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Teams of the
Negro Leagues

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A Brief History: Negro Leagues Baseball

African-Americans began to engage in the game of baseball in the mid to late 1800s. They played on military teams, college teams, and company teams. They eventually found their way to professional teams with white players. Moses Fleetwood Walker and Bud Fowler were among the first to participate. However, racism and “Jim Crow” laws would force them from these teams by 1900. Thus, black players formed their own units, “barnstorming” around the country to play anyone who would challenge them.

In 1920, an organized league structure was formed under the guidance of Andrew “Rube” Foster, a former player, manager, and owner for the Chicago American Giants. In a meeting held at the Paseo YMCA in Kansas City, Mo., Foster and a few other Midwestern team owners joined to form the Negro National League. Soon, rival leagues formed in Eastern and Southern states, bringing the thrills and innovative play of black baseball to major urban centers and rural country sides in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America. The Leagues maintained a high level of professional skill and became centerpieces for economic development in many black communities.

The Original Eight

black and white image of the 1920 detroit stars baseball team

Detroit Stars

Organized in 1919, the franchise fielded a team of outstanding players that defeated Rube Foster’s Chicago American Giants

Black and white historical photo of a baseball team. Players are posing in two rows, wearing uniforms labeled Cuban Giants. The front row holds gloves. The background features empty wooden bleachers.

Cuban X-Giants

Comprised of defecting Cuban Giants, the Cuban X-Giants became the dominant team during the late 1890s and early 1900s.

A vintage black and white photo of a baseball team with eleven players. Six players are standing in the back row wearing uniforms with ABC and Atlanta visible. Five players are kneeling in the front row. Trees and buildings are in the background.

Indianapolis ABC’s

After losing a hard fought championship series to Foster’s Chicago American Giants in 1915, the ABCs overcame a division within the management between Bowser and Taylor to defeat the Chicago American Giants for the western championship in 1916.