One of the best-known teams in the old Negro Leagues, the Elite
Giants of Baltimore featured some of the outstanding African
American players of the day. Sociologist and baseball writer Bob
Luke narrates the untold story of the team and its interaction with
the city and its people during the long years of segregation.
To convey a sense of the action on the field and the major
events in the team's history, Luke highlights important games,
relives the standout performances of individual players, and
discusses key decisions made by management. He introduces the
team's eventual major league stars: Roy Campanella, who went on to
a ten-year Hall of Fame career with the Brooklyn Dodgers; Joe
Black, the first African American pitcher to win a World Series
game; and James "Junior" Gilliam, a player and coach with the
Dodgers for twenty-five years. Luke also describes the often
contentious relationship between the team and major league baseball
before, during, and after the major leagues were integrated.
The Elite Giants did more than provide entertainment for
Baltimore's black residents; the team and its star players broke
the color barrier in the major leagues, giving hope to an African
American community still oppressed by Jim Crow. In recounting the
history of the Elite Giants, Luke reveals how the team, its
personalities, and its fans raised public awareness of the larger
issues faced by blacks in segregation-era Baltimore.
Based on interviews with former players and Baltimore residents,
articles from the black press of the time, and archival documents,
and illustrated with previously unpublished photographs, "The
Baltimore Elite Giants" recounts a barrier-breaking team's
successes, failures, and eventual demise.
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