1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,760 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:13,920 Speaker 1: Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:14,000 --> 00:00:16,720 Speaker 1: I'm Katie Lambert and I'm Sarah Dowdy. And the other 4 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:19,599 Speaker 1: day I was on Atlanta's public transit system and I 5 00:00:19,680 --> 00:00:22,160 Speaker 1: noticed this guy who's wearing a jacket and it's for 6 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:26,840 Speaker 1: the Negro leagues, the baseball teams. And what specifically caught 7 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:29,880 Speaker 1: my attention was the logo and it said for the 8 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:33,440 Speaker 1: brothers who played but didn't get paid. And we're gonna 9 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:35,800 Speaker 1: be talking about that today. I missed so much by 10 00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:39,479 Speaker 1: not writing Marda. This is the second installment in our 11 00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:43,239 Speaker 1: series on Black History Month, and today we're going to 12 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:46,920 Speaker 1: be talking about Satchel Page. And when you think of 13 00:00:46,960 --> 00:00:49,800 Speaker 1: the Negro leagues and the integration of baseball, you're probably 14 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:52,479 Speaker 1: thinking of Jackie robinsoner at least Sarah and I were. 15 00:00:52,800 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 1: He was the first to break a sixty year color 16 00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:57,520 Speaker 1: line and he went on to be a star, but 17 00:00:57,640 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 1: he was not that huge star when he wing the 18 00:01:00,240 --> 00:01:03,920 Speaker 1: Brooklyn Dodgers in ninety seven. He was young, and he 19 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:07,240 Speaker 1: was chosen for his promise but also for his ability 20 00:01:07,319 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: to withstand the inevitable racial slurs. Yeah, he was a 21 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:14,920 Speaker 1: safe public face for the integration of baseball. The big 22 00:01:14,920 --> 00:01:18,240 Speaker 1: star at the Negro leagues at the time was Statchel Page, 23 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:21,440 Speaker 1: and he had been working in these subtle ways to 24 00:01:21,480 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: integrate baseball decades before Robinson was ever signed, and he 25 00:01:26,240 --> 00:01:29,240 Speaker 1: played with and against some of the most talented players 26 00:01:29,240 --> 00:01:33,760 Speaker 1: in baseball, white and black. He entertained people across the country, 27 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:36,920 Speaker 1: and he eventually earned one of the highest salaries in baseball. 28 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:41,199 Speaker 1: But because of this unspoken segregation of the major leagues, 29 00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:44,240 Speaker 1: he doesn't become a big leaguer until he's forty two 30 00:01:44,319 --> 00:01:47,680 Speaker 1: years old, which makes him the oldest rookie in history. 31 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:52,160 Speaker 1: So let's get started on this career. Because his prime 32 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 1: seasons were spent before baseball was integrated, we don't have 33 00:01:56,040 --> 00:01:58,680 Speaker 1: a bunch of fantastic stats to throw at you, or 34 00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:01,960 Speaker 1: we don't of the saber metrics um, but a few 35 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:04,560 Speaker 1: to get us started. He was reputed to have pitched 36 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:07,960 Speaker 1: two thousand, five hundred games during his career. He won 37 00:02:08,040 --> 00:02:10,519 Speaker 1: two thousand of them, so think about that for a second. 38 00:02:10,800 --> 00:02:14,040 Speaker 1: And he pitched fifty five no hitters by his own estimate, 39 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 1: which is pretty impressive. Insane, absolutely insane. So consequently, some 40 00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,960 Speaker 1: people call him the best picture in history. And a 41 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:25,560 Speaker 1: bunch of our details, we'd like to say, come from 42 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:28,560 Speaker 1: a Fresh Air interview with author Larry Tie, who wrote 43 00:02:28,560 --> 00:02:31,160 Speaker 1: a book called Satchell, The Life and Times of an 44 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:33,440 Speaker 1: American Legend. If you'd like to pick it up, yeah, 45 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:36,560 Speaker 1: So we're gonna start at the beginning. Satchell was born 46 00:02:36,680 --> 00:02:40,560 Speaker 1: July seven, nineteen o six, in Mobile, Alabama as Leroy 47 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:44,800 Speaker 1: Robert Page, and his family changed their name to Page 48 00:02:44,880 --> 00:02:47,400 Speaker 1: with an Eye in the middle from Page with no 49 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:51,040 Speaker 1: Eye because he said it's made them sound more high toned. 