León Kellman

Few have embodied international baseball quite like León Kellman. His career made a full circle, beginning on the amateur fields of his native Panama, traveling through the Negro Leagues and the professional circuits of Mexico, and finally returning to make him his native country’s most decorated professional manager. Known for his exceptional plate discipline, defensive versatility, and quiet leadership, Kellman amassed an impressive nine managerial titles in Panama, a record that still stands today. This account explores the multifaceted career of a Latin American baseball pioneer.

Edric Oscarlea “León” Kellman was born on July 11, 1918, in Gatún, Panama. His parents, Edric Kellman and Lillian Springer, were born around 1898 and 1904, respectively. Both originally from Barbados, the couple moved to the Panama Canal Zone, with Edric first arriving in 1912 and Lillian following in 1917.1 Their first child, a son born in Barbados, died in infancy. León was the eldest of at least seven Kellman children born in Panama.2

The elder Edric worked as a storekeeper (and later as a hardware salesman) at the commissary store at the Fort William Davis Military Reservation in the US-occupied Canal Zone. The younger Edric, called “León” since childhood, also worked full-time at the commissary store as a salesman prior to becoming a professional ballplayer.3 Top-tier Panamanian baseball was not professional until the 1945–46 season, and Kellman initially made his mark in Panama’s amateur Liga Nacional. His 1939–40 debut with the Jardín Tropical established him as one of the country’s prime talents. He batted .346 as a rookie and followed that up by earning Most Valuable Player honors the next season, upping his average to .382 and leading the circuit in runs batted in.4 His performance earned him a place on Panama’s roster for the 1941 Amateur World Series.

The first Amateur World Series was held in London in 1938 as a five-game series between the United States and Great Britain. The 1941 Amateur World Series, the fourth tournament, was held in Havana, Cuba. It had come to feature nine participating countries (including Panama for the first time). The Panamanians finished fourth behind Venezuela, Cuba, and Mexico. Kellman (age 23), a right-handed batter and fielder, stood out by hitting the only home run of the tournament.5

After missing the 1942 tourney, Panama was a regular in the competition. Kellman did not play in the 1943 edition, but he was back for the 1944 Series in Caracas. In 1945, he led the Series with two home runs as Panama finished third. Hosts Venezuela went 10–0 to win the tournament, with Héctor Benítez winning MVP honors thanks to a .526 (20-for-38) batting average.6 Kellman may have played in the Venezuelan League between the 1944 and 1945 Amateur World Series, though that league was not fully professional until 1946.

Panama’s professional baseball league commenced in 1945–46 with Kellman as the catcher for a deep General Electric team. The squad also featured fellow Panamanian stars Frank Austin (a shortstop coming off an all-star season with the Philadelphia Stars), Patricio Scantlebury (a hard-throwing southpaw two seasons into his Negro League career who eventually pitched for the Cincinnati Reds in 1956), Archie Brathwaite (an outfielder who played for the Newark Eagles in 1944 and later with the Philadelphia Stars), and Clyde Parris (a third baseman who joined the major Negro Leagues the following season).7 Barney Brown, a US-born star pitcher of the Philadelphia Stars, was also in the rotation.8 Kellman, by then 27 years old and a lanky 5-feet-11 and 160 pounds, was named the league’s Most Valuable Player with a .349 batting average and league-leading .986 fielding percentage behind the plate.

Following the season in Panama, Kellman made the jump to the United States with the Cleveland Buckeyes of the Negro American League. The catcher’s spot was already occupied by player-manager Quincy Trouppe, so Kellman slotted in as Cleveland’s starting third baseman. He hit over .3009 as the Buckeyes finished third. Kellman hit his first documented Negro League home run on August 11, 1946, against Dan Bankhead of the Memphis Red Sox.10

One of Kellman’s Buckeyes teammates was 18-year-old Panamanian Vibert “Webbo” Clarke. Clarke was named an East-West All-Star in his first Negro League season. Another teenage teammate was Al Smith, a versatile player who went on to have a long career in the American League. Smith joined Kellman, Austin, Scantlebury, Brathwaite, Parris, future Indianapolis Clown Álex Colthirst, former New York Cuban Gil Garrido (father of future big-league infielder Gil Garrido), current Philadelphia Star Wilmer Harris, and Negro League veteran Quincy “Bud” Barbee on the first-place 1946–47 General Electric team that winter in Panama.

