Buck O’Neil former player in the Negro Baseball league is honored at a Brooklyn Cyclones baseball game.
Credit: © Bruce Cotler, Globe Photos/ZUMA/Alamy Images

February is Black History Month, an annual observance of the achievements and culture of Black Americans. This month, Behind the Headlines will feature Black pioneers in a variety of areas. 

Baseball legend Buck O’Neil was the thread that connected Josh Gibson and Babe Ruth with Lionel Hampton and Ichiro Suzuki. He remains among the most celebrated and important figures in the history of baseball. O’Neil left a lasting impact on the sport as a skilled player, a knowledgeable manager, a shrewd judge of talent, a passionate promoter, and a gifted storyteller.

Major League Baseball (MLB) failed to appreciate Buck O’Neil in a timely fashion. It denied him the chance to play or manage in the league because he was Black. But the sport’s ultimate recognition is finally coming to him, albeit too late for him to enjoy it. In December of last year, the Early Baseball Committee voted to admit O’Neil into the Hall of Fame. He will be formally inducted in July.

John Jordan O’Neil, Jr., was born Nov. 13, 1911, in Carrabelle, Florida, on the Gulf Coast. His father played baseball and introduced him to the game. Around 1920, the family moved to Sarasota, near the spring training facilities of several MLB teams. As a youth, O’Neil watched such players as Babe Ruth prepare for the season. His family would also take him to Negro league games. Negro leagues were professional baseball leagues formed for Black players, who were barred from playing alongside white players because of racial segregation.

As a teenager, O’Neil worked in the fields harvesting celery. He was prohibited from attending the segregated high school in Sarasota. He received high school and college instruction from Edward Waters College (now Edward Waters University), a historically Black college in Jacksonville.

In 1934, O’Neil began playing for small Negro league teams. O’Neil got the nickname “Buck” after being mistaken for a Negro league team owner named Buck O’Neal. O’Neil joined the Kansas City Monarchs in 1938. His sure fielding at first base and high batting average helped the Monarchs to win four consecutive Negro American League pennants from 1939 to 1942.

At the time, Kansas City, Missouri, was one of the hubs of Black culture. O’Neil and many of his teammates were obsessed with jazz. They rubbed elbows with such jazz greats as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Lionel Hampton.

In 1943, O’Neil was drafted into the United States Navy to serve in World War II (1939-1945). He returned to the Monarchs after the war and was named player-manager in 1948. A player-manager manages a baseball team while also playing for the team.

Jackie Robinson had broken MLB’s color barrier the year before, and MLB clubs were signing star players away from Negro leagues teams. The loss of talent caused many Black baseball fans to lose interest in the Negro leagues. To keep the Monarchs in business, O’Neil sought out talented young Black players, signed them, and sold their contracts to MLB teams. He signed a young Ernie Banks on the recommendation of fellow Negro leagues legend Cool Papa Bell.

In 1955, O’Neil was hired as a scout by the MLB Chicago Cubs. He specialized in signing players from the remaining Negro leagues teams and Black players from the South. He scouted future Hall-of-Famers Lou Brock, Lee Smith, and Billy Williams.

In 1962, the Cubs named O’Neil a coach, making him the first Black coach in MLB history. At the time, the Cubs were utilizing a “college of coaches” approach, in which a group of men shared coaching duties throughout the season. O’Neil was given the impression that he might get a chance to manage the team.

During a game that season, a series of ejections of coaches made O’Neil the logical choice to fill in as the third-base coach. He would have become the first Black on-field coach in MLB history. But another coach came in to coach third instead. Years later, O’Neil learned that Cubs coach Charlie Grimm had told the other coaches that O’Neil was never to coach in the field or manage. O’Neil was certain that this exclusion was racially motivated. O’Neil returned to scouting in 1964. In 1988, he became a scout for the Kansas City Royals.

Later in life, O’Neil campaigned to raise public awareness of the Negro leagues. In 1990, he helped establish the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. O’Neil was featured prominently in the documentary miniseries “Baseball” (1994) by the American filmmaker Ken Burns. He regaled audiences with stories of such Black baseball stars as Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson. The work served to introduce younger generations of baseball fans to the players of the Negro leagues.