50 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:53,080 Speaker 1: Mom thought it looked too much like a page in 51 00:02:53,120 --> 00:02:56,240 Speaker 1: a book. I think so. He's the seventh of twelve kids, 52 00:02:56,400 --> 00:02:59,800 Speaker 1: and because his father isn't really a major presence in 53 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:03,200 Speaker 1: their life, the children learn early on that they're going 54 00:03:03,240 --> 00:03:05,440 Speaker 1: to be poor and they have to earn what they can. 55 00:03:05,560 --> 00:03:09,160 Speaker 1: And Um, just one thing though that he does appreciate 56 00:03:09,240 --> 00:03:11,480 Speaker 1: from his father. He gets his approval to be a 57 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:15,200 Speaker 1: baseball player, even as a kid, instead of a landscaper. 58 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:18,120 Speaker 1: This is something that his mom never approves of. No, 59 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:21,000 Speaker 1: she said that she thought baseball was sent in always 60 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:25,920 Speaker 1: plan and never working. Dad. So by the age of nine, Um, 61 00:03:25,960 --> 00:03:29,480 Speaker 1: Satchels working at a railway station and he's toting bags 62 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: or satchels specifically, so he develops the system of pulleys 63 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 1: and ropes so he can carry multiple bags and make 64 00:03:37,400 --> 00:03:40,080 Speaker 1: more money. And his friends tell him that you look 65 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:42,760 Speaker 1: like a walking Satchell tree. So that's how he gets 66 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:45,120 Speaker 1: his nickname. And this is one of my favorite quotes 67 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:47,960 Speaker 1: from Sarah's outline. She says, young Satchel has a knack 68 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,160 Speaker 1: for hurling things, and not just baseballs. But it's true. 69 00:03:51,280 --> 00:03:53,480 Speaker 1: He could throw a rock or a brick and take 70 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:56,800 Speaker 1: down a chicken or a squirrel at tremendous speeds, and 71 00:03:56,840 --> 00:04:01,720 Speaker 1: he can also hit kids. He fights with rival gangs 72 00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 1: of kids and um he would psych out his his 73 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:10,320 Speaker 1: opponents by throwing what he later called the hesitation pitch. Basically, 74 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:14,120 Speaker 1: he'd lift his arm and start to pitch and his 75 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:17,480 Speaker 1: opponent would duck, and after they had ducked and they 76 00:04:17,480 --> 00:04:21,159 Speaker 1: couldn't move, he'd nail him with the rock or whatever 77 00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:24,599 Speaker 1: he was throwing. But in his youth, Satchell turned to 78 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:28,040 Speaker 1: petty crime and was sent to reform school, the Alabama 79 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:31,520 Speaker 1: Reform School for Juvenile Negro lawbreakers, and the school was 80 00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:34,880 Speaker 1: set up along the Booker tea model of Negro self help. 81 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:38,279 Speaker 1: So they work hard and they also do athletics, which 82 00:04:38,839 --> 00:04:40,839 Speaker 1: is a lot like Babe Ruth. Sarah was telling me 83 00:04:40,880 --> 00:04:42,960 Speaker 1: earlier that he also went to reform school and that's 84 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:45,760 Speaker 1: where he learned how to play. Yeah, and this ends 85 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:47,520 Speaker 1: up being a good thing for Satchel. He has a 86 00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 1: coach who recognizes his ability and um he leaves the 87 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:57,679 Speaker 1: school with not only athletic prowess, but discipline and baseball skills. 88 00:04:57,839 --> 00:05:01,960 Speaker 1: And by nine he pres ends himself to Candy Jim Taylor, 89 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:05,560 Speaker 1: who manages the Mobile Tigers, and uh, there are a 90 00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:09,000 Speaker 1: semi pro black team. He gets the job by sending 91 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:12,480 Speaker 1: him ten fastballs and that's it. He's one of them. 92 00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 1: How I got my job here at how Stuff Works 93 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:17,479 Speaker 1: a little known story. He joined the Negro leagues in 94 00:05:17,560 --> 00:05:20,719 Speaker 1: nineteen twenty six for the Chattanooga Black Lookouts, and he 95 00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:23,239 Speaker 1: pitched for a bunch of teams in both the Negro 96 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:26,800 Speaker 1: Southern Association and the Negro National League, um the Birmingham 97 00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:31,480 Speaker 1: Black Barons, the Baltimore Black Sox, the Cleveland Cubs, Pittsburgh Crawfords, 98 00:05:31,560 --> 00:05:34,800 Speaker 1: Kansas City Monarchs, the New York Black Yankees, and the 99 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:37,480 Speaker 1: Memphis Red Sox. His career really kind of takes off 100 00:05:37,480 --> 00:05:40,200 Speaker 1: with the Crawfords. But we're gonna talk a little bit 101 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:43,320 Speaker 1: about what the Negro leagues are all about, because I 102 00:05:43,320 --> 00:05:45,400 Speaker 1: don't know. I don't think we knew very much about 103 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:48,760 