Before rejoining the Buckeyes for spring training ahead of the 1947 season, Kellman and the General Electric team sparred with the Brooklyn Dodgers and International League Montreal Royals as they held spring training in Panama. The Panamanian champions shocked the Dodgers with a 7–6 win (in seven innings) behind home runs by Parris and Barbee.11 The Royals had better luck against General Electric, riding home runs from Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella to a 9–5 victory.12

The 1947 Buckeyes were a juggernaut, going 49–18 in league play and coasting to the Negro American League pennant. Kellman was one of several Cleveland players named West All-Stars, joined by Trouppe, Clarke, outfielder Sam Jethroe, and veteran pitcher Chet Brewer. The West won the first of two East-West games (played in Comiskey Park) 5–2, but Kellman did not play. The only substitutes that manager Frank Duncan made were on the mound.13 He appeared in the second game, held at the Polo Grounds. Entering as a pinch-hitter, he went 0-for-2 with a walk while the West was again victorious, 8–2.14

Kellman again finished the season hitting over .30015 while leading the Negro American League in runs batted in.16 His fielding was also cited as a reason for Cleveland’s success.17 The Buckeyes faced the New York Cubans in the Negro World Series and won the series in six games (four wins, a loss, and a tie). Only five box scores have been found – press coverage took a back seat to Jackie Robinson’s appearance in the AL/NL World Series. Kellman hit .400 in those five games as the Buckeyes’ number three hitter. He had a four-hit performance (with two doubles) in a 10–7 Buckeyes win18 and added a three-hit game (with a triple) in a 6–5 loss.

Kellman led the Panamanian League with 25 RBIs in 1947–48, his only season with CPR (Cadena Panameña de Radiodifusión). He was back with the Buckeyes in 1948, but manager Quincy Trouppe was not. Trouppe was replaced by Alonzo Boone, and the club slipped to third place, far behind the Birmingham Black Barons and Kansas City Monarchs. Kellman hit .300 again with an on-base percentage close to .400.19 On Opening Day, he pulled off a hidden ball trick against Birmingham.20

León was selected to the West All-Star team again. When citing his selection, the New York Amsterdam News effused, “Kellman is a team player, a quiet lad who goes about baseball with a minimum of fuss or bother. He can play both third and second and has evenly divided his 1948 play at both spots.”21 West manager Quincy Trouppe did not field Kellman in the first game (a 3–0 win for the West in Chicago), but he again played in the second game in New York (this time at Yankee Stadium). Kellman pinch-hit for Roberto Vargas in the eighth and went 0-for-1 while making an error at third base.

In October of 1948, Kellman joined the barnstorming Kansas City Royals. The Royals were an excellent squad that featured Satchel Paige, Cool Papa Bell, Chet Brewer, Sam Hairston, Neil Robinson, Jim LaMarque, and other Negro League stars.22 Kellman again showed his versatility by starting in the outfield as well as playing second and third base. The California Eagle noted Kellman was “a new member and one of the best hitters in baseball.”23

The Royals played a five-game set in California with a major league all-star team that featured Paige’s Cleveland Indians teammates and World Series champions Bob Lemon and Gene Bearden. After going 0-for-8 in the first two games, Kellman pinch-hit in the third game, walking and scoring against Bearden. He was back in the cleanup spot in the fourth game (and went 1-for-4) while Jackie Robinson joined Lemon’s squad.

After splitting the first four games, the two teams came together for one final matchup. Kellman again started in the cleanup spot at third base. He singled and scored in the first, homered in the third, and walked in the fifth—all against Bearden, who was coming off a 20–7 campaign, a World Series shutout, and a championship-clinching save.24 Once Paige was removed from the game, the major leaguers roared back from a 7–0 deficit to win, 8–7.

