Negro Leagues Baseball Museum President Bob Kendrick and MLBbro.com OG, Mark Gray discuss how Negro Leagues history can be a bridge to introducing the game to a new generation of young children, as certain politicians strive to erase baseball’s complicated history in America from the history books.
MLB the Show franchise announced the inclusion of eight Negro League Legends into this year’s MLB the Show 23 edition of the video game. The players in the package include Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, Buck O’Neil, Rube Foster, Hilton Smith, Hank Thompson, John Donaldson and Martín Dihigo. The legendary Negro Leaguers will be apart of a game mode called “Storylines”.
This has been the latest efforts of Major League Baseball to acknowledge their complicated history with the Negro Leagues in the past few years. Back in December 2020, Major League Baseball announced the addition of Negro League statistics into their official records.
(Some) Negro League Stats Officially Recognized By Baseball-Reference.com
MLB the Show video game developer Sony partnered with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and its President Bob Kendrick, to add the legendary Negro Leaguers into the video game. Sony brand strategist Ramone Russell released a statement to the media regarding the addition of the historical players.
“The Negro Leagues are an important part of baseball and American history, whose iconic figures are not nearly as well known as other baseball players of the era,” Russell said. “We’ve thought about introducing the Negro Leagues into MLB The Show for years, but we needed to figure out how to do it the right way for an interactive medium.”
Russell also expounded on what to expect in the new Storyline feature.
“The best way I can explain it is, it’s an amalgamation of a short documentary series combined with curated moments of gameplay. Each of the eight players has a storyline, and the coolest part is learning about these players then immediately being able to play as them in the game. That transition from the images and video to the on-field gameplay experience is powerful and immersive. The ambiance is carried through, from the uniforms to the crowd and everything in between.”
The new immersive game mode will not be a one-off addition. Next year’s MLB the Show will include a new roster of Negro League players who will be implemented in Season Two of Storylines. Along with the inclusion of the Negro League players, Sony’s San Diego Studios announced a donation of one dollar to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum for every MLB The Show 23 Collector’s Edition sold in the U.S. from now through the end of 2023.
The inclusion of Negro Leaguers in the MLB the Show franchise displays a new creative attempt to bring awareness to these revered players of the past who were shunned from the Major Leagues and unable to show their talents on the pro level in the height of the Jim Crow Era. Talented players such as Satchel Paige, who did not get to make his Major League debut until the age of 42, will have their stories told to a new generation of baseball fans. Paige himself was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971 via the Negro League Committee.
It’s our honor to bring the Negro Leagues to MLB The Show 23! In partnership with the @NLBMuseumKC and president @nlbmprez we invite you on a journey to celebrate the Negro Leagues and their stories of triumph over adversity in a new game experience! pic.twitter.com/8D50kKBWt8
— MLB The Show (@MLBTheShow) February 6, 2023
The Negro Leagues were created due to the harsh racist climate that persisted in America which denied Blacks the opportunities to compete with their white counterparts. The first Negro League was formed in 1887, just twenty-four years after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 while the last great league folded in 1951. That is nearly sixty-four years of Black players being forced to compete under the “separate but equal” doctrine.
Major League Baseball has made considerable efforts throughout the years to acknowledge Negro League players by inducting players in the Hall of Fame and integrating Negro League statistics into their record books.
Now in 2023, fans will be familiar with the Negro Leaguers through video game play, giving fans an interactive lesson on baseball history. Black players who were once denied the opportunity to play on Major League fields will now be represented on every baseball fans’ video game console.
Everyone knows the legendary story of MLBbro and hero Jackie Robinson. He is known for being a pioneer for all MLBbros who have played in Major League baseball. A staple in African American and baseball history, Robinson was the first Black player to gain prominence in a white baseball league. Jackie Robinson officially broke the color barrier set by major league baseball in 1947, but it was Bud Fowler who, nearly 70 years prior, became the first Black man to play in an all-white professional baseball league.
Born John W. Jackson, he obtained the name “Bud” from his teammates due to the fact he routinely greeted others with “Hey, Bud”. Eventually he would don the name Bud Fowler. Fowler grew up learning and playing baseball in Cooperstown, New York, close to his hometown Fort Plain. In 1878 Fowler became the first Negro player to play in a professional baseball league, pitching in the International League.
As a teenager Bud played on several different professional teams, most notably being listed as a pitcher and catcher initially and as a second baseman in the latter part of his career due to arm troubles. Although his playing time was scarce at many of his destinations, he was renowned for his skill. His reputation as a skilled and multi-talented player provided him with numerous opportunities to play.
Supporting himself financially as a barber, he was able to make money while traveling which allowed him the fiscal responsibility to move wherever he needed to play the game he loved. Since there was no established rule against players of color being allowed to play, Bud was able to consistently get on rosters but finding suitable playing time was another issue. Due to racial tension, white teammates threatening to quit, and some blatant attempts to injure Fowler on the field he was forced to be a career journeyman.
It is estimated that Fowler played in over a dozen different leagues spanning two decades. Due to the landscape of professional baseball at the time, this caused him to play in roughly 20 different states across the United States.
Playing in the era of “barehanded” fielding, Fowler was known for great fielding. He played for several minor league teams due to an understood and unwritten “gentleman’s agreement” which did not allow black players in the sport.
After over twenty years of playing across the country he, and Grant “Home Run” Johnson, a Negro league player, helped create the Page Fence Giants. This was one of the first prominent all-Black professional baseball teams and was founded over twenty years before any official Negro League was even created.
The impact and story of Bud Fowler is not as well-known as that of Jackie Robinson, but he was every bit the pioneer that Jackie was. It was only natural that he would finally be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 24, 2022. Ironically, the Hall is located in Cooperstown, the same city where Fowler learned to play the game.
Major League Baseball has been intentional about incorporating notable Black players and Negro Leaguers into the Hall of Fame. Hopefully, with more rightful inductions like Fowler’s, the Black presence can be represented much more favorably in Baseball and get more appreciation than it currently does.
Mark Gray and Manny Brown debate the latest topic in Black Baseball.
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