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Old 01-07-2023, 05:27 PM
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I'm reading a book on the California Winter League, which is a somewhat integrated league that played in Cali in the prewar era. NL greats came here and played against a lot of MLB players wintering here as well as a lot of PCL players. The 1921-22 black team was headed by Oscar Charleston and included a bunch of legendary players, including Biz Mackey and Dobie Moore. They played in Los Angeles in a 4000 seat park against 10 white teams and regularly beat the teams staffed with MLB and PCL players. Charleston hit .405 and Mackey hit .382 against white opposition.

My point being that when they got the chance to go head to head, they could play just as well as the white guys. I have no doubt that the best black players would have been just as successful in MLB as the guys were who got into MLB after 1947.
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