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{{short description|American baseball player (1911–1947)}}
[[Image:Gibsonj.jpg||thumb|Josh Gibson]] '''Joshua Gibson''' ([[December 21]], [[1911]] in [[Buena Vista, Georgia]] - [[January 20]], [[1947]]) 6-foot-1, 215-pounder was an [[catcher]] for the [[Homestead Grays]] and later the [[Pittsburgh Crawfords]] in [[baseball]]'s [[Negro League baseball|Negro Leagues]].
{{for multi|his son, the baseball infielder|Josh Gibson Jr.|the Australian rules footballer|Josh Gibson (footballer)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox baseball biography
| name = Josh Gibson
| image = Josh Gibson 1931c.jpg
| image_size = 242px
| caption = Gibson with the Homestead Grays in 1931
| position = [[Catcher]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1911|12|21|mf=y}}
| birth_place = [[Buena Vista, Georgia]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|1947|1|20|1911|12|21|mf=y}}
| death_place = [[Pittsburgh|Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| bats = Right
| throws = Right
| debutleague = Negro leagues
| debutdate = July 31
| debutyear = 1930
| debutteam = Homestead Grays
| finalleague = Negro leagues
| finaldate =
| finalyear = 1946
| finalteam = Homestead Grays
| statyear =
| statleague = Negro leagues
| stat1label = [[Batting average (baseball)|Batting average]]
| stat1value = .372
| stat2label = [[Hit (baseball)|Hits]]
| stat2value = 838
| stat3label = [[Home run]]s
| stat3value = 174
| stat4label = [[Run batted in|Runs batted in]]
| stat4value = 751
| teams =
* [[Memphis Red Sox]] ({{Baseball year|1930}})
* [[Homestead Grays]] ({{Baseball year|1930}}–{{Baseball year|1931}})
* [[Pittsburgh Crawfords]] ({{Baseball year|1932}}–{{Baseball year|1936}})
* [[Homestead Grays]] ({{Baseball year|1937}}–{{Baseball year|1940}}, {{Baseball year|1942}}–{{Baseball year|1946}})
| highlights =
* 12× [[East-West All-Star Game|All-Star]] (1933–1936, 1939, 1942–1944, 1946)
* 2× [[Negro World Series]] champion ([[1943 Negro World Series|1943]], [[1944 Negro World Series|1944]])
* 3× [[List of Major League Baseball batting champions#Negro leagues|Negro National League batting champion]] (1936, 1937, 1939)
* 2× [[Triple Crown (baseball)#Negro league baseball|Triple Crown]] (1936, 1937)
* [[Washington Nationals#Ring of Honor|Washington Nationals Ring of Honor]]
*[[Pittsburgh Pirates#Pirates Hall of Fame|Pirates Hall of Fame]]
'''MLB records'''
* .372 career [[Batting average (baseball)|batting average]]
* .718 career [[slugging percentage]]
* 1.177 career [[On-base plus slugging|OPS]]
* .466 single season batting average (1943)
* .974 single season slugging percentage (1937)
* 1.474 single season OPS (1937)
| hoflink = National Baseball Hall of Fame
| hoftype = National
| hofdate = [[1972 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting|1972]]
| hofmethod = Negro Leagues Committee
}}


'''Joshua Gibson''' (December 21, 1911 – January 20, 1947) was an American [[baseball]] [[catcher]] primarily in the [[Negro leagues]]. In 1972, he became the second Negro league player to be inducted in the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|National Baseball Hall of Fame]].<ref>National Baseball Hall of Fame, Josh Gibson {{cite web| url = http://baseballhall.org/hof/gibson-josh| title = Gibson, Josh {{!}} Baseball Hall of Fame}} Retrieved April 16, 2015</ref>
Josh Gibson is widely considered among the very best power hitters in baseball history, but never played in [[Major League Baseball]] as [[racial segregation]] excluded [[African-American]]s during his lifetime. He is a member of the [[Baseball Hall of Fame]], elected in [[1972 in sports|1972]].


Gibson 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. In 1937, he played for [[Santo Domingo|Ciudad Trujillo]] in [[Rafael Trujillo|Trujillo]]'s [[Dominican Winter Baseball League|Dominican League]] and from 1940 to 1941, he played in the [[Liga Mexicana de Beisbol|Mexican League]] for [[Azules de Veracruz]]. Gibson served as the first manager of the [[Cangrejeros de Santurce (baseball)|Cangrejeros de Santurce]], one of the most historic franchises of the [[Puerto Rico Baseball League]].
He has been credited with as many as 84 homers in one season. His [[Baseball Hall of Fame]] plaque says he hit "almost 800" homers in his 17-year career. His lifetime batting average was higher than .350, with other sources putting it as high as .384, the best in Negro League history. It was reported that he won nine home-run titles and four batting championships playing for the Crawfords and the [[Homestead Grays]]. In two seasons in the late 1930s, it was written that not only did he hit higher than .400, but his slugging percentage was above 1.000. [http://www.sportingnews.com/ The Sporting News] of June 3, 1967 credits Gibson with a home run in a Negro League game at [[Yankee Stadium]] that struck two feet from the top of the wall circling the center field bleachers, about 580 feet from home plate. Although it has never been conclusively proven, [[Chicago American Giants]] infielder Jack Marshall said Gibson slugged one over the third deck next to the left field bullpen in 1934 for the only fair ball hit out of the House That Ruth Built.


Gibson was known as a spectacular power hitter who, by some accounts, hit close to 800 career [[home run]]s. (In the Negro League statistical records, his career home run total was 166<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/gibsojo99.shtml | title=Josh Gibson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More }}</ref> and [[MLB.com]] recognizes 174.)<ref name="2024rev">{{Cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/05/29/g-s1-1525/mlb-negro-leagues-stats-josh-gibson |title=The Negro Leagues are officially part of MLB history—with the records to prove it and most career |first=Rachel |last=Treisman |date=May 29, 2024 |accessdate=May 29, 2024 |publisher=[[NPR]] |department=Sports}}</ref> He was known as the "black [[Babe Ruth]]";<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | title=Josh Gibson | encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica Online | date=January 16, 2024 | url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9036761/Josh-Gibson#245123.hook}}</ref> in fact, some fans at the time who saw both Ruth and Gibson play called Ruth "the white Josh Gibson".<ref>Brashler, William (1978) Josh Gibson: A Life in the Negro Leagues. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee. {{ISBN|1-56663-295-1}}</ref> Gibson never played in the [[American League]] or the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] because of the [[unwritten rules of baseball|unwritten]] "[[Baseball color line|gentleman's agreement]]" that prevented non-white players from participating. He stood {{Height|ft=6|in=1}} and weighed {{Convert|210|lb|kg|abbr=unit}} at the peak of his career.<ref name="Riley">{{cite book |last=Riley |first=James A. |title=The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues |place=New York |publisher=Carroll & Graf |year=1994 |isbn=0-7867-0959-6 }}</ref> He was the first player since [[Oscar Charleston]] to win consecutive [[Triple Crown (baseball)#Hitting Triple Crown|batting Triple Crowns]] (leading the league in home runs, runs batted in, batting average) and no batter has achieved the feat since.
Due to the color line, the Negro Leagues operated mostly "under the radar" (speaking in the vernacular of the peasantry). This fact has made statistical accuracy difficult to bear out. But it has also led to various amusing and unverifiable "Tall Tales" about immortals such as Gibson. A good example: In the last of the ninth at Pittsburgh, down a run, with a runner on base and two outs, Gibson hits one high and deep, so far into the twilight sky that it disappears from sight, apparently winning the game. The next day, the same two teams are playing again, now in Washington. Just as the teams have positioned themselves on the field, a ball comes falling out of the sky and a Washington outfielder grabs it. The umpire yells to Gibson, "You're out! In Pittsburgh, yesterday!"


On May 28, 2024, [[Major League Baseball]] announced that it had integrated Negro league statistics into its records, giving Gibson the highest single-season major league [[Batting average (baseball)|batting average]] at .466 (1943) and the highest career batting average at .372.<ref name=kepner/>
Gibson died of a stroke at age 35 in [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]], just three months before [[Jackie Robinson]] became the [[Baseball color line|first black player]] in modern major league history. The stroke is generally believed to be linked to drug problems that plagued his later years.


