Current Events Lesson Plan February 4-10, 2016
Current Event: Toss-back Tuesday: Satchel Paige in the Hall of Fame
On Feb. 9, 1971, African American baseball pitcher Satchel Paige was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Leroy Robert Paige was born on July 7, 1906, in Mobile, Alabama. He began playing baseball professionally in 1924, and he often pitched against major leaguers in exhibition games. In 1937, New York Yankee star Joe DiMaggio called him the greatest pitcher he ever faced. Paige pitched for touring black teams and teams in the Negro leagues for more than 20 years. Paige was past his prime when he joined the Cleveland Indians in 1948 and became the first black pitcher in the American League. At age 42, he was the oldest rookie in Major League Baseball (MLB) history. Paige pitched again for Cleveland in 1949 and for the St. Louis Browns from 1951 to 1953. He made a final appearance in 1965, pitching 3 shutout innings in a game for the Kansas City Athletics. Paige’s career major league record was 28 victories and 31 defeats. While African American players Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella were elected to the Hall of Fame based on their major league baseball statistics, Paige was the first player elected for his career numbers in the Negro leagues.
Satchel Paige
Credit: © AP Photo
Objective:
The Negro leagues were professional baseball leagues formed for black players, who were barred from white-controlled baseball because of racial segregation. An all-black professional baseball team existed as early as 1885. For many years, black teams played one another as independent teams or played all-white teams in exhibition games. Several all-black leagues formed during the 1920’s and early 1930’s, but most failed for economic reasons. In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first black player in major league baseball. After Robinson’s success with the Brooklyn Dodgers, major league teams quickly signed star players from the Negro leagues, leading to the end of those leagues. Baseball historians agree that many players in the Negro leagues would have starred in the white leagues. The Behind the Headlines news story and related World Book articles explore baseball and other sports-related topics.
Words to know:
Discussion Topics:
1. Ask your students to name some famous baseball players who played in the Negro leagues. (Students might name Cool Papa Bell, Roy Campanella, Oscar Charleston, Rube Foster, Josh Gibson, Judy Johnson, Buck Leonard, Pop Lloyd, and Satchel Paige. Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Willie Mays, and Jackie Robinson also had brief careers in the Negro leagues before their major league careers began.)
2. Ask your students to debate, “All kids should be required to play a sport in school.”
3. Ask your students what their favorite sport is and why?
4. Ask your students to use World Book’s Timelines feature to view or add to the History of Baseball timeline. (Students may wish to use World Book’s “Baseball” article for help.)
