Buck O'Neil
| Buck O'Neil | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
| First baseman | |||
|
Born: November 13, 1911 Carrabelle, Florida |
|||
|
Died: October 6, 2006 (aged 94) Kansas City, Missouri |
|||
|
|||
| debut | |||
| 1937, for the Memphis Red Sox | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| 1955, for the Kansas City Monarchs | |||
| Negro American League statistics | |||
| Batting average | .288 | ||
| Home runs | 10 | ||
| Runs batted in | 136 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
|
|||
John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil (November 13, 1911 – October 6, 2006) was a first baseman and manager in the Negro American League, mostly with the Kansas City Monarchs. After his playing days, he worked as a scout, and became the first African American coach in Major League Baseball. In his later years he became a popular and renowned speaker and interview subject, helping to renew widespread interest in the Negro leagues, and played a major role in establishing the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
O'Neil's life was documented in Joe Posnanski's award-winning 2007 book The Soul of Baseball.
Born in rural Carrabelle, Florida, O'Neil was initially denied the opportunity to attend high school due to racial segregation; at the time, Florida had only four high schools specifically for African Americans. However, after working a summer in a celery field with his father, O'Neil left home to live with relatives and attend Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, where he completed high school and two years of college courses. He left Florida in 1934 for several years of semi-professional "barnstorming" experiences (playing interracial exhibition games). The effort paid off, and in 1937, O'Neil signed with the Memphis Red Sox for their first year of play in the newly formed Negro American League. His contract was sold to the Monarchs the following year.
O'Neil had a career batting average of .288 between 1937 and 1950, including five .300-plus seasons at the plate, as well as five seasons in which he did not top .260. In 1946, the first baseman led the NAL with a .350 batting average and followed that in 1947 with a .305 mark in 16 games. He also posted averages of .344 in 1940 and .330 in 1949. He played in four East-West All-Star Games in three different seasons and two Negro World Series.
...
Wikipedia