==Early life==
Gibson is buried in the [[Allegheny Cemetery]] in the Lawrenceville district of [[Pittsburgh]].
[[File:Josh Gibson Water Tower; Buena Vista, GA.JPG|thumb|left|A water tower in [[Buena Vista, Georgia]], proclaims the town to be the "Home of Josh Gibson".]]
Gibson was born in [[Buena Vista, Georgia]],<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=REtEXQNWq6MC&pg=PA221 | title=Historical Gazetteer of the United States | publisher=Routledge | date=May 13, 2013 | access-date=November 30, 2013 | author=Hellmann, Paul T. | pages=221| isbn=978-1135948597 }}</ref> to Mark and Nancy (née Woodlock) Gibson and had a younger brother, fellow Negro leaguer [[Jerry Gibson|Jerry]], and sister.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Brashler|first=William|title=Josh Gibson- A life in the Negro Leagues|publisher=Harper& Row|year=1978|isbn=0-06-010446-5|location=New York, N.Y.|pages=5}}</ref> In 1923, Gibson moved to [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania|Pittsburgh]], and his father found work at the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Company. Entering sixth grade in Pittsburgh, Gibson prepared to become an electrician, attending [[Allegheny County, Pennsylvania|Allegheny]] Pre-Vocational School and Conroy Pre-Vocational School. His first experience playing baseball for an organized team came at age 16 when he played [[third baseman|third base]] for an amateur team sponsored by [[Gimbels]] department store where he found work as an [[elevator operator]]. Shortly thereafter, he was recruited by the [[Pittsburgh Crawfords]], which in 1928 were still a [[semi-professional]] team. The Crawfords, controlled by [[Gus Greenlee]], were the top black semi-professional team in the Pittsburgh area and would advance to fully professional, major Negro league status by 1931.<ref name="Ribowsky">{{cite book
| last=Ribowsky
| first=Mark
| title=Josh Gibson: The Power and the Darkness
| publisher=University of Illinois Press
| year=2004
| location=Urbana, Illinois, USA
| isbn=0-252-07224-3}}</ref>


In 1928, Gibson met Helen Mason, whom he married on March 7, 1929. When not playing baseball, Gibson continued to work at Gimbels after he had given up on his plans to become an electrician to pursue a baseball career.
==External link==
*[http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/hofer_bios/gibson_josh.htm Baseball Hall of Fame]
<p>
http://www.pace.edu/library/pages/links/ondisplay/josh.htm


In the summer of 1930, the 18-year-old Gibson was picked up by the [[Memphis Red Sox]] for a game in [[Scranton, Pennsylvania]]. Despite going 2 for 4,<ref>{{Cite web|title=1930 Memphis Red Sox - Seamheads Negro Leagues Database|url=https://www.seamheads.com/NegroLgs/team.php?yearID=1930&teamID=MRS|access-date=October 21, 2021|website=www.seamheads.com}}</ref> Red Sox manager [[Candy Jim Taylor]] was not impressed by Gibson and said afterward that he would never be a catcher.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|title=Jim Taylor – Society for American Baseball Research|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/jim-taylor/|access-date=October 21, 2021|language=en-US}}</ref>
[[Category:1911 births|Gibson, Josh]]

[[Category:1947 deaths|Gibson, Josh]]
He was then recruited by [[Cumberland Posey]], owner of the [[Homestead Grays]], which were the preeminent Negro league team in Pittsburgh; Gibson debuted with the Grays on July 31, 1930. On August 11, Gibson's wife, pregnant with twins, went into premature labor and died while giving birth to a twin son, [[Josh Gibson Jr.]], and daughter, Helen, named after her mother. Helen's parents raised the children.<ref name="Ribowsky" />
[[Category:People from Georgia (U.S. state)|Gibson, Josh]]

[[Category:Negro League baseball players|Gibson, Josh]]
==Baseball career==
[[Category:Baseball Hall of Fame|Gibson, Josh]]
The Negro leagues generally found it more profitable to schedule relatively few league games and allow the teams to earn extra money through [[barnstorm (athletics)|barnstorming]] against [[semi-professional]] and other non-league teams.<ref name="Hogan">{{Cite book |
last=Hogan |
first=Lawrence D. |
year=2006 |
title=Shades of Glory: The Negro Leagues and the Story of African-American Baseball |
place=Washington, D.C. |
publisher=National Geographic |
isbn=0-7922-5306-X |
url-access=registration |
url=https://archive.org/details/shadesofgloryneg00hoga }}
</ref> Thus, it is important to distinguish between records against all competition and records in league games only. For example, against all levels of competition, Gibson hit 69 home runs in 1934; the same year, in 52 league games, he hit 11 home runs.<ref name="Riley"/><ref name="Hogan"/>

[[File:1932 Pittsburgh Crawfords.jpg|thumb|left|Gibson (standing, center) with the 1932 Crawfords]]
In 1933, he hit .467 with 55 home runs in 137 games against all levels of competition. His lifetime batting average is said to be higher than .350, with other sources putting it as high as .384, the best in Negro league history.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/05/05/SPGQNIL8UR1.DTL | work=The San Francisco Chronicle | title=NEGRO LEAGUE LEGEND / THE BLACK BABE / Josh Gibson may have been the greatest home-run hitter ever | first=Ron | last=Kroichick | date=August 27, 2010}}</ref> In 2021, it was announced by [[Major League Baseball]] that the Negro Leagues (1920–1948) would formally be recognized as a major league. Ongoing research by [[Baseball Reference]] tabulated that Gibson led his league three times in batting average and once for all major leagues, most notably hitting .417 in 1937. He also led six times in on-base percentage and slugging percentage eight times.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.baseball-reference.com/negro-leagues-are-major-leagues.shtml| title = The Negro Leagues Are Major Leagues {{!}} Baseball-Reference.com}} </ref>

Gibson's Hall of Fame plaque claims he hit "almost 800 home runs in league and independent baseball during his 17-year career."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://baseballhall.org/hof/gibson-josh |title=Gibson, Josh |publisher=Baseball Hall of Fame |access-date=March 19, 2013}}</ref> This figure includes both semi-pro competition and exhibition games. According to the Hall's official data, his lifetime batting average was .359.<ref name="Hogan"/> It was reported that he won nine home run titles and four batting championships playing for the Crawfords and the Grays. It is also believed that Gibson hit a home run in a Negro league game at [[Yankee Stadium (1923)|Yankee Stadium]] that left the stadium. There is no published or film account to support this claim.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=neyer_rob&id=3403111|title=Did Gibson hit one out of Yankee Stadium?|first=Rob |last=Neyer|work=ESPN.com|date=May 19, 2008|accessdate=June 3, 2024}}</ref>

[[Washington Senators (1901–60)|Washington Senators]] owner [[Clark Griffith]] once said that Gibson hit more home runs into [[Griffith Stadium]]'s distant left field bleachers than the entire [[American League]].<ref name=Lowry>{{cite book |title=Green Cathedrals |last=Lowry |first=Philip |year=2006 |publisher=Walker & Company |isbn=978-0-8027-1608-8 |page=236 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Afo5vtVTz4wC&q=green%20cathedrals&pg=PP1 }}</ref> A 2020 article published by the [[Society for American Baseball Research]] provides the supporting details for his homers in major league parks.<ref>{{Cite web |last=sabr |title=Josh Gibson Blazes a Trail: Homering in Big League Ballparks, 1930–1946 – Society for American Baseball Research |url=https://sabr.org/journal/article/josh-gibson-blazes-a-trail-homering-in-big-league-ballparks-1930-1946/ |access-date=June 12, 2022 |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Josh Gibson HOF Plaque.JPG|thumb|right|Gibson's plaque in the [[Baseball Hall of Fame]]]]

===Statistics===
The true statistical achievements of Negro league players may be impossible to know as the Negro leagues did not compile complete statistics or game summaries.<ref name="Hogan"/> As of May 28, 2024, Negro league statistics have been integrated into Major League Baseball, and Gibson is now at the top of the leaderboard in many categories.<REF>https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-finally-integrates-negro-leagues-statistics-into-historical-records-where-does-josh-gibsons-name-land/</REF><ref name=kepner>{{Cite news |last=Kepner |first=Tyler |title=As MLB changes its records, Josh Gibson replaces Ty Cobb as all-time batting leader |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5525148/2024/05/28/mlb-negro-leagues-records-josh-gibson-ty-cobb/ |access-date=May 29, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

