On Wednesday, the league went a step further, saying it was officially "correcting a longtime oversight in the game's history" and recognizing those professionals as Major League-caliber players.
"All of us who love baseball have long known that the Negro Leagues produced many of our game's finest players, innovations and triumphs against the backdrop of injustice," Commissioner Robert Manfred said in statement posted to social media.
The Washington Post reports that in the late 1960s, the MLB formed what was known as the Special Baseball Records Committee, composed entirely of white men.
As the sports and culture website The Undefeated points out, the move by the MLB means that Negro League standouts like Josh Gibson of the Homestead Grays will finally be given their proper respect.
"Josh was a better power hitter than Babe Ruth, Ted Williams or anybody else I've ever seen," former Cleveland Buckeye pitcher and manager Alonzo Boone said, according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame .
Paul Dolan, the owner of the Cleveland baseball team, said it would continue to use its current name until the franchise could settle on a new one that would "better unify our community and build our legacy for a new generation."
- Metro East-based Frontier League targets expansion as MLB contracts its minor league systemKSDK.com
- Morning Mound Visit: MLB recognizes Negro Leagues as major leaguesBeyond the Box Score
- Baseball's record book is beloved, but not sacred. Including Negro leaguers is long overdue.Washington Post
- MLB gives Negro League statistics Major League statusLet's Go Tribe
- Spring baseball training still on scheduleThe Boston Globe
- Baseball Rights a Wrong by Adding Negro Leagues to Official RecordsThe New York Times
- MLB to give Negro Leagues 'long overdue recognition' as a major leagueWest Hawaii Today
- MLB makes Negro Leagues a “major league,” earns praise from Willie Mays, Bob Kendrick and moreAwful Announcing
- As Willie Mays' career stats grow, he's just happy for his Negro League teammatesSan Francisco Chronicle
