MLB reclassifies Negro Leagues as major league
By Associated Press
Published December 17, 2020
In this Aug. 2, 1942, file photo, Kansas City Monarchs pitcher Leroy Satchel Paige warms up at New York’s Yankee Stadium before a Negro League game between the Monarchs and the New York Cuban Stars. (AP Photo/Matty Zimmerman, File)
Willie Mays will add some hits to his record, Monte Irvin’s big-league batting average should climb over .300 and Satchel Paige may add nearly 150 victories to his total.
Josh Gibson, the greatest of all Negro League sluggers, might just wind up with a major league record, too.
The statistics and records of greats like Gibson, Paige and roughly 3,400 other players are set to join Major League Baseball’s books after MLB announced Wednesday it is reclassifying the Negro Leagues as a major league.