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Like Jackie Robinson, Buck O’Neil helped break color barrier in Major League Baseball in his own way
Negro League legend Buck O'Neil (seen here with WE Energies Vice President Thelma Sias during a Milwaukee Brewers' game in June during which the team paid tribute to the Negro League and its players) died recently at age 94 in a Kansas City hospital. O'Neil was a star in the Negro League who barnstormed with other legends such as Satchel Paige. He later signed Hall of Famers Lou Brock and Ernie Banks. Before being hospitalized in July for fatigue that ultimately led to his death. O'Neil batted in a minor league All-Star contest, becoming the oldest man ever to appear in a professional game. (photo by Malik Communications)
by Marc H. Morial, President and CEO, National Urban League
The African American community experienced a major loss earlier this month when Negro Leagues great John "Buck" O’Neil died at the age of 94 of congestive heart failure.
Unlike Jackie Robinson, who gained national prominence as the first Black baseball player in the major leagues, Buck missed out on integration by a year or two. His playing career was winding down as the color barrier was broken. But he still managed to make his own impact in the dugout.
As the major leagues’ first African American coach, he brought numerous Black Americans to the "show" including future Hall of Famers Lou Brock and Ernie Banks.
Born on November 13, 1911 in Carrabelle, Florida, Buck got his first taste of baseball at an early age through his father, who played around town on local teams.
Nicknamed "Buck" after Buck O’Neal, co-owner of semi-pro team Miami Giants, he was denied the opportunity to play major league baseball because of his skin color.
So, Buck made the most of the limited opportunities available, carving out an illustrious career in the American Negro Leagues.
After a short stint in Memphis, he returned home to the Kansas City Monarchs from 1938 through 1955, with the exception of a two-year break to serve in the U.S. Navy during World War II.
With a career batting average of .288 including four .300-plus seasons, the first baseman led the league in hitting in 1946 with a .353 average.
A year later, he achieved his career best--.358.
A veteran of three All-Star games and two World Series, Buck joined the legendary Satchel Paige to play numerous exhibition games at the height of the Negro Leagues barnstorming in the 1940s.
He rose through the ranks from first baseman to player/manager from 1948 until he turned to full-time management in 1955.
He finally got his own chance in the major leagues, starting off as a scout for the Chicago Cubs, where he remained 1988. In 1962, he became the first African American coach. Buck eventually returned home, joining the Kansas City Royals as a scout in 1988 and earning "Midwest Scout of the Year" honors a decade later, at the age of 86.
But not until 1994 did mainstream Americans finally know who he was, thanks in part to his role in Ken Burns’ PBS documentary "Baseball." His mild-mannered narration of the Negro Leagues’ history won him widespread respect and major media attention, including appearances on "Late Night with David Letterman" and the "Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder."
As head of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, he proved a tireless crusader for Negro Leaguers deserving Hall of Fame recognition and official historian/storyteller of the Negro Leagues.
In fact, earlier this year at 94, he proved instrumental in getting 17 Negro League legends inducted. He, however, missed the Hall of Fame by one vote.
Even so, Buck held no grudges and harbored no bitterness. He even gave a speech at the induction. He always said he was "right on time" despite not receiving baseball’s greatest honor.
In 1995, he, according to the Kansas City Star, waxed philosophic before a group of 200 well wishers on the Hall of Fame’s failure to induct him. "God’s been good to me. They didn’t think Buck was good enough to be in the Hall of Fame.
"That’s the way they thought about it and that’s the way it is, so we’re going to live with that ... Just keep loving old Buck. Don’t weep for Buck. No, man, be happy, be thankful," he said.
At his memorial service, which drew more than 10,000 mourners, his great-great nephew--John O’Neil Askew--was called to speak of Buck’s legacy.
"He was the most grounded person in our family. He was not caught up in the hype of being the ambassador for the Negro Leagues. He was just ‘Uncle Buck’," he said, according to the Associated Press.
Back in 2003, I had the great honor of meeting Buck during a tour of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. He definitely lived up to his reputation--a class act. He proved a mild-mannered unassuming man and diehard supporter of the cause.
Buck died knowing his sacrifices paved the way for greater opportunity for African Americans in his beloved sport. He might not have achieved the fame of Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks or Jackie Robinson or Hank Aaron but he played an instrumental role in breaking down the color barrier in our country in his own way.
When faced with limited opportunity, he took adverse circumstances and made the most of them. Although he personally didn’t realize his ultimate dream of playing in the major leagues and winning a spot in the Hall of Fame, he opened doors that enabled his successors to realize their dreams.
His life should stand as an example that a dream deferred is not necessarily a dream deferred when it entails making the dreams of others come true.
Now, if only the Hall of Fame will come to its senses--and vote him in posthumously.
