Pittsburgh Crawfords
Encyclopedia
The Pittsburgh Crawfords, popularly known as the Craws, were a professional Negro league baseball
team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
. Named after the Crawford Grill
, a club in the Hill District of Pittsburgh owned by Gus Greenlee
, the Crawfords were originally a youth semipro team sponsored by the Crawford Bath House and Recreation Center. Greenlee bought the team in 1931.
and the Eastern Colored League
, had fallen apart by late that year, Greenlee signed many of the top African-American stars, most notably Satchel Paige
. The next year, 1932, saw Greenlee hire Hall of Famer Oscar Charleston
as playing manager, and add Hall of Famers Josh Gibson
, Judy Johnson
, and Cool Papa Bell, along with other notable players, such as William Bell, Rap Dixon
, and Ted Radcliffe
. Playing as an independent club, the Crawfords immediately established themselves as perhaps the best black team in the United States.
The Crawfords played in the new Greenlee Field
, one of the few parks built and owned by a Negro league team. Paige and Gibson often unwound at the Crawford Grill, one of black Pittsburgh's favorite night spots, where the likes of Lena Horne
and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson entertained.
, with the Crawfords as charter members. The club narrowly lost the first-half title to the Chicago American Giants
; both teams claimed the second-half title, and Greenlee as league president awarded it to his Crawfords. The matter of the overall pennant was apparently never decided. The next season, as Gibson led the league with 16 home runs and Paige won 20 games, the Crawfords were near the top of the overall standings, but won neither half. Records of all games against league opponents, not just those considered official league games, show the Crawfords with far and away the best record for 1934.
In 1935 Paige skipped most of the NNL season to play for a semipro team in North Dakota. Despite his absence, the Crawfords finally lived up to their promise, taking the first-half title with a 26-6 record, then defeating the New York Cubans
in a close seven-game series for their only undisputed NNL pennant. In retrospect, many historians consider this edition of the Crawfords to be the greatest Negro league team of all time, featuring the four Hall of Famers, plus left-handed pitcher Leroy Matlock, who won 18 games without a defeat.
After a mediocre first half (16-15) in 1936, the Crawfords rallied to win the NNL's second half with a 20-9 record. Paige had returned, and contributed an 11-3 record. The playoff with the first-half winners, the Washington Elite Giants, apparently only lasted one game (the Elite Giants winning, 2 to 0) before it was called off for unknown reasons. Greenlee awarded the pennant to the Crawfords, over Washington's protests.
to play for the dictator Rafael Trujillo's team. The Crawfords plunged to fifth place out of six teams with a 12-16 record. They partly recovered the next season, finishing third with a 24-16 record, but, with the exception of the 41-year-old Charleston, whose playing career was nearly over, the heart of the old Crawfords' team—Paige, Gibson, Bell—had all moved on to other teams.
and Pittsburgh Pirates
honored the Negro leagues by wearing uniforms of the Jacksonville Red Caps
and the Crawfords, respectively, in an interleague
game. The Pirates won the game, 4-3 in 13 innings.
On July 5, 2008 during the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Brewers wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the Milwaukee Bears
.
On June 12, 2010, in Detroit, during an interleague
game between the Pittsburgh Pirates
and the Detroit Tigers
, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Tigers wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the Detroit Stars
.
On August 21, 2010 during the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the New York Mets, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Mets wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the New York Cubans
.
Negro league baseball
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams predominantly made up of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in...
team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
. Named after the Crawford Grill
Crawford Grill
Crawford Grill was a renowned jazz club in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA's Hill District. Its heyday was the 1930s to 1950s.The club was founded by Gus Greenlee, who first made his reputation as a numbers runner and racketeer, then later as the owner of the Negro League baseball team the Pittsburgh...
, a club in the Hill District of Pittsburgh owned by Gus Greenlee
Gus Greenlee
William Augustus "Gus" Greenlee was a Negro League baseball owner and an African American businessman....