Based on the research of historical accounts performed for the Special Committee on the Negro Leagues, Gibson hit 224 homers in 2,375 at-bats against top black teams, two in 56 at-bats against white major-league pitchers, and 44 in 450 at-bats in the Mexican League.<ref name="Holway">{{Cite book |
last=Holway |
first=John B. |
year=2001 |
title=The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues: The Other Half of Baseball History |
place=Fern Park, Florida |
publisher=Hastings House Publishers |
isbn=0-8038-2007-0}}{{Page needed|date=June 2018}}</ref> John Holway lists Gibson with the same home run totals and a .351 career average, plus 21-for-56 against white major-league pitchers.<ref name="Holway"/>{{Page needed|date=June 2018}} According to Holway, Gibson ranks third all-time in the Negro leagues in average among players with 2,000+ at-bats (trailing [[Jud Wilson]] by three points and [[John Beckwith (baseball)|John Beckwith]] by one).<ref name="Holway"/>{{Page needed|date=June 2018}} Holway lists him as being second to [[Mule Suttles]] in homers, though the all-time leader in HR/AB by a considerable margin — with a homer every 10.6 at-bats to one every 13.6 for runner-up Suttles.<ref name="Holway"/>{{Page needed|date=June 2018}}

Recent investigations into Negro league statistics, using box scores from newspapers from across the United States, have led to the estimate that, although as many as two-thirds of Negro league team games were played against inferior competition (as traveling exhibition games), Gibson still hit between 150 and 200 home runs in official Negro league games.<ref name="Hogan"/> Though this number appears very conservative next to the claims of "almost 800" home runs. This research also credits Gibson with a rate of one home run every 15.9 at-bats, which compares favorably with the rates of the top nine home run hitters in Major League history. The commonly cited home run totals in excess of 800 are not indicative of his career total in "official" games because the Negro league season was much shorter than the Major League season, typically consisting of fewer than 60 games per year.<ref>[[1939 in baseball#Negro National League final standings]]</ref> The additional home runs cited were most likely accomplished in "unofficial" games against local and non-Negro league competition of varying strengths, including the oft-cited "barnstorming" competitions.

In nine of his seasons played in the Negro Leagues, he was selected to the [[East–West All-Star Game]] twelve times, which included double duty appearances in 1939 (playing at [[Comiskey Park]] and [[Yankee Stadium (1923)|Yankee Stadium]]), 1942 (Yankee Stadium and [[Griffith Stadium]]), and 1946 (Griffith and Comiskey).

==Death==
In early 1943, Gibson fell into a [[coma]] and was diagnosed with a [[brain tumor]]. After regaining consciousness, he refused the option of surgical removal and lived the next four years with recurring headaches. In 1944, Gibson was hospitalized in Washington, D.C., at Gallinger Hospital for mental observation.<ref>{{cite web|title=Negro League Star Held in Hospital for Mental Observation|date=August 7, 2012 |url=http://ghostsofdc.org/2012/08/07/josh-gibson-mental-problems/|publisher=Ghosts of DC|access-date=August 14, 2012}}</ref> On January 20, 1947, Gibson died of a [[stroke]] at 35 years old in [[Pittsburgh]]. He was buried at the [[Allegheny Cemetery]] in the [[Lawrenceville (Pittsburgh)|Lawrenceville]] neighborhood of Pittsburgh, where he lay in an unmarked grave until a small plaque was placed in 1975.<ref>{{cite web|title=Josh Gibson A Life that Inspired a Movie Character|publisher=BingoHall Blog|url=http://blog.bingohall.com/josh-gibson-a-life-that-inspired-a-movie-character|access-date=December 5, 2014|archive-date=December 8, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208191133/http://blog.bingohall.com/josh-gibson-a-life-that-inspired-a-movie-character/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Legacy==
[[File:Negro league Hall of Fame exhibit 2014.jpg|thumb|[[Negro league baseball]] exhibit featuring Gibson's portrait at the [[Baseball Hall of Fame]]]]
[[Larry Doby]], who broke the [[American League]] color barrier in July, felt that Gibson was the best black player in 1945<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.500hrc.com/800-hrc-articles/josh-gibson-the-african-american-babe-ruth.html|title=800 Home Run Club, Josh Gibson: The African-American Babe Ruth by Liz Banks, 31 December 2013}}</ref> and 1946;<ref name="Moore1">{{cite book|last=Moore|first=Joseph Thomas|title=Pride and Prejudice: The Biography of Larry Doby|location=New York|publisher=Praeger Publishers|year=1988|isbn=0275929841|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LjfGgiauBfcC&pg=PA30|page=30}}</ref> over even [[Jackie Robinson]], who became the [[Baseball color line|first black player]] in modern Major League history in April 1947 playing in the [[National League (baseball)|National League]]. Doby said in an interview later, "One of the things that was disappointing and disheartening to a lot of the black players at the time was that Jack was not the best player. The best was Josh Gibson. I think that's one of the reasons why Josh died so early — he was heartbroken."<ref name="Moore1"/>

In 1972, Gibson and [[Buck Leonard]] became the second and third players, behind [[Satchel Paige]], inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame based on their careers in the Negro leagues.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Buck Leonard and Josh Gibson are elected to the Hall of Fame |url=https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/inside-pitch/buck-leonard-josh-gibson-elected-to-hof |access-date=June 12, 2022 |website=Baseball Hall of Fame |language=en}}</ref> Gibson's Hall of Fame plaque claims "almost 800" home runs for his career, although this number cannot be substantiated.

Although validation of statistics continues to prove difficult for Negro league players, the lack of verifiable figures has led to various amusing [[tall tale]]s about players such as Gibson.<ref name="Peterson">{{Cite journal|last=Peterson|first=Robert|year=1970|title=Only the Ball Was White}}</ref> An example of such: in the bottom of the ninth at Pittsburgh, down a run, with a runner on base and two outs, Gibson hits one high and deep, so far into the twilight sky that it disappears, apparently winning the game. The next day, the same two teams are playing again, now in Washington. Just as the teams have positioned themselves on the field, a ball falls out of the sky, and a Washington outfielder grabs it. The [[Umpire (baseball)|umpire]] yells to Gibson, "You're out! In Pittsburgh, yesterday!"<ref>{{Cite web |title=Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum: Personal Profiles: Josh Gibson |url=https://nlbemuseum.com/history/players/gibsonj.html |access-date=August 11, 2022 |website=nlbemuseum.com}}</ref>

The [[U.S. Postal Service]] [[First day of issue|issued]] a 33-cent U.S. [[Commemorative stamp|commemorative]] [[postage stamp]] which features a painting of Gibson and includes his name.<ref>The following article includes a photo of a poster-size copy of the postage stamp. {{cite web|title=Awards To Honor Legacy Of Negro League Baseball Great|date=August 12, 2011|publisher=[[CBS Local Media]]|work=[[CBS Pittsburgh]] KDKA-2|url=http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2011/08/12/awards-to-honor-legacy-of-negro-league-baseball-great/|access-date=October 21, 2011}}</ref>

In 2000, he ranked 18th on ''[[The Sporting News]]''' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranking of five players to have played all or most of their careers in the Negro leagues. (The others were [[Satchel Paige]], [[Buck Leonard]], [[Cool Papa Bell]] and [[Oscar Charleston]].) He was nominated as a finalist for the [[Major League Baseball]] All-Century Team in the same year.

At [[PNC Park]], home of Pittsburgh's [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) franchise, the [[Pittsburgh Pirates]], an exhibit honoring the city's two [[Negro league baseball]] teams was introduced in 2006. Located by the stadium's left field entrance and named Legacy Square, the display featured statues of seven players who competed for the [[Homestead Grays]] and [[Pittsburgh Crawfords]], including Gibson.<ref>{{cite news|last=Finder|first=Chuck|title=Pirates Put History on Display|work=[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]|date=June 27, 2006|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2006/06/27/Pirates-put-history-on-display/stories/200606270183|access-date=June 27, 2014}}</ref> In 2015, without any public announcement, the Pirates removed all seven statues from the Legacy Square area. Ultimately, they were donated to the Josh Gibson Foundation and sold at auction to benefit the Foundation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Is there no place in Pittsburgh for Negro League all-stars?|date=November 2016 |publisher=[[Andscape]]|url= https://andscape.com/features/is-there-no-place-in-pittsburgh-for-negro-league-all-stars|access-date=August 24, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=O’Neill|first=Brian|title=Statues honoring Negro Leagues gone from PNC Park entrance|work=[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]|date=July 30, 2015|url=https://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/brian-oneill/2015/07/30/Brian-O-Neill-Statues-honoring-Negro-Leagues-gone-from-PNC-Park-entrance/stories/201507300007|access-date=August 24, 2019}}</ref> Most of the statues that were originally located at Legacy Square in PNC Park, including Gibson's, are now displayed at the [[Negro Leagues Baseball Museum]] in Kansas City, Missouri.<ref>{{cite web|title=US and Canadian Baseball Statue Database|publisher=Offbeat.Group.Shef.AC.UK|url=http://www.offbeat.group.shef.ac.uk/statues/database_us.htm|access-date=August 24, 2019}}</ref>

In 2009, a [[Josh Gibson (Amrany)|statue of Gibson]] was installed inside the center field gate of [[Nationals Park]] along with ones of [[Frank Howard (baseball)|Frank Howard]] and [[Walter Johnson]].

