I just got a new book!
I'm a long-time supporter of Baseball-Reference and this was a gift sent to all of us by founder Sean Forman. B-R now includes Negro League stats and treats them as equivalent to MLB stats. Oscar Charleston, for example, is now listed among the all-time leaders in slugging percentage, just a tick above Jimmie Foxx and Barry Bonds!
I'll let you know my thoughts when I finish reading.
--M.C.
p.s. You can get the book in paper at the SABR website or as an e-book.
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MLB recognized the Negro Leagues in December of 2020, here's the press release:
https://www.mlb.com/press-release/press-release-mlb-officially-designates-the-negro-leagues-as-major-league
A large group of players from the recognized leagues and seasons is now part of the official MLB record book. Here are the details:
The seven leagues that comprised the Negro Leagues of 1920-1948 were the Negro National League (I) (1920–1931); the Eastern Colored League (1923–1928); the American Negro League (1929); the East-West League (1932); the Negro Southern League (1932); the Negro National League (II) (1933–1948); and the Negro American League (1937–1948).
How many teams at during any one time period?
Really depends on the year. In 1927 the NNL had eight teams and the ECL had seven. In 1944 the second incarnation of the NNL had only six teams but the the NAL was active and it had six teams as well. There was a Negro World Series 1924-1927 and 1942-1948.
So glad that times have changed. Now the way things are going in the US outside of California is backwards.
Ain't that the truth!
I know. I live in Florida, and visiting California this year was refreshing. Unlike what Bill Maher seems to be saying on his HBO show.
I never liked that guy.
David Laurilia talks to Hunter Bishop.
I finished the book. It is a collection of essays about uncovering the history of the Negro Leagues. It's a great bibliographic reference. It's sort of a summary of the state of Negro League scholarship, so it is a bit dry and academic despite the interesting subject. There are some books the essays point to that I'm going to look for.
Dan Szymborksi at FanGraphs does a projection on Seiya Suzuki.
Szymborksi is the inventor of the ZIPS scheme for projecting MLB performance. The projections have Suzuki as a solid corner OF with some pop (25-30 2Bs and 20-25 HRs or about .470-.480 SLG) and decent OBP (.340-.350) and AVG (.280-.290). That's about a 120 OPS+.
Overall ZIPS says he's 2.5+ WAR player for his peak seasons and dropping to a steady 2.0/yr after that. In other words he's looking like an above average everyday player but not an All-Star. Sort of like Kris Bryant!!
Anyway this is the first I've seen of actual projections for Suzuki. I still think the Giants should go after him. They could use some RH pop for one, and a strong link to NPB and its fans would be good for the team.
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