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Thanks to Gary Geiger Counter over at Primer for drawing this to my attention. The Providence Journal had a great article on Sunday about William E. White, who was recently established by SABR researchers as the first black player in the major leagues. It was long believed that Fleet Walker of Toledo in 1884 was the first black player, but White (who previously was a "mystery player", one of those guys from the 19th century about whom nothing was known) played one National League game, at first base for the Providence Grays in 1879.

White's story is fascinating, and definitely not to be missed. Do yourself a favour and take five or ten minutes for the article. It's worth it. Incidentally, GGC's excellent blog, Baseball History, has lots of excellent baseball history stuff in the archives.
The First Black Player In The Majors | 3 comments | Create New Account
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_Cristian - Friday, February 20 2004 @ 01:05 PM EST (#77373) #
A black player named White playing for the Grays.

Too confusing for me.
_Bill Malinowski - Monday, February 23 2004 @ 01:11 PM EST (#77374) #
I am the author of the Providence Journal article on William Edward White. Thanks for the kind words. If you get any information on what happened to White, please contact me. I'd love to write a follow-up story. Regards, Bill Malinowski
_Roger - Friday, February 27 2004 @ 06:17 PM EST (#77375) #
In response to the first comment, he also attended Brown University
The First Black Player In The Majors | 3 comments | Create New Account
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