He was named to the [[Washington Nationals#Ring of Honor|Washington Nationals Ring of Honor]] for his "significant contribution to the game of baseball in Washington, D.C." as part of the Homestead Grays on August 10, 2010.

[[Ammon Field]] in Pittsburgh was renamed [[Josh Gibson Field]] in his honor and is the site of a Pennsylvania State Historical Marker.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=40893 |title=Joshua (Josh) Gibson Marker |publisher=Hmdb.org |access-date=March 19, 2013}}</ref>

His son, [[Josh Gibson, Jr.]], played baseball for the [[Homestead Grays]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.coe.ksu.edu/nlbemuseum/history/players/gibsonjjr.html |title=Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum: Personal Profiles: Josh Gibson, Jr |publisher=Coe.ksu.edu |date=August 11, 1930 |access-date=August 8, 2011 |archive-date=July 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723045117/http://www.coe.ksu.edu/nlbemuseum/history/players/gibsonjjr.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> His son also was instrumental in the forming of the Josh Gibson Foundation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joshgibson.org/ |title=Josh Gibson Foundation |publisher=Joshgibson.org |access-date=August 8, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Annie|last=Maroon|title=Pittsburgh's Negro League heritage celebrated|date=June 25, 2011|work=[[Pittsburgh Tribune-Review]]|publisher=The Batchelor Pad blog|url=http://www.thebatchelorpad.biz/blog/2011/06/25/Pittsburghs-Negro-League-heritage-celebrated.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140723091354/http://www.thebatchelorpad.biz/blog/2011/06/25/Pittsburghs-Negro-League-heritage-celebrated.aspx|archive-date=July 23, 2014|access-date=October 21, 2011|quote=The Josh Gibson Foundation ... will host the Josh Gibson Centennial Negro League Gala on Aug. 13 at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh. The event will honor the 100th anniversary of the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Crawfords slugger's birth in 1911.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Alden|last=Gonzalez|title=Negro Leagues Museum in financial straits: Deficit reflects dwindling donations in struggling economy|date=February 1, 2010|publisher=[[MLB Advanced Media]]|work=Kansas City Royals website|url=http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100201&content_id=8004162&vkey=news_kc&fext=.jsp&c_id=kc|access-date=October 21, 2011|quote=... Sean Gibson, the great-grandson of Hall of Famer Josh Gibson and the head of the Josh Gibson Foundation in Pittsburgh.|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206201653/http://m.royals.mlb.com/news/article/8004162/|archivedate=December 6, 2014}}</ref>

An opera based on Josh Gibson's life, ''[[The Summer King (opera)|The Summer King]]'', by composer [[Daniel Sonenberg]], premiered on April 29, 2017, in Pittsburgh.<ref>{{cite news | first=Bob| last=Keyes| title=Portland composer fulfills dream, hits home run with baseball opera | date=April 30, 2017 | publisher=Portland Press Herald | url =http://www.pressherald.com/2017/04/30/premiere-of-opera-in-pittsburgh-fulfills-dream-of-portland-composer/ | work =Portland (Me.) Press Herald (PressHerald.com) | access-date =May 4, 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | first=Brian| last=O'Neill| title=Josh Gibson's epic story takes center stage | date=May 4, 2017 | newspaper=Pittsburgh Post Gazette | url =http://www.post-gazette.com/opinion/brian-oneill/2017/05/04/Brian-O-Neill-Josh-Gibson-Summer-King-Pittsburgh-Benedum-review/stories/201705040063 | access-date =May 4, 2017 }}</ref>

== In popular culture ==
[[File:1943 Homestead Grays.jpg|thumb|right|1943 Homestead Grays]]
*In 1996, Gibson was played by [[Mykelti Williamson]] in the made-for-cable film ''[[Soul of the Game]]'', which also starred [[Delroy Lindo]] as [[Satchel Paige]], [[Blair Underwood]] as [[Jackie Robinson]], [[Edward Herrmann]] as [[Branch Rickey]], and [[Jerry Hardin]] as Commissioner [[Happy Chandler]].
*The character of Leon Carter, played by [[James Earl Jones]] in the 1976 film ''[[The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings]]'', is based on Gibson.
*The character Josh Exley, played by [[Jesse L. Martin]] in the 1999 ''[[The X-Files]]'' episode "[[The Unnatural (The X-Files)|The Unnatural]]", is based on Gibson.

==Miscellaneous==
* Gibson played baseball in the United States, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Mexico, with a lifetime batting average of .354–.384, depending on which statistics are counted.<ref name="ESPN">{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00016050.html |title=ESPN.com: No joshing about Gibson's talents |publisher=Espn.go.com |access-date=August 8, 2011}}</ref>
* Starting in 1932–1933, Gibson played in [[Puerto Rico]]. In 1941–1942, Gibson played for the [[Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League]]. Playing for the [[Cangrejeros de Santurce (baseball)|Cangrejeros de Santurce]], Gibson won the batting title that season with an average of .480, recognized as the record for that league.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.beisbox.com/42505/43405.html?*session*id*key*=*session*id*val*| title = Vázquez, Edwin; ''Beisbol De Ligas Negras''-''James "Cool Papa" Bell Beisbox Caribe''; December 22, 2006| access-date = October 13, 2007| archive-date = August 16, 2006| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060816084629/http://www.beisbox.com/42505/43405.html?%2Asession%2Aid%2Akey%2A=%2Asession%2Aid%2Aval%2A| url-status = dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.radiococo.cu/cocobeisbol/ingles/noti27.htm| title = Bjarkman, Peter C.; "Winter pro baseball's proudest heritage passes into oblivion"| access-date = October 13, 2007| archive-date = November 7, 2007| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071107030027/http://www.radiococo.cu/cocobeisbol/ingles/noti27.htm| url-status = dead}}</ref>
*[[Barry Bonds]] referred to "Josh Gibson's 800 home runs" in his post-game press conference after hitting his 756th MLB home run.<ref name='Curry_2007'>{{cite news | first=Jack | last=Curry | title=No. 757 for Bonds follows long night | date=August 9, 2007 | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/sports/baseball/09curry.html | work =The New York Times }}</ref>
*Gibson was said by [[Buck O'Neil]] to have created a particular sound like [[dynamite]] when he hit the ball that he had heard only three times during his lifetime in baseball. [[Babe Ruth]] was the first, when O'Neil was young, Gibson was the second, when his [[Homestead Grays]] came to play O'Neil's [[Kansas City Monarchs]], and [[Bo Jackson]] was the third, 50 years later, when Jackson was called up by the [[Kansas City Royals]] and O'Neil was a scout for the [[Chicago Cubs]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=I was Right on Time|last=Buck O’Neil with Steve Wulf & David Conrads|publisher=Simon & Schuster|year=1996|location=New York|pages=3–4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/da2d63d5|title=Buck O'Neil {{!}} Society for American Baseball Research|website=sabr.org|access-date=October 7, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=The Ultimate Ball Field Sound| date=March 8, 2013 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH8yMH6v3fM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/JH8yMH6v3fM| archive-date=December 12, 2021 |url-status=live|language=en|access-date=October 7, 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==Career statistics==
===Negro leagues===
According to the Macmillan ''Baseball Encyclopedia'', Josh Gibson's Negro official league stats were as follows: Total years played: 16. Total games played: 501. Total career at bats: 1679. Total career hits: 607. Total career 2B hits: 89. Total career 3B hits: 35. Total career HR: 146. Total career SB: 11. Career batting average: .362.