O’Neil’s warmth, love of baseball, and gift for storytelling won him friends and admirers wherever he went. Star hitter Ichiro Suzuki met O’Neil early in his MLB career and sought him out whenever he traveled to Kansas City. After O’Neil’s death, Suzuki donated a large sum to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

O’Neil lobbied to get Negro leagues players elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. But in 2006, when 17 Negro leagues players and executives were inducted, O’Neil was not selected. The Hall of Fame asked O’Neil to speak during the induction anyway, since none of the 17 honorees were still living. O’Neil agreed and gave a speech praising the new Hall-of-Famers during the induction ceremony.

Despite O’Neil’s magnanimity, those close to him speculated that the snub broke his heart. O’Neil died on Oct. 6, 2006, just two months after the ceremony. It took 15 more years before O’Neil was finally inducted.

In July, O’Neil will take his rightful place next to the other legends of the game, many of whom he met, played against, or mentored. One of his own sayings fits this belated honoring of one of baseball’s greatest treasures: “Waste no tears for me. I didn’t come along too early—I was right on time.”

Atlanta Braves players celebrate on the field at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas, after recording the final out of the World Series. The Braves defeated the Houston Astros in the best-of-seven series, finishing with a 7-0 shutout in Game 6 on Nov. 2, 2021.
Credit: Johnny Angelillo; UPI/Alamy

The ATLiens are celebrating in the streets. The Atlanta Braves won the World Series, defeating the Houston Astros in the best-of-seven series four games to two. They cruised to an easy 7-0 victory in Houston on November 2 to earn their first championship since 1995.

A titanic, three-run home run by outfielder Jorge Soler in the 3rd inning delivered a blow from which the Astros would never recover. The 446-foot blast deflated the hitherto electric Minute Maid Park like a laser beam piercing a balloon. Soler won the World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, going 6-for-20 with 3 home runs and 6 RBI in the series against the Astros.

Georgia-born second baseman Dansby Swanson added a two-run homer in the fifth. Veteran first baseman Freddie Freeman put the game out of reach with an RBI double in the fifth and solo home run in the seventh.

Atlanta starting pitcher Max Fried turned in a masterful performance, issuing no walks and limiting the Houston sons of swat to just four scattered singles over six shutout innings. Braves manager Brian Snitker then handed the ball over to the bullpen. The Atlanta arm barn allowed only three more singles the rest of the way. Closer Will Smith finished out the game by inducing a routine grounder to the Swanson.

The series began in Houston. Atlanta took game one by a score of 6 to 2, but at a heavy cost. Their veteran starting pitcher Charlie Morton took a line drive off his lower leg in the second inning. He came back out to pitch into the third, but had to be removed from the game shortly thereafter. X rays revealed a fracture in his fibula. Houston cruised to an easy 7-2 win in game two, evening the series as it moved to Georgia. Atlanta pitchers flirted with a no-hitter in a 2-0 game four victory and won the next night in a 3-2 squeaker. The Astros worked their way back to a 9-to-5 win in game five, pushing the series to a sixth game back in Houston. But journeyman manager Dusty Baker was ultimately denied in his quest to win his first World Series.

The Georgia franchise overcame nearly every indignity a team could suffer during the season. In January, Braves legend and towering baseball icon Hank Aaron passed away. The 2021 All-Star Game had been scheduled to be played in the Braves’ Truist Park, located on the outskirts of the city. But in March, the state of Georgia passed a bill imposing heavy restrictions on voting, most of which will most severely impact the poor and people of color. In response, MLB relocated the game to Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies. MLB continued to honor its commitment to community improvement initiatives around Atlanta.

The Braves, with their young stars Ozzie Albies and Acuña Jr., were expected to dominate a soft National League East division. But they struggled to put together wins. In late May, outfielder Marcell Ozuna was arrested on the heels of a violent confrontation with his wife. He was eventually placed on administrative leave and did not play for the rest of the season. On July 10, the Braves were just 43-44 as they faced off against the Miami Marlins. Acuña Jr. came down awkwardly while attempting a leaping catch, tearing his ACL.

