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Black History Month Trivia, Part Four!

As our month-long tribute to Baseball and Black History Month comes to an end, here’s Part Four of Vince Jankoski’s trivia quiz. We thank Vince for the great job he did in putting this together. Vince gave us 29 questions, one for every day of the month.

For the featured photo today, I chose the wonderful photo of the Pittsburgh Crawfords in front of their team bus. The Crawfords were one of the best teams in the history of the Negro Leagues. I wrote an essay about them a few years ago. You can check it out by clicking on this link. The Pittsburgh Crawfords were named after the Crawford Grill, a club in the Hill District of Pittsburgh owned by Gus Greenlee. Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson often hung out there and it became one of black Pittsburgh’s favorite night spots. Black stars like Lena Horne and Bill “Bojangles” Robinson were some of the top-notch entertainers that the club regularly featured.

So take a glance at Vince’s trivia questions and see how many correct answers you can come up with before looking at the answers below. By the way, since today is “Leap Day,” February 29, Vince’s even gives us a bonus question!

Vince Jankoski’s Black History Month Trivia, Part Four

          1. Who was the first African-American to lead the American League in stolen bases

          2. February 23:  Who was the first African-American switch hitter in MLB?

          3. February 24:  Who was the first African-American to throw a no-hitter in MLB?

          4. February 25:  Roy Campanella was the first African-American to catch in a World Series game.  Who was the second

          5. February 26:  Elston Howard was the first African-American to catch in a World Series game for an American League team.  Who was the second?

          6. February 27:  Who was the first African-American pitcher to win a World Series game for the Yankees?

          7. February 28:  Bob Gibson (1964) was the first African-American World Series MVP.  Frank Robinson (1966) was the first African-American World Series MVP in the AL.  Who was the first African-American non-pitcher to win the World Series MVP for an NL team?

          8. February 29 (leap year bonus question):  Who was the first African-American to umpire an MLB game?

Answers

          1.  Tommy Harper of the Seattle Pilots in 1969.  He had 73 thefts.  Note that Minnie Minoso (1951-53) and Bert Campaneris (1965-68) were of African descent and led the American League in steals prior to Harper – and in Campaneris’ case after Harper, but both were Cubans.

          2.  Sam Jethroe became the first African American switch hitter in MLB on April 18, 1950, as a member of the Boston Braves.  He was rookie of the year that season.     

          3.  Sam “Toothpick” Jones.  Jones pitched his gem for the Cubs against the Pirates on May 12, 1955, winning 4-0.  He walked the bases loaded in the 9^th inning before striking out Dick Groat, Roberto Clemente, and Frank Thomas in succession to end the game. 

          4. Answer:  John Roseboro.  By 1959 Roseboro was the Dodgers’ regular catcher.  He went 2 for 21 in the Series as the Dodgers beat the White Sox in 6 games.

          5. Earl Battey. As a member of the 1965 Minnesota Twins. Battey caught all seven games but was only 3 for 25.  The Twins lost the Series to the Dodgers.  Battey was also a member of the pennant-winning 1959 Chicago White Sox but did not play in the Series.

          6.  This is a trick question.  The answer is no one.  Orlando Hernandez, Ramiro Mendoza and Mariano Rivera (all pitchers of African descent) won World Series games for the Yanks, but none was African-American.  Hernandez is a Cuban.  Mendoza and Rivera are Panamanian.      

          7.  Donn Clendenon of the 1969 New York Mets.  Clendenon was acquired by the Mets in June of 1969.  A right-handed batter, he was platooned at 1^st base with Ed Kranepool.  As a result, he did not appear in the NLCS against the Atlanta Braves right-handed starting pitchers.  However, in the Series against the Orioles, Clendenon feasted on Baltimore’s left-handers Mike Cuellar and Dave McNally.  He hit .357 with 3 home runs in 4 games.  The Miracle Mets won the Series in 5 games. 

          8.  On April 11, 1966, Emmett Ashford umped a game in Washington between the Senators and the Indians.  Cleveland won 5-2.   

Gary Livacari 

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