Speaker 1: them before. No, I definitely didn't. So they're actually professional 104 00:05:48,760 --> 00:05:51,919 Speaker 1: black ballplayers as far back as the nineteenth century. But 105 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:56,039 Speaker 1: Rube Foster is the guy who really brings um a 106 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:59,640 Speaker 1: functioning Negro league together in the nineteen twenties, and he 107 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,720 Speaker 1: actually dreams of having this black major league that would 108 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:05,760 Speaker 1: play the best of the white big league clubs, and 109 00:06:05,760 --> 00:06:11,200 Speaker 1: they come together in a multi racial World Series at 110 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,280 Speaker 1: the end of the year, black versus White. And there's 111 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 1: some major financial instability in the league's but by World 112 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:20,760 Speaker 1: War Two, Negro baseball was a two million dollar a 113 00:06:20,839 --> 00:06:24,039 Speaker 1: year industry. Journeyman players are making about four hundred dollars 114 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:26,920 Speaker 1: a month, but someone who's a star like Satil Page 115 00:06:27,000 --> 00:06:29,800 Speaker 1: could get a thousand dollars a month. But there's a 116 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:32,159 Speaker 1: little more to it than that. Yeah, the black players 117 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:34,760 Speaker 1: are playing a lot of games, like up to a 118 00:06:34,839 --> 00:06:38,440 Speaker 1: hundred and fifty games in a season, and they're working 119 00:06:39,360 --> 00:06:41,960 Speaker 1: all year pretty much most of them. They're having to 120 00:06:41,960 --> 00:06:43,839 Speaker 1: go out in barnstorm, which is something that we're going 121 00:06:43,880 --> 00:06:46,440 Speaker 1: to talk about later. But another thing we should mention 122 00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:50,000 Speaker 1: is that they're not always going up against other Negro 123 00:06:50,080 --> 00:06:53,360 Speaker 1: league teams. You think today major league baseball player plays 124 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:57,000 Speaker 1: other major league teams, right, But the majority of these 125 00:06:57,000 --> 00:07:00,440 Speaker 1: guys games are actually against white or non league team, 126 00:07:00,600 --> 00:07:04,080 Speaker 1: so they're playing outside of their own league. And Negro 127 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:07,920 Speaker 1: league baseball games were a huge part of the social 128 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:11,200 Speaker 1: life of black Americans at the time. People would dress up, 129 00:07:11,240 --> 00:07:13,560 Speaker 1: and the biggest games run Sunday afternoon, so a lot 130 00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:16,600 Speaker 1: of people would just go after church. According to Tie, 131 00:07:16,760 --> 00:07:18,520 Speaker 1: the men we've mentioned earlier who wrote the book on 132 00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:21,520 Speaker 1: Satchel Page, ministers would even let out church early so 133 00:07:21,520 --> 00:07:25,680 Speaker 1: you could go. Yeah, and Satchell becomes the star attraction 134 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:29,440 Speaker 1: of these big Sunday matchups. He's always in them. He's 135 00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:33,320 Speaker 1: always the feature draw. And he's a real showman too, 136 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:35,680 Speaker 1: in addition to being a great baseball player, and that's 137 00:07:36,120 --> 00:07:38,520 Speaker 1: part of the job for a Negro league player. You 138 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:42,680 Speaker 1: have to be showy enough to attract a white audience 139 00:07:42,720 --> 00:07:46,440 Speaker 1: as well as a black audience, and to disarm them enough. 140 00:07:46,520 --> 00:07:49,560 Speaker 1: So that um, so that they're willing to watch you, 141 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:52,200 Speaker 1: and he was good at it. One offense, little tricks 142 00:07:52,200 --> 00:07:54,120 Speaker 1: he'd like to do before the game. He'd set up 143 00:07:54,200 --> 00:07:57,559 Speaker 1: some teeny tiny object like a matchbook on the home plate, 144 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:01,520 Speaker 1: and then he'd proceed to throw pitches right over the 145 00:08:01,520 --> 00:08:05,040 Speaker 1: place ridiculously fast, pitious, so the fans would go completely 146 00:08:05,040 --> 00:08:07,360 Speaker 1: crazy and the opponents would think, what did I get 147 00:08:07,400 --> 00:08:09,960 Speaker 1: myself into? You? You can just imagine sitting there watching 148 00:08:09,960 --> 00:08:14,640 Speaker 1: this guy warm up basically um. And he also shuffles 149 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:17,120 Speaker 1: his six ft three frame out to the mound. He 150 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,160 Speaker 1: knows that the game can't start without him, so he 151 00:08:19,200 --> 00:08:22,080 Speaker 1: takes his time and really milks it for everything it's worth. 