Atlanta won that July 10 game but found themselves at .500 and without two of their starting outfielders for the rest of the year. Undeterred, the front office acted quickly to fill the holes in what they believed could still be a championship team. The Braves acquired Eddie Rosario from the Cleveland Indians, Joc Pederson from the Chicago Cubs, Adam Duvall from the Miami Marlins, and Jorge Soler from the Kansas City Royals. All four became vital parts of the offense. The Braves never completely caught fire in the regular season, reaching just 88 wins, but they shone in the playoffs, dispatching the strong Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers before defeating the Astros.

Shohei Otani.
Credit: Erik Drost (licensed under CC BY 2.0)

With baseball’s All-Star Game scheduled for Tuesday evening, the first half of the Major League Baseball (MLB) season is in the books. One player has already etched a historic performance in 2021, drawing comparisons to none other than the great Babe Ruth. That player is Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani has earned the nickname “Shotime” for his dazzling play at the plate, on the base paths, and even on the mound.

Ohtani is a two-way player—that is, a player who excels at both hitting and pitching. In the higher levels of professional baseball, most pitchers are highly specialized in that role at the expense of poor hitting. However, Ohtani has excelled at both during his career. He is also one of the fastest baserunners in MLB. Ohtani stands 6 feet 4 inches (193 centimeters) tall and weighs 210 pounds (95 kilograms). He bats left-handed and throws right-handed. He is a starting pitcher, pitching approximately every five days. During games in which he does not pitch, he serves as the Angels’ designated hitter (DH). A designated hitter bats during a game but does not play in the field.

In 2018, Ohtani’s first season with the Angels, he went 4-2 with a 3.31 earned run average (ERA), also collecting 22 home runs, 10 stolen bases, and a .285 batting average. He earned the American League Rookie of the Year award with his performance. Ohtani suffered an elbow injury at the end of the 2018 season that required surgery. His recovery left him unable to pitch in 2019, but he served as the Angels’ designated hitter for much of the year. He suffered a knee injury in September 2019 that also required surgery. Ohtani struggled through his recovery and a schedule disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. He reinjured his elbow after pitching in just two games.

A fully healthy Ohtani made a historic performance in the first half of the 2021 season. As a pitcher, Ohtani went 4-1 with a 3.49 ERA. He hit 33 home runs, stole 12 bases, and posted a .279 average. He hit well even during a period when offensive statistics were down across the Major Leagues.

Early in his career, Ohtani did not bat in the games he pitched. Another player would be used as the designated hitter to bat in his place. In 2021, the Angels manager Joe Maddon declined to include a designated hitter in many games in which Ohtani pitched, letting Ohtani bat for himself. Such a move was virtually unheard of, as the designated hitter rule was designed to replace the pitcher with a stronger offensive player at the plate. Ohtani was selected to the 2021 MLB All-Star Game as both a pitcher and a DH. It was the first time a player was named an All-Star as both a pitcher and a hitter. Ohtani also became the first pitcher invited to compete in the Home Run Derby, a showcase of MLB’s most powerful hitters. His exceptional two-way production was comparable only to that of Ruth, who was a two-way player during parts of the 1918 and 1919 seasons.

Ohtani was born July 5, 1994, in Oshu, Japan. His father played baseball and his mother played badminton. Shohei started playing baseball at a young age. He remained near his hometown to attend Hanamaki Higashi High School. There, he developed into the top-ranked baseball prospect in Japan. Ohtani was drafted by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), Japan’s highest professional baseball league, in 2013. He was one of the hardest-throwing pitchers and fastest runners in NPB. His batting initially lagged behind his pitching, but he produced an outstanding offensive season in 2016, hitting 22 home runs and batting .322 over 104 games.

After the end of the 2017 NPB season, Ohtani requested that the Nippon-Ham Fighters make him available to MLB teams. Under an agreement between MLB and NPB, Japanese players under 25 years of age could only sign a minor-league MLB contract and earn a league-minimum salary. Ohtani, who was 23 at the time, thus gave up the opportunity to negotiate a large MLB contract in order to enter the league at a younger age. Most of the 30 MLB teams offered to sign Ohtani. Ohtani accepted a contract from the Los Angeles Angels.

Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record with his 715th homer. Aaron held the record over 30 years. He holds the major league record for runs batted in with 2,297. This photo shows Aaron batting at the 1974 All-Star Game.
Credit: © Bettmann/Corbis Images

Baseball lost a living legend with the death of Hank Aaron at 86. Aaron was one of the best players in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed the “Hammer” or “Hammerin’ Hank,” Aaron played 23 MLB seasons from 1954 through 1976, nearly all of them with the Milwaukee and then Atlanta Braves. A consistent and powerful hitter, Aaron’s 2,297 career runs batted in (RBI’s) are the most in MLB history. He also ranks second in career home runs (755), third in career hits (3,771) and games played (3,298), and fourth in runs scored (2,174). Aaron was also an outstanding defensive player, winning three Gold Gloves as the best right fielder in the National League (NL). Aaron was an All-Star every season from 1955 through 1975, and he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. After his playing career, Aaron served as an executive in the Braves organization.

Henry Louis Aaron was born on Feb. 5, 1934, in Mobile, Alabama. Aaron’s brother Tommie (1939-1984) also later played for the Braves. Henry began playing semiprofessional baseball while still in high school. After a brief time playing in the Negro leagues, Aaron signed a minor league contract with the Boston Braves in 1952.

The Braves moved to Milwaukee in 1953, and Aaron debuted for the team in 1954. Now often called “Hank,” Aaron was named the NL Most Valuable Player in 1957, a season in which he and fellow Braves stars Eddie Mathews and Warren Spahn led the team to a World Series title. The Braves moved to Atlanta in 1966. Aaron’s consistency and durability allowed him to put up remarkable offensive numbers throughout his career. He hit 24 or more home runs every year from 1955 through 1973, including 8 seasons of 40 or more. He drove in 100 or more runs 11 times, hit .300 or better 14 times, and scored 100 runs or more 15 times. On April 8, 1974, Aaron hit the 715th home run of his career, surpassing Babe Ruth as the all-time MLB home run king. After the 1974 season, Aaron returned to Milwaukee, this time playing for the American League’s Brewers. He retired after the 1976 season. Both the Braves and the Brewers retired Aaron’s uniform number 44.

In 1976, Aaron received the Spingarn Medal, the highest honor given by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In 2002, Aaron was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor awarded by the president of the United States.

In August 2007, San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds hit his 756th career home run, surpassing Aaron on the all-time list. Suspicions of performance-enhancing drug use persistently surrounded Bonds, however, and many still consider Aaron to be the legitimate home run king.

Team publicity photo for the 1919 Chicago American Giants, a team that played in the Negro leagues.
Credit: Public Domain

Forty-eight years after his death, the baseball star Jackie Robinson just got 38 more hits. In December 2020, Major League Baseball (MLB) decided to grant major-league status to the Negro leagues—recognizing Negro league accomplishments as equal to those in the American and National leagues. The Negro leagues were professional baseball leagues formed for Black players, who were barred from playing alongside whites because of racial segregation. The leagues operated from 1920 to 1962.

Negro league teams were a source of pride for Black communities, where competition was just as fierce and the level of play just as high as in the segregated American and National leagues. Baseball historians agree that many players in the Negro leagues would have shone in the white leagues. Black entrepreneurs operated many of the teams and employed Black people from the local community as ticket-takers, ushers, and vendors.

The MLB plans to review the statistics and records of the approximately 3,400 players who played in the Negro leagues from 1920 to 1948 and incorporate them into major league historical records. The records from the Negro leagues are fragmentary, so the MLB will work with historians and statisticians to search for and review data from the period. The process will be ongoing, with records being updated as new box scores come to light.

In 1945, before the Brooklyn (now Los Angeles) Dodgers fielded Robinson, he played 26 games with the powerhouse Kansas City Monarchs, posting a blistering .384/.445/.606 slash line. Two years later, Robinson became the first Black player in the modern history of the MLB. The stats of some other early crossover stars, such as Larry Doby and Satchel Paige, will be greatly bolstered. Players who spent their entire careers in the Negro leagues, such as Cool Papa Bell, Oscar Charleston, Josh Gibson, and Buck Leonard, will gain entry into the major league record books.

