I Love This Story
June 6, 2008 – 12:09 pm Posted by jason in » Causes, MLB
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Former Yankee great Dave Winfield arranged so part of the Major League Baseball amateur draft this weekend included old Negro League players who never made the majors — but should have — due to the color barrier. So guys like 103 year-old Millito Navarro (a Puerto Rican who played with Cool Papa Bell and Satchel Paige) got drafted by the Yankees. And 87 year-old Joe B. Scott got picked up by the Brewers.
Excellent idea, Dave.
“This is about letting them share,” Winfield said. “They’re on the fringes of the baseball family. Bring them in a little closer. Let them share in what the game has become. You have to build a platform and let people know that these guys are important. These guys were their heritage. Their connection to the sport is important. That’s what it’s about, why they’re still alive.
“The main thing is I’m happy that we’re doing something this year. You wait too long and there’d be nobody left. I think we have one chance to do something really good. It’ll be a great day.”
Winfield got the idea when Negro League player, coach, and statesman Buck O’Neill passed away, never having been honored by Cooperstown. “I kept thinking we should have done something for Buck,” Winfield said.
One of my big regrets in life was in 2006 when I was waiting for a Southwest Airlines flight in Kansas City, bound for Chicago. I saw an old black guy wearing a baseball cap and a Negro League Museum t-shirt sitting in one of the chairs in the waiting area. He was laughing and telling a story to the guy next to him. I heard his conversation partner say the name “Buck.” It was Buck O’Neill. I told my wife who he was. She told me I should find a way to sit next to him when we boarded. And when I walked onto the plane, the seat across the aisle from Buck was empty.
I smiled at him and kept walking. Stupid, stupid, stupid Jason. I’ve regretted it ever since.
Buck O’Neill died four months later, in October 2006.
Here’s a lesson, kids. Don’t pass those opportunities up. They won’t come again.
2 Responses to “I Love This Story”
By Ron Davis on Jun 8, 2008 | Reply
I used to see Buck O’Neill around the Royals training camp back when they trained in Florida. He was always very pleasant, chatting with the fans, signing autographs, and joking with the kids.
By Katy Widrick on Jun 12, 2008 | Reply
My company does video news stories on great people with awesome attitudes — they don’t get much better than some of the Negro League players who broke barriers in baseball!
You can see a video we did at MLB’s recent symbolic draft of Negro League players, which includes Millito Navarro, Peanut Johnson, Charley Pride and Bill Blair as well as Ken Griffey and Dave Winfield.
I hope you enjoy it!
http://growingbolder.com/media/Sports/Baseball/Righting-a-Wrong-155775.html