Johnson: Chronicles and stories from Negro League ballparks
From SABR member Kevin Johnson at Seamheads.com on February 7, 2019:
Soon a new version of the classic ballpark book “Green Cathedrals” will be issued by SABR (Society for American Baseball Research). After having researched over 400 specific Blackball parks for the updated book, here are a few interesting ballpark facts I discovered.
Philadelphia Mysteries
Pencoyd Park was the home of the 1928 Philadelphia Tigers of the Eastern Colored League. The Tigers had been an independent team for a few years. In 1928, the Eastern Colored League was in turmoil, with teams deciding to pull out of the league, and others threatening to do so. When the Hilldale Club decided against continuing in the league, joining the Brooklyn Royal Giants and Harrisburg Giants as independent operators, the Philadelphia Tigers were invited as a replacement team, and accepted. Unfortunately, by June the Lincoln Giants and Cuban Stars (of Havana) had left the league, effectively killing the ECL. The Tigers were only able to play a few league games in their home park, so not much information was ever available in newspapers about the park and its location.
Read the full article here: http://seamheads.com/blog/2019/02/07/the-ballpark-chronicles/
Originally published: February 7, 2019. Last Updated: February 7, 2019.