Satchel Paige pitched 18 seasons in the Negro leagues before entering Major League Baseball in 1948 at age 42. Credit: AP/Wide World

The decision makes some amends for a double injustice inflicted upon Black baseball players. First, they were barred from playing on major league teams. Then, their achievements were downplayed or dismissed because of a lack of MLB play. No Negro league stars were enshrined in baseball’s Hall of Fame until the induction of Paige in 1971.

The inclusion of Negro league statistics in the official baseball record books comes too late to offer any consolation to most of the leagues’ veterans. However, it recognizes these players’ incredible talent and their importance in the fight for racial equality and the history of the game. These records will testify to their dogged determination to play America’s pastime in the face of great injustice.

The Los Angeles Dodgers pour out of the dugout to celebrate their World Series victory after relief pitcher Julio Urias (foreground) strikes out Willy Adames of the Tampa Bay Rays to give the Dodgers the 3-1 win at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, on Oct. 27, 2020.
Credit: © Tom Pennington, Getty Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers, one of the best teams in baseball over the past four years, finally have a championship to show for it. They defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 on October 27 to win the 2020 World Series in six games. It was the team’s first championship since 1988.

The Rays took an early 1-0 lead in Game 6 on a home run from rookie Randy Arozarena. Starting pitcher Blake Snell tied Dodger batters in knots for the first five innings. But after Snell yielded a sixth-inning single, Rays manager Kevin Cash opted to remove him in favor of the team’s formidable bullpen. The decision immediately backfired as reliever Nick Anderson allowed two runs to score. It was all the offense LA would need, as manager Dave Roberts mixed-and-matched seven different pitchers in a stifling performance. Game 6 featured a total of 27 strikeouts, the most ever in a 9-inning World Series game.

Both teams emerged from an abbreviated 60-game regular season with the best records in their respective leagues and survived a grueling playoff schedule featuring an additional round of games. The Dodgers had reached the World Series in two out of the previous three years, only to lose to the American League (AL) club. Their 2017 defeat was rendered especially bitter when a subsequent revealed that the Houston Astros, to whom the Dodgers lost, had been cheating. From 2016 to 2018 and possibly longer, Houston made use of a camera feed that was part of their home stadium’s instant replay system to view and decode opposing catcher’s hand signals. Pitch information was relayed to players in the dugout and to batters on the field. In some cases, players in the dugout cued batters to the upcoming pitch by banging on a trash can.

The 2020 Dodgers relied on contributions from many stars to take the championship. Shortstop Corey Seager was named series Most Valuable Player (MVP) with a .400 batting average and 2 home runs. Outfielder Mookie Betts, an offseason acquisition from the Boston Red Sox, delivered clutch base-running, catches, and home runs throughout the playoffs, including a homer in the eighth inning of Game 6 to pad LA’s lead. Ace starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw, much-maligned for poor performances during previous playoff runs, turned in several solid postseason outings.

The Dodgers’ celebration was marred by news of a positive COVID-19 test by third baseman Justin Turner. The veteran was removed from the game in the eighth inning after the team learned of the result. Major League Baseball (MLB) operated its postseason in a bubble like other North American sports, keeping players and team personnel confined in hotels near neutral-site ballparks. (The World Series was played entirely at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, normally home of MLB’s Texas Rangers.) Turner’s case was the first positive result during the postseason.

The Dodgers overcame a heartbreaking loss in Game 4 to win the series. The lead changed hands four times, all after the fifth inning. The game ended with the wildest play to ever occur during major-league playoff baseball. With the Rays down 7-6 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, backup outfielder Brett Phillips pinch-hit with runners on first and second. He laced a single into right-center field off Dodgers closer Kenley Jensen. Center fielder Chris Taylor bobbled the ball, allowing the tying run to waltz home. Trailing runner Randy Arozarena attempted to score as well, but he stumbled and fell while rounding third. The ball reached home in plenty of time, but catcher Will Smith, expecting a close play at the plate, spun to apply the tag too quickly. The ball clanked off his mitt and rolled into foul territory. Arozarena scrambled to his feet and stumbled home, securing a shocking 8-7 Rays victory.