, the Crawfords were originally a youth semipro team sponsored by the Crawford Bath House and Recreation Center. Greenlee bought the team in 1931.
History
Stepping into an organizational vacuum, as the major African American leagues of the 1920s, the Negro National LeagueNegro National League (the first)
The Negro National League was one of the several Negro leagues which were established during the period in the United States in which organized baseball was segregated. Led by Rube Foster, owner and manager of the Chicago American Giants, the NNL was established on February 13, 1920 by a...
and the Eastern Colored League
Eastern Colored League
The Mutual Association of Eastern Colored Clubs, more commonly known as the Eastern Colored League , was one of the several Negro leagues, which operated during the time organized baseball was segregated.- History :...
, had fallen apart by late that year, Greenlee signed many of the top African-American stars, most notably Satchel Paige
Satchel Paige
Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige was an American baseball player whose pitching in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball made him a legend in his own lifetime...
. The next year, 1932, saw Greenlee hire Hall of Famer Oscar Charleston
Oscar Charleston
Oscar McKinley Charleston was an American center fielder and manager in baseball's Negro leagues from to ....
as playing manager, and add Hall of Famers Josh Gibson
Josh Gibson
Joshua Gibson was an American catcher in baseball's Negro leagues. He played for the Homestead Grays from 1930 to 1931, moved to the Pittsburgh Crawfords from 1932 to 1936, and returned to the Grays from 1937 to 1939 and 1942 to 1946...
, Judy Johnson
Judy Johnson
William Julius "Judy" Johnson was an American third baseman in Negro league baseball.Johnson was born in Snow Hill, Maryland. Although his father wanted him to be a boxer, Johnson, who was 5 ft 11 in and only 150 lb , was far better suited for a career in baseball...
, and Cool Papa Bell, along with other notable players, such as William Bell, Rap Dixon
Rap Dixon
Herbert Allen "Rap" Dixon was an American outfielder in Negro League baseball for a number of teams. He was born in Kingston, Georgia....
, and Ted Radcliffe
Ted Radcliffe
Theodore Roosevelt "Double Duty" Radcliffe was at his death thought to be the oldest living professional baseball player , one of only a handful of major league players who lived past their 100th birthdays, and a former star in the...
. Playing as an independent club, the Crawfords immediately established themselves as perhaps the best black team in the United States.
The Crawfords played in the new Greenlee Field
Greenlee Field
Greenlee Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, was the first black-built and black-owned major league baseball field in the United States.The field was the dream of Gus Greenlee, owner of the Pittsburgh Crawfords. In 1931, construction started on Bedford Avenue between Chauncy and Duff in...
, one of the few parks built and owned by a Negro league team. Paige and Gibson often unwound at the Crawford Grill, one of black Pittsburgh's favorite night spots, where the likes of Lena Horne
Lena Horne
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was an American singer, actress, civil rights activist and dancer.Horne joined the chorus of the Cotton Club at the age of sixteen and became a nightclub performer before moving to Hollywood, where she had small parts in numerous movies, and more substantial parts in the...
and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson entertained.
League play
In 1933, Greenlee founded a new Negro National LeagueNegro National League (the second)
The second Negro National League was one of the several Negro leagues which were created during the time organized baseball was segregated. It established in 1933, two years after the first Negro National League had disbanded...
, with the Crawfords as charter members. The club narrowly lost the first-half title to the Chicago American Giants
Chicago American Giants
Chicago American Giants were a Chicago-based Negro league baseball team, owned and managed from 1911 to 1926 by player-manager Andrew "Rube" Foster. From 1910 until the mid-1930s, the American Giants were the most dominant team in black baseball...
; both teams claimed the second-half title, and Greenlee as league president awarded it to his Crawfords. The matter of the overall pennant was apparently never decided. The next season, as Gibson led the league with 16 home runs and Paige won 20 games, the Crawfords were near the top of the overall standings, but won neither half. Records of all games against league opponents, not just those considered official league games, show the Crawfords with far and away the best record for 1934.