Following the series, Kellman played and managed in Panama with the Spur Cola Colonites. He hit .357 and led all catchers in fielding as Spur Cola won the championship—Kellman’s first of nine as manager in Panama.25 This earned Spur Cola a place in the inaugural Caribbean Series. This new competition brought together the champions of Cuba (Almendares), Venezuela (Cervecería Caracas), Panama (Spur Cola), and Puerto Rico (Mayagüez). It was a star-studded affair:

• Almendares boasted an outfield featuring Sam Jethroe and Monte Irvin, a pitching staff with Agapito Mayor and Conrado Marrero, and third baseman Héctor Rodríguez (an infielder with more than 4,000 professional hits26 who led the tournament in safeties).
• Mayagüez featured Alonzo Perry, Piper Davis, Wilmer Fields, and Artie Wilson around the infield with Luke Easter and Carlos Bernier in the outfield, and Quincy Trouppe playing a utility role.
• Caracas had Venezuelan ace José Bracho and future White Sox All-Star Alfonso “Chico” Carrasquel.
• Kellman’s Spur Cola squad included Scantlebury, Sam Bankhead, Sam Jones, and Lester Lockett.

Spur Cola won the first game of the Series against Mayagüez by a score of 13–9 (thanks to a 10-run sixth inning). Kellman batted third and caught.27 In the double round-robin tournament, Spur Cola lost both games to Almendares and split the games with Caracas and Mayagüez to finish in third place (2–4). Kellman hit .238 in the series (5-for-21) but tied for the lead in stolen bases with four.28 No player would steal more than four bases in a single Caribbean Series until Henry Cotto in 1987.29

Kellman remained with the Buckeyes in 1949 as they moved to Louisville, Kentucky.30 The 1949 season was a transitional one for the Negro Leagues as the two leagues were consolidated into one and clubs in the American and National Leagues began signing more Black and Afro-Latino players to their minor league systems. The Buckeyes finished last,31 and Kellman saw his batting average plummet to .251. He still made the East All-Star team, pinch-hit in the seventh inning, and struck out.32 Ahead of the game, Norfolk, Virginia’s New Journal and Guide noted he was a “major league prospect” and added, “in such men as León Kellman, Lorenzo ‘Piper’ Davis, Buster Clarkson, Al Perry, Jim LaMarque, and Pedro Díaz, fans will be seeing the cream of the crop.”33 From that group, only Clarkson would break through to the AL/NL (though it took until 1952, when he was 37 years old). It wasn’t the first time Kellman was considered a possibility for the major leagues. In October 1948, Dan Burley of the New York Age publicly challenged the New York Yankees to integrate. In doing so, he named several players the Bronx Bombers should consider, noting, “The Cleveland Buckeyes have a terrific third baseman in León Kellman.”34

Following the season, Kellman joined the Indianapolis Clowns for a September seven-game exhibition series against the Kansas City Monarchs. He started each game at third base as the Monarchs won the series four games to three. He collected three hits in the first game, singled and homered in the third game, and hit a three-run home run in the fourth game. Overall, he hit .250 (6-for-24), walked four times, and drove in six runs.35

Earlier that month, Kellman’s wife Ruth gave birth to the couple’s first child, a daughter named Matilde.36 It is unclear when León and Ruth were wed, but the couple ultimately had three children together. Kellman had previously been married, but his wife had passed away by 1948. Kellman and his first wife had a daughter named Pearl.37

Kellman rejoined the barnstorming Kansas City Royals, and on October 16, they lost to the Bob Lemon All-Stars (managed by Casey Stengel38), 9–3. Kellman started behind the plate and batted seventh. He singled off Lemon in his only official at-bat (the box score implies he likely walked once or twice) before being replaced by Buster Haywood.39 Haywood made the start in a rematch one week later.40

That winter, Kellman again played for and managed Spur Cola. The Panamanian League was won by the Carta Vieja Yankees. Managed by American Wayne Blackburn, with a somewhat underwhelming roster (apart from Chet Brewer) made up mostly of Americans, Carta Vieja shocked the international baseball world by winning the Caribbean Series.

In 1950, Kellman joined the Memphis Red Sox, ending his four-year tenure with the Buckeyes. Webbo Clarke also made the move. In early June, Kellman was leading the league in hitting (at .426);41 in July, the team won 16 games in a row.42 Despite being Memphis’ starting third baseman, Kellman was on the All-Star ballot at second base. While this hurt his performance in the vote, he was still selected to the West team by skipper Ted “Double Duty” Radcliffe.43 Kellman was hitting .368 at the time of the game.44 The West prevailed 5–3 as Kellman went 0-for-2 coming off the bench while committing an error at third.