The playoffs were a coming-out party for the Rays’ Arozarena. The Cuban outfielder was called up in late August and hit a robust .281/.382/.641 with 7 home runs in just 23 games. His postseason performance, however, was nothing short of historic. Over the course of 20 games, he mashed a spectacular .377/.442/.831 with a postseason-record 10 homers.

Arozarena was part of a low-cost Rays team featuring castoff veterans and young stars. Two of the Dodgers’ highest-paid players, Kershaw and Betts, together earned just $2 million less than the entire Rays roster. The small-market club was able to parlay its meager payroll into a ticket to baseball’s championship series through shrewd acquisitions, analytics, and management. The Rays will need to continue their shrewdness to stay ahead of their free-spending AL East rivals, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, in 2021 and beyond.

The Dodgers, on the other hand, combine their comparable shrewdness with a massive payroll. Betts signed a lucrative contract extension before playing even a single game in LA. Several young starters are vying to take the veteran Kershaw’s place as ace of the pitching staff, though not if the old left-hander has anything to say about it. The reigning champions may be the team to beat for years to come.

Athena, mascot for the SK Wyverns of the Korea Baseball Organization, entertains the only lively member of the crowd during a game at Happy Dream Ballpark, in Incheon, on May 5, 2020. The “fan” is a stadium worker, and the spectators have been replaced by cardboard placards. Live audiences were banned from attending as a result of social distancing measures undertaken to fight a pandemic of the coronavirus disease COVID-19.
Photo credit: © Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) threw out the first pitch of its 2020 regular season on Tuesday, May 5. To much of the rest of the world, the Korean league is known mainly as a source of pitching prospects for Major League Baseball (MLB) and as a place for foreign players to work on their swings. But, with most major sporting leagues shut down due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the KBO hoped to introduce fans around the world to their version of the pastime.

The Korean league includes 10 teams: the Kiwoom Heroes, LG Twins, Doosan Bears, SK Wyverns, KT Wiz, NC Dinos, Samsung Lions, Lotte Giants, Kia Tigers, and Hanwha Eagles. The regular season consists of 144 games, with each team playing the others 16 times. The top five teams make the playoffs, with the top-ranked team receiving an automatic berth in the seven-game championship series. Each line-up includes a designated hitter, similar to the rule used in MLB’s American League. Unlike MLB games, KBO games can end in ties.

Major league sports around the world have been largely shut down due to social distancing measures undertaken to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease COVID-19. In the United States, the National Basketball Association became the first major sports organization to suspend play, on March 11. MLB quickly followed, suspending and ultimately cancelling its spring training.

South Korea was able to open its baseball season at only a slight delay, thanks in part to the nation’s aggressive, coordinated response to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the game will look a little different this year. Everyone but the players is required to wear face masks, and fans, barred from the stadium, have been in some places replaced by cardboard placards.

North American fans who want to check out the action will have to become night owls—due to the time difference, live broadcasts begin in the early morning hours in the United States. But those who stay up late, get up early, or record the game may be rewarded with an earful of a uniquely Korean baseball innovation—cheer songs. Unlike MLB players, who often pick the music played as they step to the plate, Korean players have their own unique theme songs, perhaps unsurprising for a country whose thriving pop music industry gave the world such K-pop (Korean pop music) acts as PSY, BTS, and Blackpink.

April 8, 2020

Today, April 8, Behind the Headlines was originally scheduled to cover this year’s National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball championships in the United States. However, the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments were canceled in March because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The tournaments were not alone: nearly all sports leagues and sporting events have been suspended or canceled because of COVID-19, putting sports on hold in all corners of the globe. COVID-19 is a pneumonia-like disease caused by a coronavirus, a type of virus that also causes the common cold and other diseases of the upper respiratory system. To date, COVID-19 has killed more than 80,000 people among nearly 1.5 million confirmed cases.

