tiger because he belonged there, clearly, with the stats that we see now.