152 00:08:22,840 --> 00:08:25,760 Speaker 1: He's he's funny, but he also is kind of elegant, 153 00:08:25,760 --> 00:08:30,040 Speaker 1: and he never crosses a line to degrading himself. He 154 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:33,440 Speaker 1: did have a crazy wind up. Sometimes he did a single, 155 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:36,319 Speaker 1: a double, or a triple windmill before he threw. And 156 00:08:36,880 --> 00:08:40,000 Speaker 1: he did this high kick when he sling shots the 157 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:42,959 Speaker 1: ball forward. Um. There are a bunch of pictures off 158 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:46,000 Speaker 1: If you do like a Google image search for Satchel page, 159 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:47,920 Speaker 1: you're probably gonna find this picture of him with his 160 00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:53,000 Speaker 1: foot about up to his face. Um, and he names 161 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:56,239 Speaker 1: his pitches too. He calls them bloopers, loopers, and droopers. 162 00:08:56,559 --> 00:08:59,199 Speaker 1: He's got a barber pitch. He has a nightmare pitch, 163 00:08:59,240 --> 00:09:01,800 Speaker 1: which he says he'd dreamt up in a nightmare. He 164 00:09:01,880 --> 00:09:04,839 Speaker 1: has the long tim and the little tom. Uh. It's 165 00:09:04,840 --> 00:09:07,400 Speaker 1: funny those catchers say that they're all really the same pitch. 166 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:09,800 Speaker 1: It's he's got a fast pitch, and he has a 167 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:12,880 Speaker 1: really fast pitch, and then later he eventually has a 168 00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:16,000 Speaker 1: curve ball. And there were, of course no radar guns, 169 00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:18,800 Speaker 1: but he people think he pitched at about a hundred 170 00:09:18,840 --> 00:09:21,800 Speaker 1: to a hundred and five miles per hour. So back 171 00:09:21,840 --> 00:09:25,960 Speaker 1: to the barn storming we mentioned earlier. Um, he pitched 172 00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:28,600 Speaker 1: in these big Sunday matchups, but during the week he 173 00:09:28,679 --> 00:09:32,760 Speaker 1: did barnstorming, which was basically playing in any small town 174 00:09:33,120 --> 00:09:35,960 Speaker 1: that would pay him. He traveled as many as thirty 175 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:38,920 Speaker 1: thousand miles a year, and sometimes he's going up against 176 00:09:38,960 --> 00:09:43,520 Speaker 1: semi proteins, white, black, whatever. Um. Sometimes they're just country 177 00:09:43,520 --> 00:09:46,679 Speaker 1: boys who have pulled together their money and they want 178 00:09:46,679 --> 00:09:49,760 Speaker 1: to play against a great baseball player. UM. In the winter, 179 00:09:49,840 --> 00:09:52,319 Speaker 1: he goes to the Dominican Republic and to the Mexican 180 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:56,600 Speaker 1: leagues to play, and someone is good as Satchel could 181 00:09:56,600 --> 00:09:59,920 Speaker 1: even work out special deals where say he pitched one 182 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:02,640 Speaker 1: inning or three innings for a team UM either black 183 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:05,719 Speaker 1: or white as a guest star. But the crazy thing 184 00:10:05,800 --> 00:10:10,079 Speaker 1: here is Satchel pitched every day and pictures don't do that. 185 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:13,199 Speaker 1: I mean, we were thinking about today. You'll see a 186 00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:16,160 Speaker 1: picture after you after he's done a few innings with 187 00:10:16,240 --> 00:10:19,079 Speaker 1: ice on his shoulder in the locker room, and then 188 00:10:19,120 --> 00:10:20,959 Speaker 1: he goes on rest for a while. But this guy 189 00:10:21,040 --> 00:10:23,320 Speaker 1: is out there pitching every single day and he just 190 00:10:23,360 --> 00:10:26,720 Speaker 1: gets better and better. But the barn storming can be 191 00:10:26,880 --> 00:10:30,319 Speaker 1: a little scary, especially in the Jim Crow South, because 192 00:10:31,200 --> 00:10:33,560 Speaker 1: I mean, you never know what's going to happen. So 193 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:37,000 Speaker 1: Satchel did have some conditions for when he was barn storming. 194 00:10:37,200 --> 00:10:39,480 Speaker 1: There was no game unless he had somewhere to sleep 195 00:10:39,559 --> 00:10:42,600 Speaker 1: and eat afterward, which you know fair enough. It's basically 196 00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:44,520 Speaker 1: like we're not going to play baseball with you and 197 00:10:44,559 --> 00:10:48,000 Speaker 1: then risk getting driven out of town after this, UM 198 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:50,160 Speaker 1: I liked to t I actually called him a quiet 199 00:10:50,240 --> 00:10:53,960 Speaker 1: racial pioneer for this, just putting down his foot to 200 00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:56,840 Speaker 1: a certain extent. Uh. One thing he would also do 201 00:10:56,880 --> 00:11:00,160 Speaker 1: and sometimes this was just to show his own team 202 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:03,360 Speaker 1: or audience how good he really was. But oftentimes it 203 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:07,520 Speaker 1: happened after a racial slur. But he would dismiss his fielders, 204 00:11:07,600 --> 00:11:10,439 Speaker 1: like in the middle of a game with loaded bases, 205 00:11:10,480 --> 00:11:14,040 Speaker 1: he would dismiss his fielders. And sometimes he'd just bring 206 00:11:14,080 --> 00:11:17,400 Speaker 1: in the outfield. Um, so if you if you hit 207 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:19,840 Speaker 1: a ball into the outfield, you'd have an automatic home run, 208 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:22,840 Speaker 1: and they just sit around pretending to play poker with 209 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:26,360 Speaker 1: the infielders. Sometimes he'd bring in all of his fielders, 210 00:11:26,360 --> 00:11:30,200 Speaker 1: send them all, you know, off, And he'd do this 211 00:11:30,320 --> 00:11:34,440 Speaker 1: against big league people to not just second rate opponents 212 00:11:34,480 --> 00:11:36,720 Speaker 1: who was trying to even the playing field a little. 