Full Description
One of the best-known teams in the old Negro Leagues, the Elite Giants of Baltimore featured some of the outstanding African American players of the day. Sociologist and baseball writer Bob Luke narrates the untold story of the team and its interaction with the city and its people during the long years of segregation. To convey a sense of the action on the field and the major events in the team's history, Luke highlights important games, relives the standout performances of individual players, and discusses key decisions made by management. He introduces the team's eventual major league stars: Roy Campanella, who went on to a ten-year Hall of Fame career with the Brooklyn Dodgers; Joe Black, the first African American pitcher to win a World Series game; and James "Junior" Gilliam, a player and coach with the Dodgers for twenty-five years. Luke also describes the often contentious relationship between the team and major league baseball before, during, and after the integration of the major leagues.
The Elite Giants did more than provide entertainment for Baltimore's black residents; the team and its star players broke the color barrier in the major leagues, giving hope to an African American community still oppressed by Jim Crow. In recounting the history of the Elite Giants, Luke reveals how the team, its personalities, and its fans raised public awareness of the larger issues faced by blacks in segregation-era Baltimore. Based on interviews with former players and Baltimore residents, articles from the black press of the time, and archival documents, and illustrated with previously unpublished photographs, The Baltimore Elite Giants recounts a barrier-breaking team's successes, failures, and eventual demise.
Contents
Prologue
1. High Hopes
Receptive Community
Settling In
The Roster
Hard Landing
2. Pennants and Jumpers
Elites Take It All
Owners Vie for Leadership
Jumpers, Trades, and Close Finishes
3. War on the Home Front
Elites Nail Another Pennant
Notable Opening Day Dignitaries
Muddling Through
4. Bending the Color Bar
Sparks Fly around Robinson and Rickey
Wilson Ousted
A Near Miss
Finally!
Moving and Moving On
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Notes
Suggested Reading
Index
