Buck O'Neil
John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil (November 13, 1911 – October 6, 2006) was an American first baseman and manager in Negro league baseball, most notably in the Negro American League with the Kansas City Monarchs. After his playing days, he became the first African American coach in Major League Baseball, and also worked as a scout. In his later years he became a popular and renowned speaker and interview subject, helping to renew widespread interest in the Negro leagues, and played a major role in establishing the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
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[edit] Playing career
Born in rural Carrabelle, Florida, O'Neil was initially denied the opportunity to attend high school due to racial segregation; at the time, Florida had only four high schools specifically for African Americans. However, after working a summer in a celery field with his father, O'Neil left home to live with relatives and attend Edward Waters College in Jacksonville, where he completed high school and two years of college courses. He left Florida in 1934 for several years of semi-professional "barnstorming" experiences (playing interracial exhibition games), where one of his teammates was the legendary Satchel Paige. The effort paid off, and in 1937, O'Neil signed with the Memphis Red Sox for their first year of play in the newly-formed Negro American League. His contract was sold to the Monarchs the following year.
O'Neil had a career batting average of .288, including four .300-plus seasons at the plate. In 1946 the first baseman led the league in hitting with a .353 average and followed that in 1947 with a career-best .358 mark. He also posted averages of .345 in 1940 and .330 in 1949. He played in four East-West All-Star games and two Negro League World Series.
A World War II tour in the U.S. Navy from 1943–1945 briefly interrupted his playing career.
In 1948, one year afterJackie Robinson broke the major leagues' color line, O'Neil took over as player/manager of the Monarchs and guided them to two league titles in 1953 and 1955.
[edit] Off the field
O'Neil left the Monarchs following the 1955 season, and in 1956 became a scout for the Chicago Cubs. He was named the first black coach in the major leagues by the Cubs in 1962 and is credited for signing Hall of Fame player Lou Brock to his first contract. O'Neil is sometimes incorrectly credited with also having signed Hall of Famer Ernie Banks to his first contract; Banks was originally scouted and signed to the Monarchs by Cool Papa Bell, then manager of the Monarchs' barnstorming B team in 1949. Banks played for the Monarchs briefly in 1950 and again in 1953 when O'Neil was his manager, and was signed to play for the Cubs more than two years before O'Neil was hired as a scout.
After many years with the Cubs, O'Neil became a Kansas City Royals scout in 1988, and was named "Midwest Scout of the Year" in 1998.
O'Neil gained national prominence with his compelling narration of the Negro Leagues as part of Ken Burns' 1994 PBS documentary on baseball. Afterwards, he became the subject of countless national interviews, including appearances on Late Night with David Letterman and the Late, Late Show with Tom Snyder.
In 1990, O'Neil led the effort to establish the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in Kansas City, and served as its honorary board chairman until his death.
[edit] A busy final year
On May 13, 2006, he received an honorary doctorate in education from Missouri Western State University where he also gave the commencement speech.
[edit] "If I'm a Hall of Famer for you, that's all right with me."
O'Neil was a member of the 18-member Baseball Hall of Fame Veterans Committee from 1981 to 2000 and played an important role in the induction of eight Negro League players during that time. O'Neil was nominated to a special Hall ballot for Negro League players, managers, and executives in 2006, but failed (by a single vote) to receive the necessary 75% to gain admission; however, 17 other Negro League figures were selected.
After hearing that he had not been elected to the Hall at age 94, O'Neil spoke to about 200 well-wishers who had gathered to celebrate, but instead stood hushed and solemn, telling the crowd:
- God's been good to me. They didn't think Buck was good enough to be in the Hall of Fame. That's the way they thought about it and that's the way it is, so we're going to live with that. Now, if I'm a Hall of Famer for you, that's all right with me. Just keep loving old Buck. Don't weep for Buck. No, man, be happy, be thankful.
On July 29, 2006, O'Neil spoke at the induction ceremony for the Negro League players at the Baseball Hall of Fame (MP3 audio: [1]).
[edit] Still playing after all these years
Just before the Hall of Fame ceremonies, O'Neil signed a contract with the Kansas City T-Bones on July 18 to allow him to play in the Northern League All-Star Game. Before the game, O'Neil was "traded" to the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks and was listed as the starting shortstop, although after drawing an intentional walk, he was replaced before actually playing in the field. At the end of the inning, another "trade" was announced that brought O'Neil back to the Kansas City team, allowing him to lead off the bottom of the inning as well (drawing another intentional walk).
The T-Bones originally claimed that O'Neil, at age 94 years, 8 months, and 5 days, would be by far the oldest person to appear in a professional baseball game (surpassing 83-year-old Jim Eriotes who had struck out in another Northern League game just a week earlier). However, that claim was in error, as the Schaumburg Flyers of the Northern League had signed Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe to a one-game contract and allowed him to face one batter on June 19, 1999 when he was 96 years old. While O'Neil was the second-oldest pro player, the claim was amended that he would be the oldest person to make a plate appearance in a professional baseball game.
[edit] Death
On August 5 2006, O'Neil was admitted to a Kansas City hospital after complaining that he didn't feel well. He was admitted for fatigue and was released three days later only to be re-admitted September 17. On September 28, Kansas City media reported that O'Neil's condition had worsened. On October 6, O'Neil died at the age of 94. O'Neil died of heart failure and bone marrow cancer.
A party originally planned for O'Neil's 95th birthday in November will instead be held as a tribute to his long life in baseball and civil rights. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum has asked fans to contribute to a fund for the John “Buck” O’Neil Education and Research Center in O'Neil's honor.[2]
[edit] Further reading
- Template:Cite news A special 8-page tribute section.