213 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:41,960 Speaker 1: This was against legitimate competitors. I think he proved his point. 214 00:11:43,200 --> 00:11:45,760 Speaker 1: But all of this barn storming. Part of it was 215 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:50,720 Speaker 1: exposing white audiences to black players and maybe perhaps making 216 00:11:50,760 --> 00:11:53,040 Speaker 1: some of them a little more open minded about the 217 00:11:53,080 --> 00:11:56,680 Speaker 1: idea of an integrated league. Yeah, this is definitely paving 218 00:11:57,120 --> 00:12:00,400 Speaker 1: the way for the ultimate integration of baseball. He played 219 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:02,480 Speaker 1: in a lot of places where there were practically no 220 00:12:02,640 --> 00:12:06,280 Speaker 1: black people at all, like in Bismarck, North Dakota. Yeah, 221 00:12:06,400 --> 00:12:08,720 Speaker 1: he actually walks out on a contract to go play 222 00:12:08,720 --> 00:12:12,760 Speaker 1: on this white semi pro team in Bismarck. And it's 223 00:12:13,320 --> 00:12:16,600 Speaker 1: integrated baseball, a decade before it's integrated in the majors. 224 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:19,280 Speaker 1: And it's almost a test too, you know, like what 225 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:24,280 Speaker 1: does a integrated baseball field look like? And it looks good. 226 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:27,680 Speaker 1: Satchel becomes a big star in Bismarck. After a few games, 227 00:12:27,800 --> 00:12:31,440 Speaker 1: you know, he's not ultimately welcome there, but it ends 228 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:33,560 Speaker 1: up working out really well for him. He takes the 229 00:12:33,559 --> 00:12:36,680 Speaker 1: team all the way to a regional tournament. As Satchell's 230 00:12:36,679 --> 00:12:40,480 Speaker 1: reputation grows, he starts collaborating with some white major leaguers 231 00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:43,199 Speaker 1: who are also barn storming. He teams up with Dizzy 232 00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:45,800 Speaker 1: Dean for a while because they both know that they'll 233 00:12:45,840 --> 00:12:48,120 Speaker 1: make money from people who want to see the greatest 234 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:51,200 Speaker 1: of the great face off, but also from people who 235 00:12:51,240 --> 00:12:53,240 Speaker 1: just want to see a race battle. Yeah, and this 236 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:57,040 Speaker 1: of course changes opinions with some white players too. If 237 00:12:57,080 --> 00:12:59,480 Speaker 1: you play with someone and you get to know them, 238 00:12:59,520 --> 00:13:01,480 Speaker 1: you might come to respect them a little more. And 239 00:13:01,520 --> 00:13:04,520 Speaker 1: this happens with Dizzy. He actually says stuff like if 240 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:07,040 Speaker 1: Satchel and nine teens up together, we'd clenched the pennant 241 00:13:07,040 --> 00:13:08,880 Speaker 1: by the fourth of July and we could go fishing 242 00:13:08,960 --> 00:13:11,880 Speaker 1: until the World Series. So this is a guy who 243 00:13:11,920 --> 00:13:16,160 Speaker 1: comes to respect someone who who we didn't ultimately converted. 244 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:19,640 Speaker 1: Good old boy, and these matches proved that Satchel is 245 00:13:19,800 --> 00:13:22,520 Speaker 1: just as good as anybody else. He struck out Roger's 246 00:13:22,520 --> 00:13:26,200 Speaker 1: hornsby five times in one game. Um, in a nineteen 247 00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:29,079 Speaker 1: thirty four game that went into thirteen innings with Dizzy Dean, 248 00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:32,720 Speaker 1: he got a one oh victory. Pretty amazing stuff. He 249 00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:36,480 Speaker 1: makes a lot of money too, Satchel does. By nineteen forty, 250 00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:40,440 Speaker 1: he's making forty thou dollars a year and um, according 251 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:43,000 Speaker 1: to Tie, that's four times what the Yankees were making, 252 00:13:43,080 --> 00:13:47,439 Speaker 1: which I thoroughly approve of. Yes, Um, it's exactly what 253 00:13:47,559 --> 00:13:51,320 Speaker 1: DiMaggio was making. And it's twice what Ted Williams was making. 254 00:13:51,400 --> 00:13:54,400 Speaker 1: And he lives it up too. He's got a closet 255 00:13:54,480 --> 00:13:57,480 Speaker 1: just for his shoes, four for his suits. He's got 256 00:13:57,559 --> 00:14:02,240 Speaker 1: all these cars, fifteen shotguns and cameras. He's uh, living 257 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:06,080 Speaker 1: the good life here. But he has to work year 258 00:14:06,160 --> 00:14:09,120 Speaker 1: round and pitch every single night, and he doesn't get 259 00:14:09,120 --> 00:14:12,760 Speaker 1: a winter break. So you know, after barn storming with 260 00:14:12,880 --> 00:14:15,840 Speaker 1: these great white players, he sees them go off to 261 00:14:15,960 --> 00:14:18,920 Speaker 1: the big leagues, but he can't. So Sarah and I 262 00:14:18,960 --> 00:14:21,720 Speaker 1: were saying earlier, how hard would it be to watch 263 00:14:21,720 --> 00:14:25,240 Speaker 1: someone like DiMaggio go off to great fame and you're 264 00:14:25,480 --> 00:14:27,400 