THE HOME RUN KING

June 08, 2023

Good evening. This is Dead Legends. The baseball newsletter that appreciates throwback uniforms.

Personal opinion: The D-Backs should’ve never changed their colors.

Photo by Roy Dabner/AFP via Getty Images

Let's dive in.

Today's story is about the greatest home run hitter that most baseball fans have never heard of.

Josh Gibson was the best power hitter in the Negro Leagues, and is undoubtedly among the greatest hitters of all time.

According to some Negro League historians, he hit nearly 800 home runs, including 75 in a single season.

Unfortunately, the statistics of that era were not properly recorded and preserved, so it's hard to say what his exact numbers were, but what we have is probably pretty close.

It's reported that his lifetime batting average was .359 and his slugging percentage was an absurd .658.

But he came from humble beginnings.

Gibson dropped out of High School in ninth grade to work at an air-brake factory.

In 1929, at the age of 18, he started his career with the Homestead Grays after their catcher, Buck Ewing, injured himself.

Josh got his opportunity and never looked back.

In '30 he hit .338 as the starting catcher for the Grays, and eventually went on to play with the Pittsburgh Crawfords where Satchel Paige was his teammate.

The two formed what is potentially the best battery of all time.

In '33, he had 55 dingers and 239 RBI's; that season he made $400.

Walter Johnson was quoted saying "There is a catcher any big league club would like to buy for $200,000. His name is Gibson. He can do everything."

Josh was known for hitting monumental blasts that have now become baseball folklore.

He stayed pretty consistent throughout his career, playing in the NNL as well as the Cuban Winter League and the Mexican League.

Gibson was never allowed to play in the MLB because of his skin color, but he was recognized by players and management universally as one of the best ballplayers of his time.

In '43, he developed an alcohol addiction but still continued to dominate his competition for the next several years.

In '47, he suffered a stroke and passed away.

His passing came just three months before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier.

Finally in '72, Josh Gibson was elected to the Hall of Fame.

ONE QUICK QUESTION

As young ballplayers, we imitate our heroes, it’s the natural thing to do.

I asked this question last night on Twitter, and the response has been awesome so I’m dropping it here as well.

Chime in, I’d love to hear your answer!

STRANGE NAMES

If you're just joining us, we play this game every day where we try to find the weirdest names throughout baseball history.

Why? Don't ask us, it's just something we like to do.

If you've been rocking with us for awhile now, you know what time it is.

Today's winner is:

Arnold Ray McBride aka “Shake and Bake” aka “The Callaway kid” was a straight up baller.

He could hit, and he had wheels.

Only problem was, he couldn’t stay healthy.

Over his 11-year career, McBride missed almost half of his games due to an injury or an illness.

It didn’t stop him from winning Rookie of the Year in ‘74 or getting a World Series ring with the Phillies, but it definitely derailed what could’ve been a much bigger career.

THE DEAD LEGENDS ARCHIVE

If you like this story, check out some of our past favorites:

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