Remember the Negro League

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Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier, but it was his play in the Negro League that got him discovered.

NegroLeagueLegends.org is trying to support those who helped pave the way for Robinson and future African-American baseball players.

There are about 175 Negro League players still alive today.

“Jackie was the first, so we figured we had a chance,” Nathan “Sonny” Weston, who played first base for the Chicago American Giants, said.

“Back in those days that was the biggest thing that we had among blacks,” fellow Chicago American Giants player, Ray “Boo Boy” Knox said.

The obstacles and adversity Robinson faced as an African-American player, many of the Negro League players experiences as well.

“This encouraged me to be a stronger person, a determined person,” Weston said.  “This is what I want. This is what I’m going to get. I’m going to fight for it. But I mean not fight with fists, fight with brain.”

Follow Carrie Healey on Twitter @CarrieHeals.