Send us a text

Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, shares the remarkable story of how the museum grew from a one-room office to America's National Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and discusses plans for a new 30,000+ square foot facility.

• Negro Leagues history represents both the ugly reality of segregation and the triumphant spirit of Black baseball players who created their own leagues
• The museum preserves stories of legendary players like Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Willie Mays who began their careers in the Negro Leagues
• Bob Kendrick started as a volunteer in 1993 before eventually becoming museum president in 2011
• Many MLB greats came from the Negro Leagues, including Hank Aaron who started as a cross-handed hitting shortstop with the Indianapolis Clowns
• The Birmingham game broadcast last year transformed historic Rickwood Field to honor Negro Leagues history on national television
• Texas produced many Negro Leagues stars including Willie Wells from Austin and both Foster brothers from Calvert
• MLB officially recognized Negro Leagues statistics in 2020, making Josh Gibson the all-time batting average leader at .372
• Video games like MLB The Show have introduced younger generations to Negro Leagues history and players
• The museum tells a counterintuitive civil rights story that celebrates triumph rather than focusing solely on struggle

To support the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum's "Pitch for the Future" capital campaign to build their new facility, visit nlbm.com - every contribution helps preserve this vital piece of American history.

Support the show

Please like and follow each of Stories Inside the Man Cave Podcast social media links on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Tik Tok.