One year prior to Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier, depicted below — here on the eve of tonight’s MLB All-Star Game — are a team of men never given the chance to shine under the brightest of lights, on the best diamonds, using the best equipment, on a level playing field: presenting, your 1946 Negro League All-Star Team. Seen here (outisde Satchel Paige’s “Flying Tiger Transport”) are some of the greatest players no doubt many of us have never even heard of, and that’s the real shame. 

 1946 All-Stars aboard Paige’s “Flying Tiger Transport”

For identification purposes - Satchel Paige’s 1946 All-star team: Paige (in doorway), and Negro League greats Hilton Smith, Sam Jethroe, Hank Thompson, Buck O’Neil, Howard Easterling, Barney Brown, Gentry Jessup, Hank Thompson, Max Manning, Dizzy Dismukes, Rufus Lewis, Gene Benson, Frank Duncan, Artie Wilson and Quincy Trouppe.

Never forget, people, never forget. And they talk about putting an asterisk next to Barry Bonds’ exploits? Prior to the breaking of the color barrier, could you really even refer to games before then as Major League?

Enjoy the game everyone . . .

- The Heckler

Photo used with permission of Early Era Baseball Photos.com

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 10th, 2007 at 1:58 pm and is filed under Baseball History, MLB photos, Waxing Nostalgic, Baseball. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.