The first official statistics for the Negro leagues were compiled as part of a statistical study sponsored by the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|National Baseball Hall of Fame]] and supervised by Larry Lester and Dick Clark, in which a research team collected statistics from thousands of boxscores of league-sanctioned games.<ref name="Hogan"/> The first results from this study were the statistics for Negro league Hall of Famers elected prior to 2006, which were published in ''Shades of Glory'' by Lawrence D. Hogan. These statistics include the official Negro league statistics for Josh Gibson:<ref name="Hogan"/>

{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="margin:auto; border:1px black solid;"
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|width="40"|'''Year'''
| style="width:100px;"|'''Team'''
|width="40"|'''[[Games played|<span style="color:white;">G</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[At bat|<span style="color:white;">AB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Run (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">R</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Hit (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">H</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Double (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">2B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Triple (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">3B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Home run|<span style="color:white;">HR</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Run batted in|<span style="color:white;">RBI</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Stolen base|<span style="color:white;">SB</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Base on balls|<span style="color:white;">BB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Batting average (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">BA</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Slugging percentage|<span style="color:white;">SLG</span>]]'''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1930
| [[Homestead Grays|Homestead]]
| 21
| 71
| 13
| 24
| 2
| 0
| 5
| 17
| 0
| 5
| .338
| .577
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1931
| Homestead
| 32
| 124
| 26
| 38
| 8
| 5
| 6
| 23
| 0
| 11
| .306
| .597
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1932
| [[Pittsburgh Crawfords|Pittsburgh]]
| 49
| 191
| 34
| 62
| 10
| 5
| 8
| 28
| 0
| 21
| .325
| .555
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1933
| Pittsburgh
| 38
| 138
| 32
| 54
| 6
| 2
| 8
| 31
| 1
| 9
| .391
| .638
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1934
| Homestead
| 1
| 2
| 0
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| .500
| .500
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1934
| Pittsburgh
| 52
| 190
| 39
| 62
| 14
| 3
| 11
| 27
| 2
| 19
| .326
| .605
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1935
| Pittsburgh
| 35
| 145
| 37
| 54
| 10
| 2
| 8
| 29
| 7
| 16
| .372
| .634
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1936
| Pittsburgh
| 26
| 90
| 27
| 39
| 3
| 2
| 6
| 18
| 1
| 13
| .433
| .711
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1937
| Homestead
| 25
| 97
| 39
| 41
| 7
| 4
| 13
| 36
| 1
| 17
| .423
| .979
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1938
| Homestead
| 28
| 105
| 31
| 38
| 4
| 1
| 3
| 9
| 1
| 13
| .362
| .505
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1939
| Homestead
| 21
| 74
| 22
| 27
| 3
| 2
| 10
| 22
| 3
| 20
| .365
| .865
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1940
| Homestead
| 1
| 2
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 2
| .000
| .000
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1942
| Homestead
| 42
| 138
| 36
| 42
| 6
| 1
| 7
| 38
| 2
| 32
| .304
| .514
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1943
| Homestead
| 55
| 192
| 69
| 91
| 24
| 5
| 12
| 74
| 3
| 39
| .474
| .839
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1944
| Homestead
| 34
| 123
| 27
| 44
| 4
| 3
| 9
| 34
| 1
| 15
| .358
| .659
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1945
| Homestead
| 17
| 62
| 12
| 17
| 2
| 4
| 2
| 15
| 0
| 11
| .274
| .532
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1946
| Homestead
| 33
| 111
| 22
| 32
| 6
| 2
| 7
| 31
| 0
| 12
| .288
| .568
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|'''Total'''
|'''16 seasons'''
| 510
| 1855
| 467
| 666
| 109
| 41
| 115
| 432
| 22
| 255
| .359
| .648
|}

===Dominican League===
{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="margin:auto; border:1px black solid;"
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|width="40"|'''Year'''
| style="width:100px;"|'''Team'''
|width="40"|'''[[At bat|<span style="color:white;">AB</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Hit (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">H</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Batting average (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">BA</span>]]'''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1937
| Ciudad Trujillo
| 53
| 24
| .453
|}

Source:<ref name="Holway"/>{{Page needed|date=June 2018}}

===Mexican League===
{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="margin:auto; border:1px black solid;"
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|width="40"|'''Year'''
| style="width:100px;"|'''Team'''
|width="40"|'''[[Games played|<span style="color:white;">G</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[At bat|<span style="color:white;">AB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Run (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">R</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Hit (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">H</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Double (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">2B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Triple (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">3B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Home run|<span style="color:white;">HR</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Run batted in|<span style="color:white;">RBI</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Stolen base|<span style="color:white;">SB</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Base on balls|<span style="color:white;">BB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Batting average (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">BA</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Slugging percentage|<span style="color:white;">SLG</span>]]'''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1940
| [[Azules de Veracruz|Veracruz]]

| 22
| 92
| 32
| 43
| 7
| 4
| 11
| 38
| 3
| 16
| .467
| .989
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1941
| Veracruz
| 94
| 358
| 100
| 134
| 31
| 3
| 33
| 124
| 7
| 75
| .374
| .754
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|'''Total'''
|'''2 seasons'''
| 116
| 450
| 132
| 177
| 38
| 7
| 44
| 162
| 10
| 91
| .393
| .802
|}

Source:<ref name="Cisneros">{{cite book
| last=Treto Cisneros
| first=Pedro
| title=The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics, 1937–2001
| publisher=McFarland & Company
| year=2002
| location=Jefferson, North Carolina, USA | page=151
| isbn=0-7864-1378-6}}</ref>

===Cuban (Winter) League===
{| cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" style="margin:auto; border:1px black solid;"
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|width="50"|'''Year'''
| style="width:100px;"|'''Team'''
|width="40"|'''[[At bat|<span style="color:white;">AB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Run (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">R</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Hit (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">H</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Double (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">2B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Triple (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">3B</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Home run|<span style="color:white;">HR</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Run batted in|<span style="color:white;">RBI</span>]]'''
|width="40"|'''[[Stolen base|<span style="color:white;">SB</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Batting average (baseball)|<span style="color:white;">BA</span>]]'''
|width="50"|'''[[Slugging percentage|<span style="color:white;">SLG</span>]]'''
|- style="text-align:center;"
| 1937/38
| [[Habana (Cuban League)|Habana]]
| 61
| 11
| 21
| 3
| 2
| 3
| 13
| —
| .344
| .607
|- style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
| 1938/39
| [[Leopardos de Santa Clara|Santa Clara]]
| 163
| 50
| 58
| 7
| 3
| 11
| 39
| 2
| .356
| .638
|- style="background:black; color:white; text-align:center;"
|'''Total'''
|'''2 seasons'''
| 224
| 61
| 79
| 10
| 5
| 14
| 52
| —
| .353
| .629
|}

Source:<ref name="Figueredo">{{Cite book |last=Figueredo |first=Jorge S. |title=Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History, 1878–1961 |place=Jefferson, North Carolina, USA |publisher=McFarland & Company |year=2003 |isbn=0-7864-1250-X |pages=222, 225}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Biography|Baseball}}
*[[List of baseball players who died during their careers]]
*[[List of people with brain tumors]]
{{Clear}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
===Articles===
* [http://www.mediafire.com/view/w9ujbz6m6ya28ae/.png "Josh Gibson Makes 'Time' Magazine"]. ''Cleveland Call-Post''. July 24, 1943. p.&nbsp;10-A.
* [https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=o8UwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=0WkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5895%2C1977573 "Gibson's Long Homer Features Grays' Victory"]. ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette''. May 23, 1946. p.&nbsp;15.
* Young, A. S. "Doc". [https://books.google.com/books?id=-bEDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA55 "Inside Sports: Jimmy Crutchfield Remembers Josh"]. ''Jet''. April 7, 1955. p.&nbsp;55.
* Peterson, Robert. "Greatest Battery Ever". ''Boys' Life''. April 1971. [https://books.google.com/books?id=eJYkoB-5gBAC&pg=PA32 p.&nbsp;32–33], [https://books.google.com/books?id=eJYkoB-5gBAC&pg=PA52 52–53]
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=J9oDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA45 "Josh Gibson: Greatest Slugger of 'em All"]. ''Ebony''. May 1972. pp.&nbsp;45–46, 48–49.
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=M9oDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA17 "Letters (cont.): Josh Gibson"]. ''Ebony''. July 1972. p.&nbsp;17.
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=ADkDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA49 "Josh Gibson, the 'Black Babe Ruth,' Honored With Historical Marker"]. ''Jet''. October 21, 1996. p.&nbsp;55.
* Janik, James. [https://books.google.com/books?id=HP0DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA42 "Legendary Power"]. ''Boys' Life''. August 2001. p.&nbsp;42–43.

