MLB to celebrate Negro Leagues on Sunday

August 13, 2020August 13, 2020 Matt Demczyk

Major League Baseball on Thursday announced details of the league-wide centennial celebration of the founding of the Negro Leagues, scheduled for Sunday. The focus of the 100th anniversary commemoration will be to honor the legacy of the men and women who contributed to the legacy of the Negro Leagues reflected

On August 16, all MLB players, managers, coaches and umpires will wear a symbolic Negro Leagues 100th anniversary logo patch during games. The logo, a derivative of the official logo created by the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, also will be featured on base jewels and lineup cards.

Many MLB Clubs have also planned special 100th anniversary ballpark and digital engagement activities throughout the season, including Negro Leagues tribute games with throwback uniforms, educational panels and documentary film screenings and special auctions to support the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum or related organizations. EVERFI, an official education partner of MLB, has incorporated Club-customized content to highlight the Negro Leagues as part of the “Summer Slugger” program (), a free baseball-themed educational course aimed at preventing students from losing critical math and literacy skills during the summer months.

The Commissioner’s Office has digital plans to engage fans on both social media and a new dedicated page on MLB.com, powered by the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, to highlight the history of the Negro Leagues and its players. The page, found at MLB.com/negroleagues, contains player and team profiles, historic photos of Negro Leagues players, videos featuring interviews by NLBM President Bob Kendrick and more. Additionally, MLB will share customized content highlighting some of the Negro Leagues players as well as significant historic information about how the legacy of the Negro Leagues has been reflected in the history and present of Major League Baseball. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum has designated a special anniversary hashtag to be used on social media –#NegroLeagues100.

Additionally, the United States Conference of Mayors – an integral partner on the PLAY BALL initiative – in collaboration with the African American Mayors Association, will be sharing videos of their cities’ connections to Negro Leagues players and teams, as well as photos of America’s mayors tipping their caps to the Negro Leagues. These photos will be featured on a special mayors section at both the NLBM’s “Tipping Your Cap” and the USCM PLAY BALL site.

MLB Network will celebrate the 100th anniversary throughout its programming this weekend, beginning with MLB Network’s weekly kids-focused program “Play Ball” this Saturday at 10:00 a.m. EDT, followed by a special MLB Tonight program at 5:00 p.m. EDT. In an interview filmed at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, MLB Network analyst Harold Reynolds and President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum Bob Kendrick discuss the impact the Negro Leagues and its legends like Satchel Paige had on baseball and generations of fans. Jim Kaat (play-by-play), Harold Reynolds (analyst) and Stephen Nelson (on-site reporter) will pay tribute to the Negro Leagues throughout the MLB Network Showcase presented by Chevrolet game telecast of the New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Following the telecast, MLB Network will re-air MLB Tonight Celebrates The Negro League’s 100th Anniversary at 9:00 p.m. EDT.

In February, Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) announced a joint donation of $1 million to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri to complement efforts to educate and raise awareness of the impact the Negro Leagues and its players had on the sport and society. Funds from the MLB and MLBPA donation will support the development of digital content for two exhibits to celebrate the connection between the Negro Leagues and Spanish-speaking countries around the world as well as chronicle the pioneering players (non-Negro Leagues and Negro Leagues players alike) who broke color barriers in Baseball, such as Jackie Robinson and Elijah “Pumpsie” Green. Additionally, funds will be directed toward enhanced programming and a virtual museum experience in order to increase the accessibility of the NLBM and provide an educational platform for fans around the world. In conjunction with the 100th Anniversary, the NLBM launched its first-ever national individual fundraising campaign with a goal of raising at least $1 million through a historic $100-for-100 campaign. Fans can pitch in to support the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum at nlbm.com/centennial.

Historically, MLB, Clubs and MLB Players have supported the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in a variety of ways:

· In 2018, MLB and its Clubs raised money through its Winter Meetings Charity Auction to offset vandalism repair costs at the future Buck O’Neil Education and Research Center.

· In June 2017, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) jointly contributed $1 million to the Museum, aiming to inspire future generations of underrepresented youth to play baseball through learning about the history of the Negro Leagues. The contribution, allocated from the MLB-MLBPA Youth Development Foundation, supported operations, museum services, expansion, and educational and community programming. In particular, a portion of the funds went toward the Museum’s completion of the Buck O’Neil Education and Research Center.

· MLB and the MLBPA contributed to the construction of the Kansas City Royals MLB Urban Youth Academy, a state-of-the-art baseball, softball, and education complex situated near the NLBM. The Academy, which is part of the widespread MLB Youth Academy Network, features four outdoor turf fields, an educational press box, and a 38,000-square-foot indoor facility that includes a turf infield, batting tunnels, classrooms, and an athletic training room.

· Each year, MLB covers the cost to bring special displays from the NLBM to “PLAY BALL Park” during MLB All-Star Week.

· Over the years, MLB has provided financial and promotional support to the Museum, and made it a central component of its All-Star Legacy Program during 2012 MLB All-Star Week.