Dodger Stadium sits empty in Los Angeles, California. Baseball stadiums, usually teeming with people at this time of year, are going unused throughout the world as leagues have been suspended or canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Credit: John McCoy/Getty Images

All collegiate and high schools sports in the United States were suspended or canceled because of COVID-19 (the schools were then closed), and Little League Baseball, too, had to put off the start of its season. In professional sports, Major League Baseball, which had begun its annual spring training, canceled all exhibition games on March 12 and indefinitely delayed the start of the regular season. Minor League Baseball shut down, as did baseball leagues in Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and other countries. The National Basketball Association suspended its season on March 11, and basketball leagues in other countries were also shut down. The recently launched XFL football league suspended its first season on March 12, and the fledgling Basketball Africa League also lost its inaugural season, which had been scheduled to start on March 13.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the postponement of the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo until 2021. Credit: Pakpoom Phummee/Shutterstock

Major League Soccer and the National Hockey League suspended their seasons in March, and other hockey and soccer leagues around the world were forced to do the same. Rugby and cricket leagues and tournaments were suspended, as were the upcoming Masters Tournament, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and British Open golf competitions. In tennis, Wimbledon was canceled for the first time since World War II (1939-1945), and the French Open was postponed. The Kentucky Derby horse race and the Indianapolis 500 auto race were postponed, and the Monaco Gran Prix auto race was canceled. (All three races are usually run in May.) Marathons around the world have been canceled or postponed, and athletes of all types will have to wait for the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, which were postponed a year until July 2021.

This illustration of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) shows the spikes on the outer surface of the virus that appear as a corona, giving the virus its name. Credit: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of sports continued to be played without fans in attendance, but fears for the safety of athletes quickly led to the canceling of the competitions themselves. Suspended and postponed sports leagues and events have issued optimistic timelines about when they will resume or take place. All timelines, however, depend on the containment or continued spread of COVID-19.

The sports cancellations are part of social distancing, also known as physical distancing, an effort to slow or stop the spread of a contagious disease by limiting contact between people. Social distancing is most effective against illnesses that can be transmitted by coughing or sneezing, direct or indirect physical contact, or through the air. Typical social distancing measures call for the closing of such public places as sports arenas, schools, restaurants, museums, and many offices and stores. They may also call for people to maintain a distance of around 6 feet (2 meters) between them in public places.

February 3, 2020

Today, February 3, marks 100 years since the 1920 formation of the Negro National League (NNL), the first of the official professional baseball Negro leagues. The Negro leagues were for black players, who were barred from playing alongside white players because of racial segregation. The Negro leagues operated until 1962.

The 1919 Chicago American Giants pose for the official team photo. In 1920, the manager Rube Foster (top row without uniform) led the team to the inaugural Negro National League title. Credit: Public Domain

An all-black professional baseball team existed as early as 1885. For many years, black teams played one another as independent teams. They also played all-white teams in exhibition games. Rube Foster, a former pitcher and the owner and manager of a black team, the Chicago American Giants, met with seven other team owners in Kansas City to form the Negro National League in 1920. The first season, the league included Foster’s American Giants and a second Chicago team known simply as the Giants as well as the Cincinnati Cuban Stars, Dayton Marcos, Detroit Stars, Indianapolis ABC’s, Kansas City Monarchs, and—somewhat confusingly—another Giants ball club in St. Louis. The teams did not play the same amount of games, and opponents often included independent black ball clubs in other cities, but the Chicago American Giants won the first title with a 43-17-2 record against NNL opponents.

Jackie Robinson, shown here sliding into home plate, was the first African American player in modern Major League Baseball. Robinson played for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League before joining the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Credit: UPI/Corbis-Bettmann

The NNL operated successfully until 1931. After that, the two dominant leagues were a new Negro National League (1933-1948) and the Negro American League (1937-1962). The best players were featured in an annual all-star exhibition called the East-West Game, and from 1942 to 1948, the league champions met in the Negro World Series.

Satchel Paige pitched 18 seasons in the Negro leagues before entering Major League Baseball in 1948 at age 42. Credit: AP/Wide World

In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first black player in modern Major League Baseball (MLB). After Robinson’s success with the Brooklyn Dodgers, MLB teams quickly signed star players from the Negro leagues, leading to the decline and eventual end of those leagues.

