1930

By David Marasco

"The thing I want most of all is for the spirit of sportsmanship to be glorified by these young athletes. They are to participate in a baseball 'classic' and I want them to be worthy representatives of their group during every minute of every game. If everyone plays fair the better team will win, the fans will be satisfied and there will be no nasty aftermath of criticism from the jackals who glory in dishing the dirt" - W. Rollo Wilson

The event that had Wilson so excited in 1930 was the long-awaited showdown between the Homestead Grays and the Lincoln Giants. The two teams played out a series of ten games, and in the eyes of the public, the winner had the right to claim the title of "Negro Champions of the World." On top of the on-field activities, this series is of interest because it can be seen as a type of a watershed event. It matched the Lincoln Giants, a team dominant through the first three decades of the century, against the Homestead Grays, who would win many league titles in the 30's and 40's. It also had a collection of Negro baseball's old guard: Smokey Joe Williams, John Henry Lloyd and Oscar Charleston. Behind the plate for the Grays? A rookie catcher by the name of Josh Gibson.

The series opened on September the 20th in Forbes Field. While only 3000 people came to the double-header, the fact that they were there at all is impressive. This was the first Negro Championship Series to be held mainly in Major League ballparks. Prior to 1930 most games of the genre were held at the team's home fields or at neutral sites. Also significant is that the games were even staged at all. "World Series" were not held annually in the Negro Leagues. Even Major League teams had money problems in the Great Depression, and the Negro Leagues had it even worse. While a fan of black baseball might be able to scrape together enough entertainment money to see Satchel Paige the one time he came to town every year, to expect a fan to pay for 3 or 4 games over a ten day period just is not realistic. To get an idea of how tight money was, read the following bit from the Pittsburgh Courier; "Over seven dozen balls were used at the Stadium on Sunday. That crowd never allowed one to get back into play once it had been fouled into the stands." In other words, it was common operating procedure to recover fouled-off balls during normal league games.

The crowd at Forbes saw two that Saturday. The first game featured the Gray's Lefty Williams. Lefty, according to the press of the period, was 27-0 that year going into the Series. Williams shut down the bats of the Giants and won by the score of 9 to 1. Not many details remain of the second game. It went ten innings and the Grays' Oscar Owens won in relief 17-16. The impression is given that the umpiring in the second game was second-rate. Young Josh Gibson had a homer and a triple in these two games, and both are recounted as being "mighty wallops."

Upon completion of the double-header, both teams took a train to New York City. The hallowed grounds of Yankee Stadium would be the site of Sunday's twin-bill. The first match featured the pitching of Smokey Joe Williams and the Giants' Bill Holland. While both allowed but six hits a piece, the Giants got theirs in key situations and were able to take the contest by a final of 6-2. Old- timer John Henry Lloyd came through for Lincoln with a clutch triple to help his team's cause. The second game saw Britt for the Grays and Farrell for the Giants. The Grays drew first blood with a pair of runs in the second. It looked as if Britt would make these two runs stand, but in the 8th Lloyd and Brown singled. An error by Jake Stevens and a wild pitch tied up the score. The game was won in extra innings as the goat Stevens took a base on balls, swiped second, and then came home on an error by the pitcher. Britt finished off the game for a Grays victory. After the first weekend the Lincoln Giants were down in the series 3-1. However, John Henry Lloyd was quoted as being confident that the series would be even upon its return to Yankee Stadium the following weekend.

The series was then put on hold until the following Thursday. The details of what these teams did in the intervening three days have been lost to the sands of time. On the other hand, it is not too hard to guess what they were doing. Times were tough and baseball was a good way to earn money. As proof of that point, the Grays were scheduled to face a team of minor leaguers in Newark the night of the 28th. This would have been following the doubleheader played against the Lincoln Giants earlier that day. In any case, the teams split the games they played in Philadelphia. Both the Baltimore Afro-American and the Chicago Defender claim the two games consisted of a double-header held on Friday, but their report (they were the same, almost word for word) of the series have some serious flaws. The Pittsburgh Courier reports that Smokey Joe Williams won a game 11-3 on Thursday, but the Giants came back with a 6-4 win for Red Ryan. The two teams went back to Yankee Stadium with the series tipped 4-2 in Homestead's favor.

On Saturday the Grays looked like they were going to win the first game. They were on top of the Giants in the ninth by a score of 8-5, and their ace Lefty Williams was on the mound. Lefty lost his control and gave free passes to two men in a row. A double- play ball put a man on third, but reduced the Giants to their last out. However, Lefty unleashed walks to the next two men. Out went one Williams and in came another as Smokey Joe replaced Lefty. Smokey Joe's first pitch is one he must have wanted back; Julio Rojo stroked it into right field for a triple. Rojo was then batted in for the winning run. In the second game the Grays put 7 runs on the board in the first, punctuated by a long home run by Josh Gibson. Reports have it at either 430 or 460 feet, and it is claimed that it was the longest homer hit by any player in Yankee Stadium that year. The Grays would win by a score of 7-3 and with that win clinch at least a tie in the ten game series.

Sunday was Lincoln pitcher Bill Holland's day, hands down. He cruised through the first game, faltering only in the ninth when he gave up a pair of runs to spoil his shut out. John Henry Lloyd got three hits to support his pitcher and the Giants won by the score of 6-2 over Smokey Joe Williams. The Giants sent out Bill Holland to try to win the second game. An error in the the third allowed the Grays to push across a single run. In the fifth pitcher Britt put a ball into right and Chino Smith collided with Walter Cannady and was knocked cold. In the eighth Smith's replacement would allow both a two-base error and a three-base error for 4 runs. While the Giants would put two on the board in the eighth, it would not be enough. The came was called on account of darkness. The 1930 Homestead Grays took the series six games to four, and were titled Negro Champions of the World.

1930 would be the last year for the Lincoln Giants. They would later resurface as the New York Black Yankees. Some of the big stars showcased were nearing the ends of their careers. Smokey Joe Williams who had been playing since 1905 would last only two more years. He died in 1946 and despite being considered by many as the greatest pitcher every to play in the Negro Leagues, is on the outside looking in when it comes to enshrinement at Cooperstown. Lefty Williams, who started with the Grays in 1915, would last until 1934. John Henry Lloyd, who broke into baseball early enough to be considered as "the black Honus Wagner," played until 1932. He died in 1965, and was enshrined in 1977. Oscar Charleston, one of the greatest players to put on a uniform, played through 1941. He beat Lloyd into the Hall of Fame by one year. Sadly, Chino Smith was cut down down before the age of thirty by Yellow Fever. If he had been able to complete his career, he may have been in the inner circle of Negro Leagues greats. Josh Gibson, the other star of the series, was at the beginning of his career. But everyone knows how he turned out...