In 1935 Paige skipped most of the NNL season to play for a semipro team in North Dakota. Despite his absence, the Crawfords finally lived up to their promise, taking the first-half title with a 26-6 record, then defeating the New York Cubans
New York Cubans
The New York Cubans were a Negro league baseball team that played during the 1930s and from 1939 to 1950. Despite playing in the Negro leagues, the team occasionally employed white-skinned Hispanic baseball players as well, because Hispanics in general were largely ignored by the major league...
in a close seven-game series for their only undisputed NNL pennant. In retrospect, many historians consider this edition of the Crawfords to be the greatest Negro league team of all time, featuring the four Hall of Famers, plus left-handed pitcher Leroy Matlock, who won 18 games without a defeat.
After a mediocre first half (16-15) in 1936, the Crawfords rallied to win the NNL's second half with a 20-9 record. Paige had returned, and contributed an 11-3 record. The playoff with the first-half winners, the Washington Elite Giants, apparently only lasted one game (the Elite Giants winning, 2 to 0) before it was called off for unknown reasons. Greenlee awarded the pennant to the Crawfords, over Washington's protests.
Player defections
In 1937, Paige led several Crawfords players, including Gibson and Bell, to the Dominican RepublicDominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
to play for the dictator Rafael Trujillo's team. The Crawfords plunged to fifth place out of six teams with a 12-16 record. They partly recovered the next season, finishing third with a 24-16 record, but, with the exception of the 41-year-old Charleston, whose playing career was nearly over, the heart of the old Crawfords' team—Paige, Gibson, Bell—had all moved on to other teams.
Demise
The Craws might have survived these losses, but their attendance flatlined after the white members of the team's board forced Greenlee to shut out blacks from jobs at Greenlee Field (ushers, ticket-takers, etc.). Greenlee sold the club, Greenlee Field was demolished, and the Crawfords moved to Toledo for the 1939 season before folding.MLB throwback jerseys
On June 28, 2008, in Pittsburgh, the Tampa Bay RaysTampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays are a member of the Eastern Division of MLB's American League. Since their inception in , the club has played at Tropicana Field...
and Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
honored the Negro leagues by wearing uniforms of the Jacksonville Red Caps
Jacksonville Red Caps
The Jacksonville Red Caps were a team in Negro League Baseball in 1938 and 1941-1942, playing in Jacksonville, Florida at J. P. Small Memorial Stadium in the Negro American League. They moved to Cleveland in 1939 and became the Cleveland Bears. They returned to Jacksonville in 1941 for two seasons...
and the Crawfords, respectively, in an interleague
Interleague play
Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season...
game. The Pirates won the game, 4-3 in 13 innings.
On July 5, 2008 during the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Brewers wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the Milwaukee Bears
Milwaukee Bears
The Milwaukee Bears were a Negro National League team that operated during the 1923 season, its only season in the league, representing Milwaukee, Wisconsin....
.
On June 12, 2010, in Detroit, during an interleague
Interleague play
Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues, introduced in . Before the 1997 season, teams in the American League and National League did not meet during the regular season...
game between the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
and the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Tigers wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the Detroit Stars
Detroit Stars
The Detroit Stars were a United States baseball team in the Negro leagues and played at historic Mack Park.- Founding :Founded in 1919 by Tenny Blount with the help of Rube Foster, owner and manager of the Chicago American Giants, the Detroit Stars immediately established themselves as one of the...
.
On August 21, 2010 during the Pittsburgh Pirates game against the New York Mets, the Pirates wore Pittsburgh Crawford uniforms while the Mets wore the respective Negro league uniforms of the New York Cubans
New York Cubans
The New York Cubans were a Negro league baseball team that played during the 1930s and from 1939 to 1950. Despite playing in the Negro leagues, the team occasionally employed white-skinned Hispanic baseball players as well, because Hispanics in general were largely ignored by the major league...
.