===Books===
* Brashler, William. ''Josh Gibson: a Life in the Negro Leagues.'' Harper & Row, 1978.
* Buckley, James Jr. ''1,001 Facts About Hitters.'' DK Publishing, 2004.
* Figueredo, Jorge. ''Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History.'' McFarland & Company, 2003.
* Holway, John. ''The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues.'' Hastings House, 2001.
* Lester, Larry. ''Black Baseball's National Showcase.'' University of Nebraska Press, 2001.
* Peterson, Robert. ''Only the Ball Was White.'' Gramercy, 1970.
* Ribowsky, Mark. ''Josh Gibson The Power and The Darkness.'' University of Illinois Press, 2004.
* Riley, James. ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues.'' Carrol & Graf, 1994.
* Rogosin, Donn. ''Invisible Men.'' Atheneum, 1983.
* Snyder, Brad. ''Beyond the Shadow of the Senators.'' McGraw-Hill, 2004.
* Treto Cisneros, Pedro. ''The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics.'' McFarland & Company, 2002.

==External links==
*{{bbhof|gibson-josh}}
*{{Baseballstats|mlb=492568|br=g/gibsojo99|brm=gibson002jos}} or [https://www.seamheads.com/NegroLgs/player.php?playerID=gibso01jos Seamheads]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050209123059/http://www.pace.edu/library/pages/links/ondisplay/josh.htm Josh Gibson page at Pace University]
* [https://www.georgiasportshalloffame.com/class-of-2003 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060621201709/http://nlbpa.com/10dec2004.html News article on 2004 compilation of Negro League statistics] – Includes home run to at-bat ratio comparison.
* [https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00016050.html ESPN Sportcentury article on Josh Gibson]
* [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB118894606447517416 An opera about Josh Gibson] in ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''
* {{Find a Grave}}

{{Homestead Grays}}
{{1972 Baseball HOF}}
{{Baseball Hall of Fame members}}
{{1943 Homestead Grays}}
{{1944 Homestead Grays}}
{{MLB Triple Crowns (batters)}}
{{Negro league baseball batting champions}}
{{Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame}}
{{Washington Nationals Ring of Honor}}
{{Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame members}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibson, Josh}}
[[Category:1911 births]]
[[Category:1947 deaths]]
[[Category:African-American baseball players]]
[[Category:American expatriate baseball players in Mexico]]
[[Category:Azules de Veracruz players]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Georgia (U.S. state)]]
[[Category:Burials at Allegheny Cemetery]]
[[Category:Habana players]]
[[Category:History of Pittsburgh]]
[[Category:Homestead Grays players]]
[[Category:Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Leopardos de Santa Clara players]]
[[Category:National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Negro league hitting Triple Crown winners]]
[[Category:Neurological disease deaths in Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:People from Buena Vista, Georgia]]
[[Category:Pittsburgh Crawfords players]]
[[Category:Baseball players from Pittsburgh]]
[[Category:American expatriate baseball players in Cuba]]
[[Category:Memphis Red Sox players]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]

Latest revision as of 23:29, 9 November 2024

For his son, the baseball infielder, see Josh Gibson Jr. For the Australian rules footballer, see Josh Gibson (footballer).

Josh Gibson
Gibson with the Homestead Grays in 1931
Catcher
Born: (1911-12-21)December 21, 1911
Buena Vista, Georgia, U.S.
Died: January 20, 1947(1947-01-20) (aged 35)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
Negro leagues debut
July 31, 1930, for the Homestead Grays
Last Negro leagues appearance
1946, for the Homestead Grays
Negro leagues statistics
Batting average.372
Hits838
Home runs174
Runs batted in751
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams
Career highlights and awards

MLB records

  • .372 career batting average
  • .718 career slugging percentage
  • 1.177 career OPS
  • .466 single season batting average (1943)
  • .974 single season slugging percentage (1937)
  • 1.474 single season OPS (1937)
Member of the National
Baseball Hall of Fame
Induction1972
Election methodNegro Leagues Committee

Joshua Gibson (December 21, 1911 – January 20, 1947) was an American baseball catcher primarily in the Negro leagues. In 1972, he became the second Negro league player to be inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.[1]

Gibson 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. In 1937, he played for Ciudad Trujillo in Trujillo's Dominican League and from 1940 to 1941, he played in the Mexican League for Azules de Veracruz. Gibson served as the first manager of the Cangrejeros de Santurce, one of the most historic franchises of the Puerto Rico Baseball League.

Gibson was known as a spectacular power hitter who, by some accounts, hit close to 800 career home runs. (In the Negro League statistical records, his career home run total was 166[2] and MLB.com recognizes 174.)[3] He was known as the "black Babe Ruth";[4] in fact, some fans at the time who saw both Ruth and Gibson play called Ruth "the white Josh Gibson".[5] Gibson never played in the American League or the National League because of the unwritten "gentleman's agreement" that prevented non-white players from participating. He stood 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) and weighed 210 lb (95 kg) at the peak of his career.[6] He was the first player since Oscar Charleston to win consecutive batting Triple Crowns (leading the league in home runs, runs batted in, batting average) and no batter has achieved the feat since.

On May 28, 2024, Major League Baseball announced that it had integrated Negro league statistics into its records, giving Gibson the highest single-season major league batting average at .466 (1943) and the highest career batting average at .372.[7]

Early life

[edit]
A water tower in Buena Vista, Georgia, proclaims the town to be the "Home of Josh Gibson".

Gibson was born in Buena Vista, Georgia,[8] to Mark and Nancy (née Woodlock) Gibson and had a younger brother, fellow Negro leaguer Jerry, and sister.[9] In 1923, Gibson moved to Pittsburgh, and his father found work at the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Company. Entering sixth grade in Pittsburgh, Gibson prepared to become an electrician, attending Allegheny Pre-Vocational School and Conroy Pre-Vocational School. His first experience playing baseball for an organized team came at age 16 when he played third base for an amateur team sponsored by Gimbels department store where he found work as an elevator operator. Shortly thereafter, he was recruited by the Pittsburgh Crawfords, which in 1928 were still a semi-professional team. The Crawfords, controlled by Gus Greenlee, were the top black semi-professional team in the Pittsburgh area and would advance to fully professional, major Negro league status by 1931.[10]

In 1928, Gibson met Helen Mason, whom he married on March 7, 1929. When not playing baseball, Gibson continued to work at Gimbels after he had given up on his plans to become an electrician to pursue a baseball career.

In the summer of 1930, the 18-year-old Gibson was picked up by the Memphis Red Sox for a game in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Despite going 2 for 4,[11] Red Sox manager Candy Jim Taylor was not impressed by Gibson and said afterward that he would never be a catcher.[12]

He was then recruited by Cumberland Posey, owner of the Homestead Grays, which were the preeminent Negro league team in Pittsburgh; Gibson debuted with the Grays on July 31, 1930. On August 11, Gibson's wife, pregnant with twins, went into premature labor and died while giving birth to a twin son, Josh Gibson Jr., and daughter, Helen, named after her mother. Helen's parents raised the children.[10]

Baseball career

[edit]

The Negro leagues generally found it more profitable to schedule relatively few league games and allow the teams to earn extra money through barnstorming against semi-professional and other non-league teams.[13] Thus, it is important to distinguish between records against all competition and records in league games only. For example, against all levels of competition, Gibson hit 69 home runs in 1934; the same year, in 52 league games, he hit 11 home runs.[6][13]

Gibson (standing, center) with the 1932 Crawfords

In 1933, he hit .467 with 55 home runs in 137 games against all levels of competition. His lifetime batting average is said to be higher than .350, with other sources putting it as high as .384, the best in Negro league history.[14] In 2021, it was announced by Major League Baseball that the Negro Leagues (1920–1948) would formally be recognized as a major league. Ongoing research by Baseball Reference tabulated that Gibson led his league three times in batting average and once for all major leagues, most notably hitting .417 in 1937. He also led six times in on-base percentage and slugging percentage eight times.[15]

Gibson's Hall of Fame plaque claims he hit "almost 800 home runs in league and independent baseball during his 17-year career."[16] This figure includes both semi-pro competition and exhibition games. According to the Hall's official data, his lifetime batting average was .359.[13] It was reported that he won nine home run titles and four batting championships playing for the Crawfords and the Grays. It is also believed that Gibson hit a home run in a Negro league game at Yankee Stadium that left the stadium. There is no published or film account to support this claim.[17]