Speaker 1: still stuck where you are. Well, you know, you're just 265 00:14:27,440 --> 00:14:29,920 Speaker 1: as good as them, and you should be playing with them. 266 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:33,280 Speaker 1: Would be so frustrating. But the segregation of baseball is 267 00:14:33,400 --> 00:14:36,480 Speaker 1: coming to an end. By the War, managers of white 268 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:39,720 Speaker 1: teams are starting to consider bringing in black players. Some 269 00:14:39,840 --> 00:14:42,920 Speaker 1: of it is just to show the Red Sox hold 270 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,400 Speaker 1: these ridiculous kind of fake tryouts in and we do 271 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:48,200 Speaker 1: love the Red Sox, but this is not a good 272 00:14:48,240 --> 00:14:51,080 Speaker 1: period of history for them. But some managers really are 273 00:14:51,120 --> 00:14:56,200 Speaker 1: serious about it. By the Brooklyn Dodgers President General manager 274 00:14:56,240 --> 00:14:59,640 Speaker 1: Branch Ricky has put into motion the secret plan to 275 00:15:00,000 --> 00:15:03,200 Speaker 1: in an African American player, and he of course finds 276 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:08,400 Speaker 1: and signs Jackie Robinson October nine, who at the time 277 00:15:08,440 --> 00:15:11,280 Speaker 1: was the first gear short stop for the Kansas City Monarchs. 278 00:15:11,520 --> 00:15:15,920 Speaker 1: It's a black team, obviously. Um Robinson spends the forty 279 00:15:16,000 --> 00:15:18,760 Speaker 1: six season in the minors before he's promoted to the 280 00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:23,360 Speaker 1: Dodgers in n So the question here is why wasn't 281 00:15:23,360 --> 00:15:26,720 Speaker 1: it Satchell who was the huge star who broke the 282 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:29,360 Speaker 1: color barrier? What? There are a few reasons to start. 283 00:15:29,560 --> 00:15:31,840 Speaker 1: He was old or on the older side for a 284 00:15:31,880 --> 00:15:35,800 Speaker 1: starting baseball player, and the year that Ricky is hunting 285 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:38,480 Speaker 1: for this person, he wasn't having a great year. He 286 00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:42,120 Speaker 1: was also expensive, he never would have conceded to starting 287 00:15:42,120 --> 00:15:45,480 Speaker 1: in the minors like Jackie did. And he's really unpredictable. 288 00:15:45,680 --> 00:15:49,080 Speaker 1: He says these crazy things and puts on these shows, 289 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:51,880 Speaker 1: and he's a bit too much of a loose cannon 290 00:15:52,040 --> 00:15:54,680 Speaker 1: for the people who wants someone, you know, who will 291 00:15:54,720 --> 00:15:57,680 Speaker 1: be very correct in front of all the cameras. So 292 00:15:57,960 --> 00:16:01,640 Speaker 1: Satchel gives a real PC and or when Robinson starts 293 00:16:01,680 --> 00:16:03,520 Speaker 1: and he says, you know, they couldn't have picked a 294 00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:07,280 Speaker 1: better man than Jackie. But later he does show a 295 00:16:07,280 --> 00:16:11,520 Speaker 1: little injury from from this decision, and he says that 296 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:13,880 Speaker 1: he should have been signed first. He was the one 297 00:16:14,080 --> 00:16:18,320 Speaker 1: who was seriously integrating baseball even back in the nineteen thirties, 298 00:16:18,480 --> 00:16:21,520 Speaker 1: and said that it killed something inside of him not 299 00:16:21,600 --> 00:16:25,280 Speaker 1: being picked. And Jackie Robinson wasn't very sympathetic to his 300 00:16:25,400 --> 00:16:28,160 Speaker 1: plight in his mind. Satchel was from a different era. 301 00:16:28,320 --> 00:16:31,280 Speaker 1: He was unpredictable, he lived to access. He just wasn't 302 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:34,920 Speaker 1: the kind of man that Jackie Robinson wanted to be. Yeah, 303 00:16:34,920 --> 00:16:37,960 Speaker 1: and I actually think this is one of the sadder 304 00:16:38,280 --> 00:16:41,920 Speaker 1: aspects of the story, and that one of the sadder 305 00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:45,360 Speaker 1: sides of segregated baseball is that you should have these 306 00:16:45,400 --> 00:16:48,480 Speaker 1: two men on the same side. You know. You imagine 307 00:16:48,520 --> 00:16:51,760 Speaker 1: if they played today, it would be a situation where 308 00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:55,640 Speaker 1: Jackie Robinson coming up would admire someone like Satual Page 309 00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:57,760 Speaker 1: and hope to play within some day. But instead you 310 00:16:57,800 --> 00:17:01,560 Speaker 1: just have these guys who are arepably different from each other. 311 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:04,960 Speaker 1: Satchell does end up in the big league, though, he's 312 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,679 Speaker 1: signed to the Cleveland Indians in nineteen forty eight by 313 00:17:07,720 --> 00:17:11,280 Speaker 1: Bill Back when he's forty two, but he's introduced pretty 314 00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:14,800 Speaker 1: slowly and carefully since he is old and people are 315 00:17:15,320 --> 00:17:18,000 Speaker 1: skeptical about him, and people think vac might be just 316 00:17:18,119 --> 00:17:21,480 Speaker 1: pulling a publicity stunt. Yeah, he's used as relief six 317 00:17:21,520 --> 00:17:24,560 Speaker 1: times before he starts. But when he does start, the 318 00:17:24,600 --> 00:17:27,520 Speaker 1: team beats the Washington Senators five to three, which he 319 00:17:27,560 --> 00:17:30,200 Speaker 1: