Honoring Negro Leagues

Major League Baseball has sought a variety of ways to rectify its history of excluding African-American athletes from its game until Jackie Robinson broke the modern-day color line in 1947.

There have been turn-back-the-clock games with teams wearing Negro League uniforms. Robinson’s No. 42 was retired by the major leagues in 1997. Fourteen players who spent their careers in the Negro Leagues have been voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Ted Milner believes more can be done. The former professional baseball player is close to seeing a five-year dream become a reality.

On Saturday, teams of African-American and Latin former major leaguers will play an exhibition game in Dodger Stadium at 1 p.m. to honor about 50 surviving Negro League players being flown into Los Angeles for the event.

Among those scheduled to play are former Dodgers Rudy Law, Derrel Thomas, Pedro Guerrero and Mariano Duncan. Other former major leaguers include Glenn Braggs, Darryl Boston, Vic Harris and Alvin Davis.

The managers are Reggie Smith, who played and coached with the Dodgers, and Enos Cabell, who spent 15 seasons with Baltimore, Houston, San Francisco, Detroit and the Dodgers.

Milner--chief executive of Executive Temps, which supplies temporary clerical and professional workers for the film and music industries--hopes the game does more than acknowledge players from the Negro League. He wants to spark a revival of interest in baseball in the African-American community.

“I wanted to do an event where you had major leaguers playing and honoring the men who paved the way for them,” said Milner, who played five years in the minor leagues. “But if I was a major league owner, I’d be looking for any opportunity to entice African Americans back to the game.”

The event has been more than a labor of love. Although the Dodgers donated the use of the stadium, Major League Baseball provided balls and helmets, and five companies--Adelphia, Albertson’s, Chevron Gas, Coca-Cola and MasterCard--have provided various degrees of sponsorship. Milner said he has spent $400,000 of his own money on the game.

“Baseball is part of our history,” Milner said. “You want African Americans to look at our history and believe there will be a better future for us and our people. The game sets the atmosphere for it to be done.”

Milner sought the help of Hall of Famers Ozzie Smith and Dave Winfield to contact former players. Neither is able to play in the game today, but both were instrumental in getting the word out.

Cabell, who grew up in Los Angeles, came on board immediately.

“We wanted to do two games this year,” Cabell said. “One in Houston and one in Los Angeles. But the Houston people did not approve the deal until the last minute. The Dodgers stepped up and said they wanted to do this. Next year we hope to do more in other cities.

“The main thing is to have the kids see the Negro League players. Not too many are left anymore. And I hope baseball does come back into the inner cities. Gangs and violence have a lot to do with why it left, because parks weren’t safe to bring families to. But if Ted is successful with this, I hope he gets some more backing from Major League Baseball.”

Other players see the event as something other than a reunion of friends and competitors.

“This is doing something for the guys who opened the door for us,” said Harris, who played for six teams from 1972-80. “They didn’t get their respect for their playing. This is a day for them to get their glory.”

John “Mule” Miles is one of the former Negro League players who will be honored. A native of San Antonio, Miles played with the Chicago American Giants from 1946-49. In 1951, his final professional season, he was the only African American on the Laredo Apaches in the Gulf Coast League.

The honorees were to be feted at a dinner Thursday at Dorsey High, and a reception today at Dodger Stadium

“For us to be recognized at this time is great,” Miles said. “I hope it continues on. This is the first time I can recall someone organizing a game. There’s a lot of kids out there that don’t know about the Negro Leagues, so I’m proud to be part of it.”