Washington Senators owner Clark Griffith once said that Gibson hit more home runs into Griffith Stadium's distant left field bleachers than the entire American League.[18] A 2020 article published by the Society for American Baseball Research provides the supporting details for his homers in major league parks.[19]

Gibson's plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame

Statistics

[edit]

The true statistical achievements of Negro league players may be impossible to know as the Negro leagues did not compile complete statistics or game summaries.[13] As of May 28, 2024, Negro league statistics have been integrated into Major League Baseball, and Gibson is now at the top of the leaderboard in many categories.[20][7]

Based on the research of historical accounts performed for the Special Committee on the Negro Leagues, Gibson hit 224 homers in 2,375 at-bats against top black teams, two in 56 at-bats against white major-league pitchers, and 44 in 450 at-bats in the Mexican League.[21] John Holway lists Gibson with the same home run totals and a .351 career average, plus 21-for-56 against white major-league pitchers.[21][page needed] According to Holway, Gibson ranks third all-time in the Negro leagues in average among players with 2,000+ at-bats (trailing Jud Wilson by three points and John Beckwith by one).[21][page needed] Holway lists him as being second to Mule Suttles in homers, though the all-time leader in HR/AB by a considerable margin — with a homer every 10.6 at-bats to one every 13.6 for runner-up Suttles.[21][page needed]

Recent investigations into Negro league statistics, using box scores from newspapers from across the United States, have led to the estimate that, although as many as two-thirds of Negro league team games were played against inferior competition (as traveling exhibition games), Gibson still hit between 150 and 200 home runs in official Negro league games.[13] Though this number appears very conservative next to the claims of "almost 800" home runs. This research also credits Gibson with a rate of one home run every 15.9 at-bats, which compares favorably with the rates of the top nine home run hitters in Major League history. The commonly cited home run totals in excess of 800 are not indicative of his career total in "official" games because the Negro league season was much shorter than the Major League season, typically consisting of fewer than 60 games per year.[22] The additional home runs cited were most likely accomplished in "unofficial" games against local and non-Negro league competition of varying strengths, including the oft-cited "barnstorming" competitions.

In nine of his seasons played in the Negro Leagues, he was selected to the East–West All-Star Game twelve times, which included double duty appearances in 1939 (playing at Comiskey Park and Yankee Stadium), 1942 (Yankee Stadium and Griffith Stadium), and 1946 (Griffith and Comiskey).

Death

[edit]

In early 1943, Gibson fell into a coma and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. After regaining consciousness, he refused the option of surgical removal and lived the next four years with recurring headaches. In 1944, Gibson was hospitalized in Washington, D.C., at Gallinger Hospital for mental observation.[23] On January 20, 1947, Gibson died of a stroke at 35 years old in Pittsburgh. He was buried at the Allegheny Cemetery in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, where he lay in an unmarked grave until a small plaque was placed in 1975.[24]

Legacy

[edit]
Negro league baseball exhibit featuring Gibson's portrait at the Baseball Hall of Fame

Larry Doby, who broke the American League color barrier in July, felt that Gibson was the best black player in 1945[25] and 1946;[26] over even Jackie Robinson, who became the first black player in modern Major League history in April 1947 playing in the National League. Doby said in an interview later, "One of the things that was disappointing and disheartening to a lot of the black players at the time was that Jack was not the best player. The best was Josh Gibson. I think that's one of the reasons why Josh died so early — he was heartbroken."[26]

In 1972, Gibson and Buck Leonard became the second and third players, behind Satchel Paige, inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame based on their careers in the Negro leagues.[27] Gibson's Hall of Fame plaque claims "almost 800" home runs for his career, although this number cannot be substantiated.

Although validation of statistics continues to prove difficult for Negro league players, the lack of verifiable figures has led to various amusing tall tales about players such as Gibson.[28] An example of such: in the bottom of the ninth at Pittsburgh, down a run, with a runner on base and two outs, Gibson hits one high and deep, so far into the twilight sky that it disappears, apparently winning the game. The next day, the same two teams are playing again, now in Washington. Just as the teams have positioned themselves on the field, a ball falls out of the sky, and a Washington outfielder grabs it. The umpire yells to Gibson, "You're out! In Pittsburgh, yesterday!"[29]

The U.S. Postal Service issued a 33-cent U.S. commemorative postage stamp which features a painting of Gibson and includes his name.[30]

In 2000, he ranked 18th on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranking of five players to have played all or most of their careers in the Negro leagues. (The others were Satchel Paige, Buck Leonard, Cool Papa Bell and Oscar Charleston.) He was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in the same year.

At PNC Park, home of Pittsburgh's Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise, the Pittsburgh Pirates, an exhibit honoring the city's two Negro league baseball teams was introduced in 2006. Located by the stadium's left field entrance and named Legacy Square, the display featured statues of seven players who competed for the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Crawfords, including Gibson.[31] In 2015, without any public announcement, the Pirates removed all seven statues from the Legacy Square area. Ultimately, they were donated to the Josh Gibson Foundation and sold at auction to benefit the Foundation.[32][33] Most of the statues that were originally located at Legacy Square in PNC Park, including Gibson's, are now displayed at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.[34]

In 2009, a statue of Gibson was installed inside the center field gate of Nationals Park along with ones of Frank Howard and Walter Johnson.

He was named to the Washington Nationals Ring of Honor for his "significant contribution to the game of baseball in Washington, D.C." as part of the Homestead Grays on August 10, 2010.

Ammon Field in Pittsburgh was renamed Josh Gibson Field in his honor and is the site of a Pennsylvania State Historical Marker.[35]

His son, Josh Gibson, Jr., played baseball for the Homestead Grays.[36] His son also was instrumental in the forming of the Josh Gibson Foundation.[37][38][39]

An opera based on Josh Gibson's life, The Summer King, by composer Daniel Sonenberg, premiered on April 29, 2017, in Pittsburgh.[40][41]

[edit]
1943 Homestead Grays

Miscellaneous

[edit]

Career statistics

[edit]

Negro leagues

[edit]

According to the Macmillan Baseball Encyclopedia, Josh Gibson's Negro official league stats were as follows: Total years played: 16. Total games played: 501. Total career at bats: 1679. Total career hits: 607. Total career 2B hits: 89. Total career 3B hits: 35. Total career HR: 146. Total career SB: 11. Career batting average: .362.

The first official statistics for the Negro leagues were compiled as part of a statistical study sponsored by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and supervised by Larry Lester and Dick Clark, in which a research team collected statistics from thousands of boxscores of league-sanctioned games.[13] The first results from this study were the statistics for Negro league Hall of Famers elected prior to 2006, which were published in Shades of Glory by Lawrence D. Hogan. These statistics include the official Negro league statistics for Josh Gibson:[13]

Year Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB BA SLG
1930 Homestead 21 71 13 24 2 0 5 17 0 5 .338 .577
1931 Homestead 32 124 26 38 8 5 6 23 0 11 .306 .597
1932 Pittsburgh 49 191 34 62 10 5 8 28 0 21 .325 .555
1933 Pittsburgh 38 138 32 54 6 2 8 31 1 9 .391 .638
1934 Homestead 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 .500
1934 Pittsburgh 52 190 39 62 14 3 11 27 2 19 .326 .605
1935 Pittsburgh 35 145 37 54 10 2 8 29 7 16 .372 .634
1936 Pittsburgh 26 90 27 39 3 2 6 18 1 13 .433 .711
1937 Homestead 25 97 39 41 7 4 13 36 1 17 .423 .979
1938 Homestead 28 105 31 38 4 1 3 9 1 13 .362 .505
1939 Homestead 21 74 22 27 3 2 10 22 3 20 .365 .865
1940 Homestead 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000
1942 Homestead 42 138 36 42 6 1 7 38 2 32 .304 .514
1943 Homestead 55 192 69 91 24 5 12 74 3 39 .474 .839
1944 Homestead 34 123 27 44 4 3 9 34 1 15 .358 .659
1945 Homestead 17 62 12 17 2 4 2 15 0 11 .274 .532
1946 Homestead 33 111 22 32 6 2 7 31 0 12 .288 .568
Total 16 seasons 510 1855 467 666 109 41 115 432 22 255 .359 .648

Dominican League

[edit]
Year Team AB H BA
1937 Ciudad Trujillo 53 24 .453

Source:[21][page needed]