Kellman ended the season with a .329 average and .441 on-base percentage in 65 games.45 Walks were not frequently reported in statistical summaries at the time, which is unfortunate because one of Kellman’s most notable attributes was his plate discipline. Any time Kellman’s stats are shown with walk totals, his on-base percentage is almost always approaching or surpassing .400.

Once again, Kellman joined the Kansas City Royals following the Negro American League season. He homered in an exhibition game against the Long Beach Rockets in a tune-up ahead of facing Bob Lemon’s All-Stars.46 On October 15, he pinch-hit for Satchel Paige against Lemon’s squad and went 0-for-1.47 Over the next two weeks, he appeared in four more games against the major leaguers without collecting a hit.

Back in Panama for the winter, Kellman won the batting title (.343) and led all catchers in fielding (.994). He signed future Yankees World Series champion Héctor López from Panama’s amateur leagues48 and managed Spur Cola to his second title. Once again, this earned the Colonites a spot in the 1951 Caribbean Series. Unfortunately, they struggled to a 1–5 last-place finish. The only highlight was a 12–2 blowout win against Cuba. Kellman (.222 in nine at-bats with two runs scored) split time behind the plate with Nat Peeples (0-for-11).49

Kellman opted for a change of scenery for the 1951 season, joining the Azules de Veracruz in the Mexican League. Over the past decade-plus, the club had been home to Hall of Famers such as Josh Gibson, Willie Wells, Martín Dihigo, Monte Irvin, Raymond Brown, Ray Dandridge, Leon Day, and Rogers Hornsby, as well as Latin American stars Ramon Bragaña, Silvio García, Lázaro Salazar, Pedro Formental, Alejandro Crespo, Agustín Bejerano, Ángel Castro, and Santos Amaro. Despite 1951 being the last year of the club’s existence, manager Castro guided them to a first-place finish—thanks to a Triple Crown performance of his own (.354, 22 HR, 79 RBIs). Kellman was also a star, hitting .292/.407/.450 in 75 games with 10 home runs, 58 runs scored, and 48 runs batted in.50

At the end of the season, León and Ruth welcomed their second child, a daughter named Marcia.51 Kellman returned to Panama and played and managed for Spur Cola. The championship was won by Carta Vieja, which recruited Kellman to join them in the Caribbean Series. The Yankees finished the tournament with three wins and three losses while Kellman went 1-for-10.52

The 1952 season was Kellman’s most nomadic one to date. After wrapping up the Caribbean Series in February, he rejoined the Negro American League’s Memphis Red Sox in April. He played 19 games for Memphis and starred, batting .324 and slugging .544, thanks to five home runs and 18 runs batted in.53 In the summer, he joined Tigres del Licey in the Dominican League (which was not yet a winter league) as a player/manager, possibly on an interim basis. He was in charge for 14 games, went 7–7,54 and inserted himself into six games (going 1-for-14 with three walks).55

By October, he was back in the United States, having joined the Indianapolis Clowns for the Negro American League playoffs. The Clowns won the series over the Birmingham Black Barons, seven games to five. The Clowns were powered by a great performance by Henry Aaron, who returned to the Clowns for the Series following his season with the Eau Claire (Wisconsin) Bears in the Braves’ minor league farm system.56 Finally, after spending parts of 1952 as a Colonite, Yankee, Red Sox, Tiger, and Clown, he joined the barnstorming “American Stars.” The roster was billed as players “from the American Association, the Pacific Coast League, the Western International League, and the Negro American League.”57 The team played at least one game, an 8–5 loss to the powerful Campanella All-Stars (featuring Larry Doby, Monte Irvin, Hank Thompson, and other stars).58

Over the winter, Kellman returned as Spur Cola player-manager and hit .304 while topping the league with five home runs. The Chesterfield Smokers made it to the Caribbean Series as Panama’s champions, and Kellman was again recruited as a reinforcement. He went 1-for-3 with an RBI in the series while the Smokers finished third with a 2–4 record.59