follows up with two shutouts, and he helps the Indians 320 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:32,880 Speaker 1: get to the Pennant and they win the series that year, 321 00:17:33,359 --> 00:17:35,760 Speaker 1: and Satchell has the second best E r A in 322 00:17:35,800 --> 00:17:38,800 Speaker 1: the American League and he gets twelve votes for Rookie 323 00:17:38,840 --> 00:17:41,000 Speaker 1: of the Year, which I love that. How could you 324 00:17:41,040 --> 00:17:45,200 Speaker 1: not vote for acul year. A year later, though, Bill 325 00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:48,720 Speaker 1: Vack loses his controlling interest in the Indians and Satchels 326 00:17:48,800 --> 00:17:51,560 Speaker 1: let go UM, but he joins up again with back 327 00:17:51,840 --> 00:17:55,160 Speaker 1: later when he buys the St. Louis Browns, who today 328 00:17:55,200 --> 00:17:58,480 Speaker 1: they're the Baltimore Orioles. And he's a relief pitcher through 329 00:17:58,600 --> 00:18:01,560 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty three and a pretty good one. UM. He 330 00:18:01,640 --> 00:18:04,719 Speaker 1: makes it onto the Major League All Star Team in 331 00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:08,040 Speaker 1: fifty two and fifty three UM, and after fifty three 332 00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:11,200 Speaker 1: he's released and goes on to play in the minors again. 333 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:15,639 Speaker 1: Barnstorms even appears with the Harlem Globe Trotters as a guest, 334 00:18:16,280 --> 00:18:19,919 Speaker 1: but he comes back briefly in n one game with 335 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:22,960 Speaker 1: the Kansas City Athletics, and he really hands it up. 336 00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:26,520 Speaker 1: He's got a rocking chair in the bullpen. Nurse is 337 00:18:26,560 --> 00:18:29,720 Speaker 1: attending to him just in case, but he pitches three 338 00:18:29,800 --> 00:18:32,880 Speaker 1: scoreless innings, which makes him the oldest person to pitch 339 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:35,040 Speaker 1: in the majors at fifty nine. So I think this 340 00:18:35,160 --> 00:18:38,199 Speaker 1: is classic Satchel here kind of hamming it up, but 341 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:41,520 Speaker 1: ultimately he has the goods to back Yeah, you can 342 00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:44,320 Speaker 1: back it up. At the end, he calls this game 343 00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:47,120 Speaker 1: the end of his hundred year career in baseball, which 344 00:18:47,119 --> 00:18:50,479 Speaker 1: I also think is funny. So later he's brought in 345 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:53,240 Speaker 1: briefly as a pitching coach for the Atlanta Braves in 346 00:18:53,320 --> 00:18:55,720 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty nine, but the owner of the Braves was 347 00:18:56,480 --> 00:18:59,439 Speaker 1: um giving him a favor. Actually, he needed one more 348 00:18:59,520 --> 00:19:01,800 Speaker 1: year to qualify for his pensions, so he didn't really 349 00:19:01,840 --> 00:19:04,920 Speaker 1: do much. Yeah, and the owner also wanted to draw 350 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:07,600 Speaker 1: up a little support for the Braves. They just moved 351 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:12,320 Speaker 1: to Atlanta, and Satchell's a big name, obviously. Um Satchell's 352 00:19:12,359 --> 00:19:15,680 Speaker 1: inducted into the Hall of Fame in nine and this 353 00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:17,959 Speaker 1: makes him the first player to make the Hall based 354 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:22,159 Speaker 1: on his Negro League record, And there was some dispute 355 00:19:22,200 --> 00:19:25,800 Speaker 1: over this, because you know, Satchell's got a good major 356 00:19:26,040 --> 00:19:29,080 Speaker 1: league baseball record, but it's not very long and it's 357 00:19:29,119 --> 00:19:30,399 Speaker 1: not the kind of thing that's going to get you 358 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:34,280 Speaker 1: in the Hall of Fame. It's obviously his previous experience 359 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:37,320 Speaker 1: that would qualify him as a great baseball player. But 360 00:19:37,440 --> 00:19:41,399 Speaker 1: the Hall initially says, uh, you know, okay, we'll induct 361 00:19:41,480 --> 00:19:43,600 Speaker 1: him into the league, but we're going to put him 362 00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:47,119 Speaker 1: in a different hall, a different place. And there was 363 00:19:47,160 --> 00:19:50,880 Speaker 1: just this huge outcry over it. People do not want 364 00:19:50,920 --> 00:19:54,800 Speaker 1: to segregated Hall of Fame after decades of segregated baseball. 365 00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:59,600 Speaker 1: Now and when he is inducted in the same everyone 366 00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:03,119 Speaker 1: he said it was the proudest moment of his life. 367 00:20:04,080 --> 00:20:07,320 Speaker 1: His real dream, though, is to become a manager after 368 00:20:07,640 --> 00:20:10,560 Speaker 1: his playing days were over here, and he even says 369 00:20:10,600 --> 00:20:13,080 Speaker 1: in his Hall of Fame speech that he's ready. He's 370 00:20:13,119 --> 00:20:16,000 Speaker 1: ready to manage, and he probably would have been pretty good. 371 00:20:16,040 --> 00:20:19,840 Speaker 1: He had an amazing memory for batting stance, he um 372 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:22,000 Speaker 1: when he was a player. When he was shown pictures 373 00:20:22,000 --> 00:20:27,679 Speaker 1: of unidentified players, just chest