Larry Doby played for the Newark Eagles of the Negro National League before making his MLB debut with the Cleveland Indians on July 5, 1947. Credit: AP Photo

Baseball historians agree that many Negro league players would have succeeded in Major League Baseball. Such Negro league players as Roy Campanella, Larry Doby, and Satchel Paige later starred in MLB and were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Other Hall of Famers who spent their entire careers in the Negro leagues included Cool Papa Bell, Oscar Charleston, Josh Gibson, and Buck Leonard.

January 27, 2020

On Tuesday, January 21, Major League Baseball (MLB) greats Derek Jeter and Larry Walker were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Jeter, an outstanding all-around shortstop, earned 99.7 percent of the possible votes (396 of 397) in his first year of eligibility. Walker, a powerful outfielder in his 10th and final year of eligibility, received 76.6 percent of votes cast, just exceeding the 75 percent required for election. The former catcher Ted Simmons, elected in December 2019 by the Modern Baseball Era Committee, will also be enshrined in the Hall of Fame on July 26, 2020. Joining the players will be the sportswriter Nick Cafardo, the broadcaster Ken “Hawk” Harrelson, and the former players’ union executive Marvin Miller.

The longtime Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter will headline baseball’s Hall of Fame class in 2020. Credit: © Rebecca Cook, Reuters/Landov

Derek Jeter, who was born in New Jersey and grew up in Michigan, played 20 MLB seasons from 1995 through 2014 with the New York Yankees. He won five Gold Glove awards as the best defensive shortstop in the American League (AL). He also won five Silver Sluggers as the best hitter at his position. A career .310 hitter, Jeter was a 14-time All-Star, hit 260 home runs, and his 3,465 career hits are the most ever by an MLB shortstop. Known for his leadership as well as his playing ability, Jeter served as team captain of the Yankees from 2003 through 2014. During Jeter’s time in New York, the Yankees won seven AL pennants and five World Series.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum honors players and other individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the sport. It is located in Cooperstown, New York. Credit: National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

The Canadian Larry Walker played 17 seasons for the Montreal Expos, Colorado Rockies, and St. Louis Cardinals from 1989 to 2005.  Walker blossomed in Montreal, where in 1992 he made the first of five career All-Star teams. It was in Denver, however, that Walker made his case for the Hall of Fame. In nine full seasons with the Rockies, he batted .300 or better seven times and led MLB in hitting in 1998 (.363), 1999 (.379), and 2001 (.350). In 1997, he hit .366 with 49 home runs and 130 runs batted in (RBI’s) and was named the National League (NL) Most Valuable Player. Walker ended his career with 2,160 hits, 383 home runs, 1,311 RBI’s, and a .313 lifetime batting average.

Michigan’s Ted Simmons played 21 seasons with the Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers, and Atlanta Braves from 1968 to 1988. Simmons become an everyday catcher in 1971, and in 1972 he made the first of eight All-Star teams. An exceptional switch-hitter, Simmons hit .300 or better seven times, hit 20 or more home runs six times, and topped 90 RBI’s eight times. He retired with 248 home runs, 2,472 career hits (second all-time to Iván Rodríguez among MLB catchers) and 1,389 RBI’s (second to Yogi Berra among catchers).

Nick Cafardo, a longtime beat writer for the Boston Red Sox, joined the Hall of Fame as the winner of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award “for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.” Hawk Harrelson, who hit 131 home runs as an MLB player in the 1960′s, broadcast MLB games–mainly for the Chicago White Sox–from 1975 through 2018 and entered the Hall as the winner of the Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasters. Marvin Miller oversaw the advent of player free agency during his tenure as the executive director for the Major League Baseball Players Association from 1966 to 1982.

Hall of Fame voting is based upon a player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team or teams on which the player played. Votes are cast by members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America with at least 10 consecutive years of service. To be eligible, ballplayers must have spent at least 10 seasons in the majors and been retired for 5 years. Exceptions are made in the case of severe injury or sudden death, such as with Roberto Clemente. Eligible players remain on the Hall of Fame ballot for 10 years, after which they can gain entry only though the select eras committees. The eras committees, made up of former executives, managers, players, and umpires, also choose nonplayers such as Cafardo, Harrelson, and Miller for entry into the Hall of Fame.