Ahead of the 1953 season, Kellman was announced as the new Memphis Red Sox manager in the Negro American League, replacing Homer “Goose” Curry.60 However, Kellman never reported, and Curry kept the job. Instead, Kellman was back in the Mexican League, this time for Tecolotes de Nuevo Laredo. He hit only .268, but his excellent plate discipline (64 walks against 21 strikeouts) led to a .416 on-base percentage.61 The highlight of the season came on August 14, when Kellman caught the first perfect game in Mexican League history, thrown by right-handed Mexican pitcher Ramiro Cuevas. Barney Serrell drove in the only run of the game62 (and made a sparkling defensive play63). Nuevo Laredo won the title that year, piloted by Adolfo Luque.

Kellman began the winter of 1953–54 playing with the Chileros de Xalapa in the Veracruz Winter League.64 The manager was Martín Dihigo; one of his teammates was Buck Leonard. Kellman rejoined Spur Cola as player-manager in time for the Panama winter season. In the spring, Kellman secured a tryout with the Blackwell (Oklahoma) Broncos of the Western Association. This was the closest Kellman came to breaking into so-called “organized” baseball: the Broncos were a Class C affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. He made the team and was projected to be the team’s starting catcher,65 but was abruptly released when the team wrapped up spring training. The papers noted Kellman “probably could have done the Broncos some good, but for one reason or another didn’t fit in with the arranged plans.”66

After the Blackwell disappointment, Kellman rejoined the Tecolotes in 1954 and had perhaps his greatest offensive season at age 36. In 73 games, he posted a .357/.502/.608 slash line with 71 walks (versus 21 strikeouts), contributing to his outstanding on-base percentage. A career-high 13 home runs boosted his slugging percentage. He stole eight bases and scored over a run per game (74) as Nuevo Laredo repeated as champions under Luque.67 Kellman crushed two grand slam home runs on May 5 against the Diablos Rojos. He added two singles and drove in nine runs as Nuevo Laredo won 19–6.68 He listed that accomplishment as the “most interesting or unusual experience” in his baseball career in a 1955 survey.69 On that same document, Kellman listed his birth year as 1927—cutting a full nine years off his age.

Before returning to Panama, he remained in Mexico, playing for Hermosillo of the Mexican Pacific Coast League in October and November.70 He was the team’s starting catcher until his season abruptly ended when he was struck in the head with a pitch and hospitalized. The injury caused him to miss the start of training camp with Spur Cola.71 In the spring, he returned to Mexico with Nuevo Laredo in 1955 with a sparkling .336/.455/.487 batting line in 100 games. After hitting .315 for Spur Cola, he split the 1956 season between Nuevo Laredo (acting as player-manager for part of the season) and Yucatán with the Leones (where he was reunited with manager Luque), batting .297/.432/.429 in 101 games.72 In September, León and Ruth welcomed their first son, named León.73

Ahead of the 1956–57 winter season, the Spur Cola club was sold and renamed Cerveza Balboa.74 Kellman retained his role as player-manager and led them to the championship and another Caribbean Series appearance (his fifth overall and third as a manager), despite seeing his batting average slip to .173. Panama’s champions finished in second place with a 3–3 record, with Kellman batting only once after suffering an injury in the opening game.75

Kellman was exceptional again in the 1957 Mexican League with Yucatán, hitting .309/.435/.423 in 104 games. Ahead of another winter season with Cerveza Balboa, Panama was one of a few Latin American countries to host the Willie Mays All-Stars. Kellman was among the players expected to clash with the Say Hey Kid, but box scores and results were not reported.76 Mays’ team included Elston Howard, Joe Black, Connie Johnson, Al Smith, George Crowe, and several other major leaguers.77

After the season in Panama, Kellman split the 1958 Mexican League season between Yucatán and the Diablos Rojos del México. By then 40 years old, he batted .279/.402/.394 in 34 games, still showing his strong plate discipline with 20 walks and only six strikeouts.78 This was the last season Kellman would play outside his native Panama.