down, no faces shown, he 374 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:30,640 Speaker 1: could recognize most of them just from just from their 375 00:20:30,680 --> 00:20:33,680 Speaker 1: batting stance. But no one takes him up on this 376 00:20:33,840 --> 00:20:36,600 Speaker 1: whole manager thing, and so instead he goes on to 377 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:39,879 Speaker 1: other things. He's got seven kids in middle age with 378 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:42,120 Speaker 1: his second wife, so he's got a family to support, 379 00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:44,919 Speaker 1: and he tries some other jobs. He runs for public 380 00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:48,479 Speaker 1: office and is briefly a deputy sheriff, but again he 381 00:20:48,480 --> 00:20:50,480 Speaker 1: knows that pitching is what he's good at. It's what 382 00:20:50,560 --> 00:20:52,920 Speaker 1: he's meant to do. Yeah, he just works for anyone 383 00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:55,520 Speaker 1: who will hire him. He's still barn storming. And this 384 00:20:55,600 --> 00:20:58,320 Speaker 1: is where it gets a little sodder. You know, you 385 00:20:58,359 --> 00:21:03,280 Speaker 1: have this increasingly elderly guy who's out there barnstorming, always 386 00:21:03,320 --> 00:21:06,360 Speaker 1: on the road. Um. But he did give some famous 387 00:21:06,359 --> 00:21:09,840 Speaker 1: advice on how to stay young, and most of it 388 00:21:09,920 --> 00:21:12,520 Speaker 1: is just sort of funny, like avoid fried meats which 389 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:14,560 Speaker 1: angry up the blood. Katie and I have actually been 390 00:21:14,600 --> 00:21:17,640 Speaker 1: posting these on our on our Twitter page this week. Yes, 391 00:21:17,640 --> 00:21:19,920 Speaker 1: if you'd like to find us where it missed in history, 392 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:22,080 Speaker 1: there are a whole bunch of them. But that was 393 00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:25,760 Speaker 1: something he didn't even adhere to himself. He would actually 394 00:21:25,800 --> 00:21:29,240 Speaker 1: cook catfish on a Coleman stove like in his room, 395 00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:32,080 Speaker 1: and when he was finally in the Major League, his 396 00:21:32,200 --> 00:21:34,680 Speaker 1: roommate couldn't stand being in the room with him because 397 00:21:34,720 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 1: of these weird smells and scary cooking apparatus he had. 398 00:21:39,160 --> 00:21:41,240 Speaker 1: I think we've all had that experience in the dorms, 399 00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:44,119 Speaker 1: at least I did. But he's most famous for his 400 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:47,080 Speaker 1: final tip, which was don't look back, as somebody might 401 00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:51,080 Speaker 1: be gaining on you. And Satchel Page does June eight 402 00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:56,480 Speaker 1: of heart trouble and emphysema um. But we should wrap 403 00:21:56,520 --> 00:22:00,280 Speaker 1: up the Negro leagues too, because that's what star this 404 00:22:00,320 --> 00:22:04,320 Speaker 1: whole story, and integration is obviously the beginning of the 405 00:22:04,520 --> 00:22:08,080 Speaker 1: end because black fans start focus on black players who 406 00:22:08,080 --> 00:22:11,240 Speaker 1: are playing in the major leagues, and the young talented 407 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:14,840 Speaker 1: players like Willie Mays and Hank Aaron sign onto major 408 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:19,919 Speaker 1: league teams. So it's essentially over by ninety but not 409 00:22:20,080 --> 00:22:25,480 Speaker 1: officially over until nineteen sixty, although the Indianapolis Clowns with 410 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:28,800 Speaker 1: whom Aaron made his debut, continued barn storming through ninete. 411 00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:32,880 Speaker 1: So that brings us to the question that we started 412 00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:37,320 Speaker 1: this off with, was Satchel Page the greatest picture in history? 413 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:40,840 Speaker 1: And we have one person who definitely thinks so, and 414 00:22:40,920 --> 00:22:44,359 Speaker 1: that's Joe DiMaggio, and he said that Satchel was the 415 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:47,520 Speaker 1: best I've ever faced and the fastest. So I think 416 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:50,159 Speaker 1: we're gonna close it out with Joe's quote there that 417 00:22:50,240 --> 00:22:52,520 Speaker 1: if you have an opinion you'd like to send us, 418 00:22:52,640 --> 00:22:55,720 Speaker 1: please email us at History Podcast and how stuff works 419 00:22:55,800 --> 00:22:58,280 Speaker 1: dot com, and if you'd like to learn a little 420 00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:02,480 Speaker 1: bit more about baseball statistics and all that sort of goodness, 421 00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:06,840 Speaker 1: search for how saber Metrics works at www dot how 422 00:23:06,920 --> 00:23:10,920 Speaker 1: stuff works dot com. For more on this and thousands 423 00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:13,720 Speaker 1: of other topics, visit how stuff works dot com and 424 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:15,399 Speaker 1: be sure to check out the stuff you missed in 425 00:23:15,480 --> 00:23:17,880 Speaker 1: History Class blog on the how stuff works dot com 426 00:23:17,960 --> 00:23:32,320 Speaker 1: home page.