Description
Book Synopsis For more than half a century, Black baseball players, barred from the Major Leagues by systemic racism, competed in leagues of their own. This book re-interprets the history of race in baseball from the ground up. It tells the story of how the Major Leagues became the Caucasian Leagues, and names the person most responsible for their segregation; showing how Major League owners and executives tried to delay and even prevent integration; and proving, using a broad range of methods, that Negro League players were every inch the equals of their Major League counterparts. Cherished records held by white players since the days of segregation are shown to belong rightfully to Negro League superstars. This book takes a fresh look at a subject that''s both straight from today''s headlines and as old as baseball itself.
Trade ReviewOne of the best baseball books ever. Well researched and also well written,
Black Stats Matter is right up there with
The Bill James Historical Abstract and
Outsider Baseball on my personal list. Lee covers almost all of what I would consider the important topics that have been neglected in most Negro League writing."—Kevin Johnson, co-founder of the Seamheads Negro Leagues Database "Master Lee brilliantly gives credentials to the Black inhabitants of the baseball planet, taking us on a connect-the-dots journey never published before…Lee's body of work will forever be a topic of conversation and debate as sports fans evolve their thought processes in the acceptance of Negro League players as Major League talents."—Larry Lester, author
Baseball's First Colored World Series: The 1924 Meeting of the Hilldale Giants and Kansas City Monarchs "Philip Lee's
Black Stats Matter lays to rest once and for all the false narrative that white 'Major League' baseball between 1876 and 1946 was superior to the Negro Leagues. Through careful analysis of American, National, and seven Negro Leagues statistics, Lee forcefully demonstrates over and over the equality of the Blackball circuits while debunking a myriad of tired old myths, such as that of MLB owners never formally banning Black players (spoiler alert: they did). The author also profiles several All-Time Negro Leagues stars and makes a convincing Hall of Fame case for forgotten home run king Luscious Luke Easter. Thoroughly researched and brilliantly written,
Black Stats Matter is a witty, moving account of the tragedy and triumph that was segregated Black baseball."—Todd Peterson, editor,
The Negro Leagues Were Major LeaguesTable of Contents
- Table of Contents
- A Note on Abbreviations
- Foreword by Larry Lester
- Introduction: Statistical Justice
- Part I. Arguments
- 1. "Disgraceful Baseball"
- 2. What Constitutes a Major League?
- 3. The Dam Trickles Open
- 4. Statistical Variance Across Leagues and Eras
- 5. Mr. James's 23 Tests
- 6. Arguments Against Statistical Integration
- 7. Re-Writing the Record Books
- 8. Josh Gibson vs. Ruthsrecord
- 9. Monte Irvin: Half in One World, Half in Another
- 10. Willard Brown: The Chance That Wasn't a Chance
- 11. Roy Campanella: The Fallacy of Equivalency
- 12. Luke Easter: The Toughest Case to Prove
- 13. Larry Doby: Five-Tool Superstar
- 14. The Greatest
- 15. My Inner Circle: The Top 73 Players in American Baseball History
- 16. Two Down, One to Go
- 17. Wrapup: What's Fair Is Fair
- A Personal Postscript
- Part II. Reference
- 18. Negro Leaguers in the Hall of Fame
- 19. Negro Leagues All-Time Teams
- 20. The Negro Leagues All-Star Register
- 21. A Proposed Major Leagues Organizational Chart
- 22. A Proposed Negro Leagues Team Roster
- 23. Negro League and Early MLB Team Failures
- 24. Negro Leaguers Who Played in the Majors
- 25. Short Notes on Diverse Subjects
- 26. A Long Note: Major League Baseball vs. the Truth
- Acknowledgments
- An Open Letter to Atlanta's Ownership and Management
- Chapter Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
