Buck O’Neil Helps Celebrate Cool Papa Bell
by Brother Rogers
“The greatest thing in all my life is loving you.” That’s the refrain sung by Buck O’Neil and nearly 400 others who gathered last week at Mississippi State University to help celebrate Cool Papa Bell Day. Bell, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame 25 years ago, was honored posthumously for this first time in his hometown of Starkville.
Buck O’Neil has been called baseball’s greatest ambassador. Born in 1911, he played for and managed the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in the days before blacks were allowed to join major league baseball. He knew Cool Papa Bell, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and other great black baseball stars of the 1930s and 1940s. He was named major league baseball’s first black coach by the Chicago Cubs in 1962 and helped discover future Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Lou Brock. He is the founder and chairman of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
If you missed the evening with Buck O’Neil, you missed what one professor called “this year’s most fun event at MSU’s Colvard Student Union.” A native of Sarasota, Florida, Buck said he was born so far South, if he had stepped backwards he would have been a foreigner. He talked without bitterness about the days of segregation, and he praised Mississippi for the progress we have made. “I am so proud of Mississippi,” he said. “You have come a long way.”
Buck entertained baseball fans with stories about Cool Papa Bell. He told about the origins of the saying by Satchel Paige that Cool Papa Bell was so fast he could flip the light switch and get in bed before it got dark (the switch had a delay unbeknownst to Satchel). He told about Cool Papa Bell racing thoroughbred horses around the bases and winning. His team would take bets as they traveled through towns and win because the horses could not cut sharply around the bases. Once in Dallas, the team lost their meal money when Cool Papa Bell was bested by a quarter horse which is capable of making quick turns.
Buck said that Jesse Owens used to race ball players as an enticement to get fans to the games. He would give them a 10 yard head start and overtake them before 100 yards. “He gave Cool that lead and when they finished, Cool was still ahead by at least 10 yards,” said Buck.
He also explained how Cool Papa Bell was able to score from first on a bunt. “It was a set play. Cool was so quick he could steal second standing up. When the third baseman came forward to field the bunt, Cool was already rounding second. Since the third baseman was throwing to first, third base was open. The catcher had run down to first to back up the first baseman, and the pitcher, mesmerized by Cool’s graceful running, neglected to cover home plate.”
Buck O’Neil is certainly entertaining, but there is more to Buck O’Neil than just telling humorous stories. The next morning at Moor High School, he received a spontaneous standing ovation from teenagers after telling them to live clean and work hard in school. There was a student who sat in her wheelchair in the corner of the gymnasium. She remained expressionless throughout his speech. Buck spotted her as he was leaving and asked if she could smile. She continued to show no expression. He walked over to her, and still her lips did not move. He put both of his hands on her face covering each cheek, leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. She burst into a smile.
That’s Buck O’Neil demonstrating that the greatest thing in all his life is loving others. Thanks, Buck, for passing our way. Our community is better because you were here.
Brother Rogers is the facilitator for the Race Relations Team which sponsored Cool Papa Bell Day in Starkville.
“The greatest thing in all my life is loving you.” That’s the refrain sung by Buck O’Neil and nearly 400 others who gathered last week at Mississippi State University to help celebrate Cool Papa Bell Day. Bell, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame 25 years ago, was honored posthumously for this first time in his hometown of Starkville.
Buck O’Neil has been called baseball’s greatest ambassador. Born in 1911, he played for and managed the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in the days before blacks were allowed to join major league baseball. He knew Cool Papa Bell, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson and other great black baseball stars of the 1930s and 1940s. He was named major league baseball’s first black coach by the Chicago Cubs in 1962 and helped discover future Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Lou Brock. He is the founder and chairman of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
If you missed the evening with Buck O’Neil, you missed what one professor called “this year’s most fun event at MSU’s Colvard Student Union.” A native of Sarasota, Florida, Buck said he was born so far South, if he had stepped backwards he would have been a foreigner. He talked without bitterness about the days of segregation, and he praised Mississippi for the progress we have made. “I am so proud of Mississippi,” he said. “You have come a long way.”
Buck entertained baseball fans with stories about Cool Papa Bell. He told about the origins of the saying by Satchel Paige that Cool Papa Bell was so fast he could flip the light switch and get in bed before it got dark (the switch had a delay unbeknownst to Satchel). He told about Cool Papa Bell racing thoroughbred horses around the bases and winning. His team would take bets as they traveled through towns and win because the horses could not cut sharply around the bases. Once in Dallas, the team lost their meal money when Cool Papa Bell was bested by a quarter horse which is capable of making quick turns.
Buck said that Jesse Owens used to race ball players as an enticement to get fans to the games. He would give them a 10 yard head start and overtake them before 100 yards. “He gave Cool that lead and when they finished, Cool was still ahead by at least 10 yards,” said Buck.
He also explained how Cool Papa Bell was able to score from first on a bunt. “It was a set play. Cool was so quick he could steal second standing up. When the third baseman came forward to field the bunt, Cool was already rounding second. Since the third baseman was throwing to first, third base was open. The catcher had run down to first to back up the first baseman, and the pitcher, mesmerized by Cool’s graceful running, neglected to cover home plate.”
Buck O’Neil is certainly entertaining, but there is more to Buck O’Neil than just telling humorous stories. The next morning at Moor High School, he received a spontaneous standing ovation from teenagers after telling them to live clean and work hard in school. There was a student who sat in her wheelchair in the corner of the gymnasium. She remained expressionless throughout his speech. Buck spotted her as he was leaving and asked if she could smile. She continued to show no expression. He walked over to her, and still her lips did not move. He put both of his hands on her face covering each cheek, leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. She burst into a smile.
That’s Buck O’Neil demonstrating that the greatest thing in all his life is loving others. Thanks, Buck, for passing our way. Our community is better because you were here.
Brother Rogers is the facilitator for the Race Relations Team which sponsored Cool Papa Bell Day in Starkville.