Minor League Baseball has announced the launch of “The Nine,” a new, Black-community focused outreach platform specifically designed to honor and celebrate the historic impact numerous Black baseball pioneers made on the sport, provide new opportunities for youth baseball and softball participation, further diversify the business of baseball and embrace millions of passionate fans throughout MiLB’s 120 communities nationwide.
Named for the number Jackie Robinson wore during his only season playing in MiLB with the Triple-A Montreal Royals in 1946, The Nine will connect MiLB teams’ existing, Black-community focused development efforts with new national programming and future special events in a coordinated and centralized campaign.
The Louisville Black Caps were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Louisville, Kentucky. The team played as the Black Caps in the Negro National League in 1930 before playing as the Louisville White Sox in 1931.
In 1932, they joined the Negro Southern League, again playing as the Black Caps. Only five months into the season, the team relocated to play as the Columbus Turfs for the remaining month and a half before folding.
Felton Snow was born in Alabama on October 23, 1905 and moved to Louisville when he was 10 years old. Mr. Snow was a notable manager and player in the Negro Leagues from 1931-1947. He was a two-time All-Star (1935 and 1936). In the off-season, he played on and managed teams traveling to Cuba and Venezuela. His 1945 team included Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella, who would become Baseball Hall of Famers. During his career, Mr. Snow played on teams with Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, and Cool Papa Bell, all immortalized in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Mr. Snow’s career began in Louisville in 1931 with the Louisville White Sox, and the following year with the Louisville Black Caps. He then spent 15 years as a player for the Elite Giants, a team initially housed in Nashville relocating to Columbus, Washington D.C., and finally to Baltimore. He was ranked in the Top 10 for singles, doubles, triples, and stolen bases in multiple seasons.
From 1948-1950, Mr. Snow managed minor league teams, and then returned to Louisville to work at the Charlestown Armory in Indiana. After an industrial accident, he worked for the Hubbard’s Lane Barbershop in St. Matthews. Mr. Snow was the delight of Little League boys who came for a haircut, tales of the game, and advice on bunting, stealing, and hitting.
Reflecting on his career in 1969 and what could have been, he told a Courier-Journal reporter, “I guess I was born 30 to 35 years too early.” A local television station featured a segment on Mr. Snow’s remarkable career as a player and a manager who touched the lives of many baseball legends. He died on March 16, 1974 and was buried in an unmarked grave at Eastern Cemetery.
On the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's historic debut that broke baseball's color barrier, volunteers from Louisville Sports Commission, the Louisville Bats front office, Humana, Against The Grain, and Team Travel Source teamed up to give Shawnee Park's baseball fields an upgrade.