At this point, Kellman began transitioning from player-manager to full-time manager. In at least 1,455 at-bats in Panama, he hit .285.79 He managed in the Panamanian League through 1968–69, winning six more titles (five with Cerveza Balboa and one in his lone season with Ron Santa Clara in 1965–66). Kellman was announced as Cerveza Balboa’s manager for 1969–70, but the season was canceled.80 The Caribbean Series did not take place between 1961 and 1969, but Cerveza Balboa played in the 1961 Interamerican Series in Caracas, Venezuela.81

Kellman’s nine titles in Panama as a manager remain a record.82 It is most unlikely that anyone will approach it, given the sporadic history of Panamanian winter ball.83

After his playing career ended, Kellman settled in Brooklyn, New York. Ruth and Matilde came to the United States in 1959; the other two children joined them in 1961. Kellman operated a service station in Brooklyn while enjoying fishing, travel, and smoking cigars. In the late 1980s, he relocated to Miami, Florida.84 Ruth and León eventually separated, and Kellman married a third time, to Rosa Cecilia Menzies. Rosa, also originally from Panama, became a US citizen in 1990,85 with León doing so in 1991.86 Kellman died in Miami on May 13, 2003, at the age of 84.

Acknowledgments

This biography was reviewed by Rory Costello and Bill Lamb and fact-checked by Paul Proia.

Photo credit: León Kellman, Trading Card Database.

Notes

1 1930 United States Federal Census, Ancestry, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/23745194?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a225339486f465563713230587053426547494b707648582f585771484b6f4b506b364a52757961764f7045413d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d.

2 Marcia Silvera, daughter of León Kellman, telephone interview with the author, September 29, 2024 (hereafter Silvera interview).

3 1940 United States Federal Census, Ancestry, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/23745486?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a2271696f76793366704166706441587a37586f335972554f7a626c4c4b59593046614c6c734a32542f4278383d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d.

4 All of Kellman’s statistics from Panama come from the 1991 book by Ramon G. Pérez Medina, Historia del Béisbol Panameño. Photographs of Kellman’s stats from the book were graciously provided by Ryan Christoff.

5 Baseball de Cuba, History of the Baseball World Cup. 2013, accessed December 3, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131203190419/http://www.baseballdecuba.com/wcup2011/History.html.

6 Baseball de Cuba.  

7 “Negro Leaguers in Panama,” The Center for Negro League Baseball, accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/Negro%20Leaguers%20in%20Panama.pdf.

8 “El Béisbol de Panamá 1946,“ 1800 Beisbol, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.1800beisbol.com/baseball/deportes/beisbol_panama/el_beisbol_de_panama_1946/.

9 According to the Center for Negro League Baseball Research, Kellman played 53 games and hit .301. Seamheads has fewer box scores, but in those he hit .323.

10 “Negro League Box Scores: Cleveland Buckeyes vs. Chicago American Giants, August 11, 1946,“ Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1946/B08111CVB1946.htm.

11 “Brooks Finally Defeated by Local Panama Outfit,” Brooklyn Citizen, March 13, 1947: 6.

12 “Hotel in Panama Jimcrows Jackie Robinson.” New York Amsterdam News, March 29, 1947: 13.

13 “Negro League Box Scores: Atlanta Black Crackers vs. Washington Elite Giants, July 27, 1947,“ Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1947/B07270ASW1947.htm.

14 “Negro League Box Scores: Atlanta Black Crackers vs. New York Black Yankees, July 29, 1947,“ Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1947/B07290ASE1947.htm.

15 Per James Riley, Kellman hit .306. Seamheads recorded a .275 average in fewer box scores. The Cleveland Call and Post had Kellman at .308 on August 23.

16 “Negro World Series to Start on Sept. 21: Cleveland to Meet Champs of Negro National League,” Kansas City Call, September 12, 1947: 7.

17 “Timely Hitting and Sterling Defensive Plays Brought Pennant to the Buckeyes,” Cleveland Call and Post, January 3, 1948: 10B.

18 “Negro League Box Scores: New York Black Yankees vs. Cleveland Buckeyes, September 21, 1947,” Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1947/B09210NY61947.htm.

19 “Negro American League 1948,” accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/NAL1948.pdf.

20 “Birmingham Takes Opener from Bucks,” Chicago Defender, May 8, 1948: 10.

21 “Three Buckeye Stars Picked by NAL Group,” New York Amsterdam News, August 14, 1948: 27.