Mexican League

[edit]
Year Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB BA SLG
1940 Veracruz 22 92 32 43 7 4 11 38 3 16 .467 .989
1941 Veracruz 94 358 100 134 31 3 33 124 7 75 .374 .754
Total 2 seasons 116 450 132 177 38 7 44 162 10 91 .393 .802

Source:[49]

Cuban (Winter) League

[edit]
Year Team AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BA SLG
1937/38 Habana 61 11 21 3 2 3 13 — .344 .607
1938/39 Santa Clara 163 50 58 7 3 11 39 2 .356 .638
Total 2 seasons 224 61 79 10 5 14 52 — .353 .629

Source:[50]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ National Baseball Hall of Fame, Josh Gibson "Gibson, Josh | Baseball Hall of Fame". Retrieved April 16, 2015
  2. ^ "Josh Gibson Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More".
  3. ^ Treisman, Rachel (May 29, 2024). "The Negro Leagues are officially part of MLB history—with the records to prove it and most career". Sports. NPR. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  4. ^ "Josh Gibson". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. January 16, 2024.
  5. ^ Brashler, William (1978) Josh Gibson: A Life in the Negro Leagues. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 1-56663-295-1
  6. ^ a b Riley, James A. (1994). The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues. New York: Carroll & Graf. ISBN 0-7867-0959-6.
  7. ^ a b Kepner, Tyler. "As MLB changes its records, Josh Gibson replaces Ty Cobb as all-time batting leader". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  8. ^ Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 221. ISBN 978-1135948597. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
  9. ^ Brashler, William (1978). Josh Gibson- A life in the Negro Leagues. New York, N.Y.: Harper& Row. p. 5. ISBN 0-06-010446-5.
  10. ^ a b Ribowsky, Mark (2004). Josh Gibson: The Power and the Darkness. Urbana, Illinois, USA: University of Illinois Press. ISBN 0-252-07224-3.
  11. ^ "1930 Memphis Red Sox - Seamheads Negro Leagues Database". www.seamheads.com. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  12. ^ "Jim Taylor – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g Hogan, Lawrence D. (2006). Shades of Glory: The Negro Leagues and the Story of African-American Baseball. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic. ISBN 0-7922-5306-X.
  14. ^ Kroichick, Ron (August 27, 2010). "NEGRO LEAGUE LEGEND / THE BLACK BABE / Josh Gibson may have been the greatest home-run hitter ever". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  15. ^ "The Negro Leagues Are Major Leagues | Baseball-Reference.com".
  16. ^ "Gibson, Josh". Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  17. ^ Neyer, Rob (May 19, 2008). "Did Gibson hit one out of Yankee Stadium?". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  18. ^ Lowry, Philip (2006). Green Cathedrals. Walker & Company. p. 236. ISBN 978-0-8027-1608-8.
  19. ^ sabr. "Josh Gibson Blazes a Trail: Homering in Big League Ballparks, 1930–1946 – Society for American Baseball Research". Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  20. ^ https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-finally-integrates-negro-leagues-statistics-into-historical-records-where-does-josh-gibsons-name-land/
  21. ^ a b c d e Holway, John B. (2001). The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues: The Other Half of Baseball History. Fern Park, Florida: Hastings House Publishers. ISBN 0-8038-2007-0.[page needed]
  22. ^ 1939 in baseball#Negro National League final standings
  23. ^ "Negro League Star Held in Hospital for Mental Observation". Ghosts of DC. August 7, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
  24. ^ "Josh Gibson A Life that Inspired a Movie Character". BingoHall Blog. Archived from the original on December 8, 2014. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
  25. ^ "800 Home Run Club, Josh Gibson: The African-American Babe Ruth by Liz Banks, 31 December 2013".
  26. ^ a b Moore, Joseph Thomas (1988). Pride and Prejudice: The Biography of Larry Doby. New York: Praeger Publishers. p. 30. ISBN 0275929841.
  27. ^ "Buck Leonard and Josh Gibson are elected to the Hall of Fame". Baseball Hall of Fame. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  28. ^ Peterson, Robert (1970). "Only the Ball Was White". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  29. ^ "Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum: Personal Profiles: Josh Gibson". nlbemuseum.com. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  30. ^ The following article includes a photo of a poster-size copy of the postage stamp. "Awards To Honor Legacy Of Negro League Baseball Great". CBS Pittsburgh KDKA-2. CBS Local Media. August 12, 2011. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  31. ^ Finder, Chuck (June 27, 2006). "Pirates Put History on Display". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  32. ^ "Is there no place in Pittsburgh for Negro League all-stars?". Andscape. November 2016. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  33. ^ O’Neill, Brian (July 30, 2015). "Statues honoring Negro Leagues gone from PNC Park entrance". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  34. ^ "US and Canadian Baseball Statue Database". Offbeat.Group.Shef.AC.UK. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  35. ^ "Joshua (Josh) Gibson Marker". Hmdb.org. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  36. ^ "Negro Leagues Baseball eMuseum: Personal Profiles: Josh Gibson, Jr". Coe.ksu.edu. August 11, 1930. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  37. ^ "Josh Gibson Foundation". Joshgibson.org. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  38. ^ Maroon, Annie (June 25, 2011). "Pittsburgh's Negro League heritage celebrated". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The Batchelor Pad blog. Archived from the original on July 23, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2011. The Josh Gibson Foundation ... will host the Josh Gibson Centennial Negro League Gala on Aug. 13 at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh. The event will honor the 100th anniversary of the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Crawfords slugger's birth in 1911.
  39. ^ Gonzalez, Alden (February 1, 2010). "Negro Leagues Museum in financial straits: Deficit reflects dwindling donations in struggling economy". Kansas City Royals website. MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on December 6, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2011. ... Sean Gibson, the great-grandson of Hall of Famer Josh Gibson and the head of the Josh Gibson Foundation in Pittsburgh.
  40. ^ Keyes, Bob (April 30, 2017). "Portland composer fulfills dream, hits home run with baseball opera". Portland (Me.) Press Herald (PressHerald.com). Portland Press Herald. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  41. ^ O'Neill, Brian (May 4, 2017). "Josh Gibson's epic story takes center stage". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  42. ^ "ESPN.com: No joshing about Gibson's talents". Espn.go.com. Retrieved August 8, 2011.
  43. ^ "Vázquez, Edwin; Beisbol De Ligas Negras-James "Cool Papa" Bell Beisbox Caribe; December 22, 2006". Archived from the original on August 16, 2006. Retrieved October 13, 2007.
  44. ^ "Bjarkman, Peter C.; "Winter pro baseball's proudest heritage passes into oblivion"". Archived from the original on November 7, 2007. Retrieved October 13, 2007.
  45. ^ Curry, Jack (August 9, 2007). "No. 757 for Bonds follows long night". The New York Times.
  46. ^ Buck O’Neil with Steve Wulf & David Conrads (1996). I was Right on Time. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 3–4.
  47. ^ "Buck O'Neil | Society for American Baseball Research". sabr.org. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  48. ^ The Ultimate Ball Field Sound, March 8, 2013, archived from the original on December 12, 2021, retrieved October 7, 2019
  49. ^ Treto Cisneros, Pedro (2002). The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics, 1937–2001. Jefferson, North Carolina, USA: McFarland & Company. p. 151. ISBN 0-7864-1378-6.
  50. ^ Figueredo, Jorge S. (2003). Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History, 1878–1961. Jefferson, North Carolina, USA: McFarland & Company. pp. 222, 225. ISBN 0-7864-1250-X.

Further reading

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Articles

[edit]

Books

[edit]
  • Brashler, William. Josh Gibson: a Life in the Negro Leagues. Harper & Row, 1978.
  • Buckley, James Jr. 1,001 Facts About Hitters. DK Publishing, 2004.
  • Figueredo, Jorge. Cuban Baseball: A Statistical History. McFarland & Company, 2003.
  • Holway, John. The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues. Hastings House, 2001.
  • Lester, Larry. Black Baseball's National Showcase. University of Nebraska Press, 2001.
  • Peterson, Robert. Only the Ball Was White. Gramercy, 1970.
  • Ribowsky, Mark. Josh Gibson The Power and The Darkness. University of Illinois Press, 2004.
  • Riley, James. The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues. Carrol & Graf, 1994.
  • Rogosin, Donn. Invisible Men. Atheneum, 1983.
  • Snyder, Brad. Beyond the Shadow of the Senators. McGraw-Hill, 2004.
  • Treto Cisneros, Pedro. The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics. McFarland & Company, 2002.
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