Major League Baseball has officially added Negro League statistics to their record books. This comes four years after MLB announced they recognized the Negro Leagues as a major league. Now the official playing record includes Negro League statistics from 1920-1948.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!“We are proud that the official historical record now includes the players of the Negro Leagues,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters, including Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. “This initiative is focused on ensuring that future generations of fans have access to the statistics and milestones of all those who made the Negro Leagues possible. Their accomplishments on the field will be a gateway to broader learning about this triumph in American history and the path that led to Jackie Robinson’s 1947 Dodger debut.”
It was Jackie Robinson’s journey that began baseball’s desegregation in the 1940s and 1950s. Every year, all 30 MLB clubs celebrate that milestone on April 15, the anniversary of Robinson’s debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers. They all wear his No. 42, a number retired by the game 50 years after his debut, and last worn by Hall of Fame closer Mariano Rivera in 2013.
In the process of deciding how to evaluate single seasons and career leaderboards, MLB adopted the standard of 1800 at-bats and 600 innings as the standard. That accounts for an average of three plate appearances per game and one inning for a 60-game season over the course of 10 qualifying seasons.
The biggest change is now Josh Gibson, the greatest player to ever suit up in the Negro Leagues, now ranks at the top of multiple categories. His .373 batting average, .718 slugging percentage, and 1.176 OPS now rank tops all-time amongst major league hitters. Gibson also now has the single-season record in batting average (.466) and slugging (.974). You can check out MLB’s new all-time statistical leaderboard here.
From Castrovince’s comprehensive article, researchers estimate that they’ve completed about 75% of the data on the Negro Leagues and that statistics will change over time once they get more data.
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Michael McDermott covers the Arizona Diamondbacks and Arizona Cardinals for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @MichaelMcDMLB
