September 30, 1948: Willie Mays leads Black Barons to postseason victory

The 1948 Negro League World Series was both an ending and a beginning. It was the last Negro League World Series. With the precipitous demise of the Negro Leagues following the desegregation of the National and American Leagues, the prominence and structure of the Negro Leagues were already in decline. However, this Series was also an important beginning. It was the first event of national prominence for a 17-year-old Birmingham Black Barons center fielder and superstar in the making, Willie Mays. Game Three provided glimpses of the greatness that Mays would display on baseball diamonds for more than the next two decades.

Two of the great teams in the history of the Negro Leagues, the Homestead Grays and the Birmingham Black Barons, faced off in the 1948 Series. The talent in the Negro Leagues had begun to thin as players left for the formerly all-White major and minor leagues, although the rosters of the Black Barons and Grays had not yet been directly affected. The Black Barons featured stars Lorenzo “Piper” Davis, Artie Wilson, Lloyd “Pepper” Bassett, and their youngest player, Willie Mays. The Homestead Grays were a strong veteran team, with power hitters Buck Leonard, Luke Easter, and Bob Thurman, along with veteran Sam Bankhead, making for a formidable lineup.

The Negro League World Series was played before the major-league World Series began. the press coverage of the Negro League games was somewhat overshadowed by the other World Series, which featured the Cleveland Indians, starring former Negro Leaguers Larry Doby and Satchel Paige, and the Boston Braves. The African American press, including the Pittsburgh Courier, Chicago Defender, and the Afro American of Baltimore, did provide coverage and game stories for the Negro League World Series, but failed to provide box scores, let alone pay much attention to the games. For example, the October 9 issue of the Afro American featured a preview authored by Sam Lacy of the Cleveland-Boston World Series on the front page.1

Additionally, many sportswriters were filing stories about the performances of Brooklyn Dodgers stars Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella, as well as Don Newcombe, who was pitching in the Dodgers’ minor-league system. In fact, the October 9 Afro American featured pictures of Newcombe, Sam Jethroe, and Dan Bankhead in anticipation of the “Little World Series” between the Montreal Royals and the St. Paul Saints, both minor-league affiliates of the Dodgers.2 Meanwhile, the story for Game Four of the Negro League World Series was relegated to a brief description of the game, and lacked even a line score.

The Homestead Grays won the first game of the Series, 3-2, and the second, 5-3. The only known box score is for Game One. It lists Mays as batting third and playing center field. Mays went 0-for-3 at the plate in that game. He did reach base in the eighth inning on a fielder’s choice, and scored on Piper Davis’s triple. Mays is not mentioned in the Game Two accounts.3

Game Three was played on Thursday night, September 30, at the Black Barons home ballpark, Rickwood Field, in Birmingham, Alabama. Tom Parker started the game for the Grays against Alonzo Perry of the Black Barons. It was in this game that Mays showed glimpses of his future greatness on both offense and defense. He made three plays that became etched in the memories of players and fans present for the game.

The Black Barons took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third. In the fourth, Grays slugger Luke Easter slugged a home run to tie the game. Next up was power-hitting Bob Thurman, who drove a ball deep to center field for what appeared to be a sure double. Mays, however, got a great jump on the ball and made the catch against the center-field fence.4

In the bottom of the fourth, Grays pitcher Parker pulled a muscle and was relieved by R.T. Walker. In the top of the sixth, Mays made another defensive gem. With Buck Leonard on first base, the next batter singled to center field. Leonard tried advancing to third base on the young center fielder. However, Mays was quick to field the ball and fired a bullet to third, cutting down Leonard.5

Walker pitched well for the Grays until he gave up two runs in the sixth, giving the Black Barons a 3-1 lead. Ted Alexander relieved Walker in the seventh. Meanwhile, Alonzo Perry put up a strong performance pitching for the Black Barons until he gave up two runs in the eighth inning before being relieved by Bill Greason.

Greason held the Grays in the top of the ninth. In the bottom half, Jim Zapp grounded out to lead off the inning and Greason followed with a single. Artie Wilson flied out, but third baseman John Britton followed with a walk. This brought up Mays, who had already demonstrated his defensive prowess twice in the game. With two out and two on, and a chance to win the game, he now had a chance to shine on offense. He promptly drove a ball up the middle, reportedly through the pitcher’s legs, to score Greason with the game-winning run.6

Game Three proved to be the only win for the Black Barons. The Grays dominated Game Four and won 14-1. Game Five was a slugfest, with the Grays prevailing in 10 innings, 10-6, and winning the Series four games to one. Newspaper accounts for the final two games do not mention Willie Mays.7 After making his mark on Game Three, Mays returned to the Black Barons for the 1949 and 1950 seasons and then signed with the New York Giants.

SOURCES

Portions of this article were taken from Richard J. Puerzer, “The 1948 Negro League World Series,” in Frederick C. Bush and Bill Nowlin, eds., Bittersweet Goodbye: The Black Barons, The Grays, and the 1948 Negro League World Series (Phoenix: Society for American Baseball Research, 2017), 386-390.

NOTES

1  Sam Lacy, “AFRO Picks Indians to Win in 7 Games,” Baltimore Afro American, October 9, 1948: 1.

2  “They’ll Play in ‘Little World Series,’” Baltimore Afro-American, October 9, 1948: 8.

3  For Game One, the following references were used: “Grays Score Win in World Series,” Baltimore Afro American, October 2, 1948: 9, and “National League Champions Clinch Game In Second With 3-Run Rally,” Kansas City Call, October 1, 1948: n.p. For Game Two, the following references were used: “Grays Shade Black Barons by 5-3 Score,” Birmingham Age-Herald, September 30, 1948: n.p., and “Black Barons Seek Initial Win Tonight,” Birmingham News, September 30, 1948: n.p.

4  John Klima, Willie’s Boys (Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons, 2009), 181-182.

5  Buck Leonard with Jim Riley, Buck Leonard: The Black Lou Gehrig (New York: Carroll and Graf, 1995), 201-202.

6  For Game Three, the following newspaper references were used: “Black Barons Nip Grays, 4-3, for First Series Win,” Birmingham Age-Herald, October 1, 1948: n.p., and “Black Barons Nip Grays, 4-3,” Birmingham News, October 1, 1948: n.p.

7  For Game Four, the following references were used: “Black Barons, Grays Tangle In N.O. Today,” Birmingham News, October 3, 1948: n.p.; “Grays Hold 3-1 Lead in Series,” Baltimore Afro American, October 9, 1948: 8; “Grays Rout Birmingham in Series,” Pittsburgh Courier, October 9, 1948: 12; and “Homestead Grays Swamp Black Barons, 14-1,” Chicago Defender, October 9, 1948: 10. For Game Five, the following references were used: “Black Barons Take On Grays,” Birmingham News, October 5, 1948: n.p.; “Grays Nip Black Barons, Win Series,” Birmingham Age-Herald, October 6, 1948: n.p.; “Grays Blast Black Barons,” Birmingham News, October 6, 1948: n.p.; and “Grays Win, 10-6 in World Series,” Afro American, October 16, 1948: 8.