22 Center for Negro League Baseball Research, “Rosters: Barnstorming Teams (1946-1988),” accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/Rosters%20-%20Barnstorming%20Teams%20(1946-1988).pdf.

23 “Winter League Ball Season Opens on Sunday.” (Los Angeles) California Eagle, October 7, 1948: 16.

24 “Negro League Box Scores: Kansas City Royals vs. Cleveland Buckeyes, November 7, 1948,” Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1948/B11071KCR1948.htm.

25 “The Demise of Negro League Baseball,” The Center for Negro League Baseball Research. Accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/Demise%20of%20the%20Negro%20Leagues.pdf.

26 https://darowski.com/outsider/rodrihe01.html.

27 “El Primer Serie de Caribe: Cuba 1949,” 1800 Beisbol, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.1800beisbol.com/baseball/deportes/serie_del_caribe/el_primer_serie_de_caribe_cuba_1949/.

28 Jorge S. Figueredo, Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History, 1878–1961 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2003), 313–317.

29 “Rickey Henderson: Man of Steal Starred in Mexico (1978-79) and Puerto Rico (1979-81),” Beisbol 101, accessed October 3, 2024. https://beisbol101.com/rickey-henderson-man-of-steal-starred-in-mexico-1978-79-and-puerto-rico-1979-81/.

30 “Cleveland Buckeyes,” Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, accessed October 3, 2024. https://case.edu/ech/articles/c/cleveland-buckeyes.

31 “1949 in the Negro Leagues,” Baseball Reference, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/1949_in_the_Negro_Leagues.

32 “Negro League Box Scores: Atlanta Black Crackers vs. Philadelphia Stars, August 14, 1949,” Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1949/B08140ASW1949.htm.

33 “From the Press Box,” Norfolk (Virginia) New Journal and Guide, August 13, 1949: D15.

34 “Confidentially Yours,” New York Age, October 9, 1948: 15.

35 “Negro League Box Scores: Kansas City Monarchs vs. Cleveland Buckeyes, October 1, 1949,” Retrosheet, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.retrosheet.org/NegroLeagues/boxesetc/1949/Bkelll1011949.htm.

36 Matilde T Kellman, Ancestry, accessed July 1, 2026. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/64145291?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a224d4630524176644369673665664e415a674341656431343744384a50532f56526631635a784b50797835343d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d.

37 Silvera interview.

38 “Lemon’s Stars Face Royals,” Los Angeles Daily News, October 15, 1949: 23.

39 “Home Runs Pace Lemon Victory, 9-3,” Los Angeles Times, October 17, 1949: 56.

40 “Lemon Stars Hand Royals 5-4 Beating,” Los Angeles Times, October 24, 1949: 62.

41 “Kellman Leads Hitters of Negro American Loop,” Cleveland Call and Post, June 10, 1950: 3D.

42 “Memphis Red Sox Cop 16 Straight; Eye Pennant,” Atlanta Daily World, July 18, 1950: 4.

43 “Pennington Grabs Lead in East-West Poll: Slugger Passes Hank Kimbro as Votes Pile In,” Chicago Defender, August 12, 1950: 18.

44 “Expect 35,000 Fans at East-West Diamond Tilt,” New York Amsterdam News, August 19, 1950: 23.

45 “Negro American League 1950,” Center for Negro League Baseball Research, accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/NAL1950.pdf.

46 “Rockets Edge Royals, 6-4,” Long Beach (California) Independent, October 15, 1950: 30.

47 “Lemon’s All-Stars Nip Paige’s Royals, 7-6,” Los Angeles Times, October 16, 1950: 64.

48 Jim Sargent, “Hector Lopez,” SABR Baseball Biography Project, accessed December 2, 2025, https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/hector-lopez/.

49 Figueredo, 348.

50 Pedro Treto Cisneros, The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics, 1937–2001 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2001), 173.

51 U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1, Ancestry, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/23243077?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a2258307138654863305a516346386f6439416b4d32684443486b6136467131516861756452723963453968593d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d.

52 Figueredo, 360.

53 “Negro American League 1952,” The Center for Negro League Baseball Research, accessed October 3, 2024. https://irp.cdn-website.com/33d0c3d0/files/uploaded/NAL1952.pdf.

