The Five Best Black Players in El Paso Professional Baseball History

Glenn Braggs played in 117 games for the 1985 Double-A El Paso Diablos, a first place team that went 86-50 and lost in the Texas League Championship Series to the Jackson Mets. Braggs batted .310, hit 20 home runs and drove in 103 runs that year. He later played seven seasons in the major leagues with the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds. Braggs won a World Series championship with Cincinnati in 1990.

Pat Listach played in 49 games for the 1991 Diablos, splitting time at second base and shortstop. That year’s Diablos team finished in first place and lost to the Shreveport Captains in the Texas League Championship Series. Listach played six seasons in the major leagues with the Brewers and Houston Astros. He was named American League Rookie of the Year in 1992.

Troy O’Leary played the entire 1992 season with the Diablos, hitting .334 with five home runs and 79 RBIs. He played 11 years in the major leagues with the Brewers, Boston Red Sox, Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs. O’Leary piled up 1,100 hits in the majors and reached the MLB postseason with the Red Sox and Cubs.

Gary Sheffield was also part of a first place Diablos team in 1988. That year’s El Paso club lost to the Tulsa Drillers in the Texas League Championship Series. Sheffield went on to be a nine-time MLB All-Star, a National League batting champion and a World Series champion with the 1997 Florida Marlins. His 509 home runs are the 26th most in MLB history.

Greg Vaughn was Sheffield’s teammate on the 1988 Diablos. He hit .301 with a team leading 28 home runs and 105 RBIs that year. Vaughn went on to become a four-time MLB All-Star and hit 355 homers in his 15-year MLB career. He helped the San Diego Padres reach the 1998 World Series.