The Negro Leagues Notebook

The Negro Leagues Notebook is a meticulously researched, narrative-driven chronicle of the leagues that reshaped American sport from the margins. Spanning over a century-from the early Black clubs of Reconstruction to Major League Baseball's 2020 statistical recognition-this book documents the Negro Leagues with clarity, precision, and reverence. Each chapter draws from contemporaneous box scores, team records, player contracts, stadium blueprints, and press coverage to reconstruct the on-field brilliance and off-field perseverance of the men and women who built Black baseball. The book follows the rise of Rube Foster's Negro National League, the triumphs of the Monarchs and Grays, the electric play of Paige, Gibson, and Bell, and the eventual integration of the Major Leagues. From dusty ballparks and Pullman trains to Senate hearings and video game screens, The Negro Leagues Notebook restores forgotten histories with verifiable facts and engaging storytelling. It's a tribute not just to the athletes, but to the historians, archivists, and digital sleuths who brought the record back to life.