Cuban & Negro League Baseball Pick-Ups

[autocentral]

^Wow Kenny. Definitely a focus of yours. That is one of the most impressive collections I have seen.

-Nick

[Kenny Cole]

Nick,

Sort of the blind squirrel thing. I was a huge baseball fan forever, sort of wandered into the great books about the Negro Leagues, started figuring out that there were actually cards of some of them out there and made GREAT friends with others like Ryan Christoff and Matt Goebel, both of whom I cannot tell you how much I respect and admire. Jump in to this fun and be welcome!!! Best,

Kenny

[autocentral]

Originally Posted by Kenny Cole

Nick,

Sort of the blind squirrel thing. I was a huge baseball fan forever, sort of wandered into the great books about the Negro Leagues, started figuring out that there were actually cards of some of them out there and made GREAT friends with others like Ryan Christoff and Matt Goebel, both of whom I cannot tell you how much I respect and admire. Jump in to this fun and be welcome!!! Best,

Kenny

Awesome, I just started discovering all the cards of these players and it has been amazing so far. I've read about four books for far on the Negro Leagues and two on Cuban baseball.

Thanks for sharing Kenny,
-Nick

[Kenny Cole]

Nick,

The cards, and the history they represent in general, are awesome. I love the Old Judges, the T206s, the '33 Goudeys and whatnot. I'm a big HOF collector. But IMO there is nothing like getting a new card of a guy who couldn't play here because of race issues and who you maybe didn't know much about until you got it and looked into what he did. That's pretty special.

The history of baseball is always fun, and the history of the other leagues is really interesting IMO. If you enjoy your time here 1/4 as much as I have enjoyed mine you will be really rewarded. There are great people on this forum and lots of knowledge. Soak it up and be happy to be the sponge. Best,

Kenny

[Comiskey]

I love baseball history too and would like to read about the Cuban and negro leagues. What books do you guys recommend?

Jeff

[Kenny Cole]

Only the Ball was White is the starting point IMO. There are a bunch of books that follow, most of which are good. They are obviously written from viewpoints that the authors have a stake in, so sift the information. James Riley wrote the Negro Leagues Encyclopedia about 20 years ago, and it has a wealth of information. I blew off literally a week of paid for golf games, which I used to never do, to read it cover to cover. I could simply not put it down. That probably makes me a massive nerd but I suppose I will have to live with that.

Cuban baseball-wise, "Smoke" by Mark Rucker et al. is an awesome book. I feigned illness and stayed home for two days simply to finish it. Insofar as Cuban baseball goes, "The Pride of Havana" is also pretty damn good. I would start with those and they will take you where you need to go. Best,

Kenny

[autocentral]

Originally Posted by Comiskey

I love baseball history too and would like to read about the Cuban and negro leagues. What books do you guys recommend?

Jeff

All those books Kenny recommended are great.

One of the books I'd recommend is The Soul of Baseball. It is the story of Buck O'Neil told in a very interesting and different way. It is really a short read and I read it in under 30 minutes because it was just that good.

Nick

[triwak]

I always enjoy these threads. (And seeing "the other" Kenny's wonderful cards, haha)! Here are my Negro League HOFers:

Found this Jimmy Claxton related item; a July 4, 1941 Toppenish Community Celebration pinback. Claxton pitched for the Fife Tigers v. Yakima Indians during a triple-header between six teams in Toppenish. At 48, Claxton pitched Fife to a 4 to 1 victory, with 7 strikeouts. Always nice to find anything related to this ballplayer.

[midmo]

Here's my only example. I picked this up at the Baltimore National a couple years ago. 1946-47 Caramelo Deportivo Don Newcombe.

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