54 “Team Statistics: Tigres del Licey,” Winter Ball Data, accessed October 3, 2024. https://stats.winterballdata.com/teams?year=2&phase=SR&team=TL.

55 “Player Statistics: Leon Kellman,” Winter Ball Data, accessed October 3, 2024. https://stats.winterballdata.com/players?key=2153.

56 “Clowns Defeat Barons to Win NAL Playoff, 7-5,” Chicago Defender, October 18, 1952: 18.

57 “Campanella’s Stars—Major Leaguers to Play Here Tonight,” Shreveport (Louisiana) Journal, October 29, 1952: 31.

58 “Campanella All-Stars Win, 8-5,” Shreveport (Louisiana) Times, October 30, 1952: 20.

59 Figueredo, 372–375.

60 “Negro American League Shrinks to Four Teams; Giants, Stars Are Out,” Kansas City Call, April 24, 1953: 11.

61 Cisneros, 173.

62 “Hace 67 años: Ramiro Cuevas llegaba a la perfección,” Tecolotes 2 Laredos. accessed October 3, 2024. https://tecolotes2laredos.com/hace-67-anos-ramiro-cuevas-llegaba-a-la-perfeccion/.

63 “LMB: El juego perfecto de Ramiro Cuevas,” Minor League Baseball, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.milb.com/news/lmb-el-juego-perfecto-de-ramiro-cuevas.

64 “Avila’s Rapping Keeps Aztecas in Fight for Top,” The Sporting News, November 18, 1953: 20.

65 “Blackwell to Open Against Hutchinson,” Oklahoma City Daily Oklahoman, April 22, 1954: 53.

66 “New Pitcher Obtained, Leon Kellman Released,” Blackwell (Oklahoma) Journal-Tribune, April 25, 1954: 12.

67 Cisneros, 173.

68 “Kellman Hits 2 Grand Slams in Mexican Tilt,” The Sporting News, May 19, 1954: 32.

69 Ancestry.

70 “Historia de Hermosillo: Beisbol en la Costa 1954-1955,” accessed October 3, 2024. https://historiadehermosillo.com/htdocs/BASEBALLCOSTA/costa/1954-1955/inicio.htm.

71 “Spur Boss Kellman Out with Injury as Club Starts Drills,” The Sporting News, November 24, 1954: 24.

72 Cisneros, 173.

73 Silvera interview.

74 “Spur Colas in Panama Sold, Renamed Cerveceria Balboa,” The Sporting News, October 31, 1956: 21.

75 Thomas E. Van Hyning, The Caribbean Series: Latin America’s Annual Baseball Tournament, 1949–2024 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2025), 63.

76 A.E. Villiers, “Willie Mays All-Stars Open Series in Panama October 25,” Atlanta Daily World, October 15, 1957: 5.

77 “14 Players on Mays’ All-Stars; No Aaron,” New York Amsterdam News, October 19, 1957: 24.

78 Cisneros, 173.

79 Totals include Kellman’s professional Panamanian League totals from 1945–46 through 1958–59. It is possible he made additional appearances after 1958–59. Additionally, Kellman batted .278 in five seasons with Jardín Tropical in the Liga Nacional (47-for-168). These data span from 1939–40 to 1944–45. No data are available for 1941–42.

80 “Nicaragua May Enter Club in Winter Race,” The Sporting News, December 20, 1969: 47.

81 “La Primera Serie Interamericana 1961,” 1800 Beisbol, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.1800beisbol.com/baseball/deportes/historia_del_beisbol/la_primera_serie_interamericana_1961/.

82 CNLBR

83 The original league ended after the 1971-72 season. A short-lived circuit existed for one season in 2001-02. A new league was established in 2011 and remains in operation as of 2026.

84 Silvera interview.

85 Florida, U.S., Naturalization Records, 1847-1995, Ancestry, accessed October 3, 2024. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/23748557?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a223966596754414d42676e44494a347549494969335674306c31474c594c652b6958305a3561624e467954553d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d.

86 Florida, U.S., Naturalization Records, 1847-1995. Ancestry. Accessed October 3, 2024.