1924 Colored World Series

The 1924 Colored World Series was a best-of-nine match-up between the Negro National League champion Kansas City Monarchs and the Eastern Colored League champion Hilldale. In a ten-game series, the Monarchs narrowly defeated Hilldale 5 games to 4, with one tie game. It was the first World Series between the respective champions of the NNL and ECL. It was the second year of existence for the ECL, but no agreement could be reached in 1923 for a post-season series, owing primarily to unresolved disputes between the leagues. Five members of the Baseball Hall of Fame participated in the series: Biz Mackey, Judy Johnson, and Louis Santop played for Hilldale, while Bullet Rogan and José Méndez played for the Monarchs. In addition, Monarchs owner J.L. Wilkinson was also inducted into the Hall.

eries Summary

*Kansas City Monarchs vs. Hilldale
*Monarchs won the Series, 5-4 (1 tie)

*Team Owners: J.L. Wilkinson, Kansas City; Ed Bolden, Hilldale
*Managers: José Méndez, Kansas City; Frank Warfield, Hilldale

::Bill McCall could not get through the first inning, facing only three men and recording no outs before Bill “Plunk” Drake came in to relieve. Drake did not fare much better, lasting only 1 2/3 innings himself. Hilldale led 9-0 by the end of the third.

::Nip Winters shut out the normally high-scoring Monarchs on four singles.

Game Three

October 5 1924 at Maryland Baseball Park in Baltimore

::Judy Johnson’s three-run inside-the-park home run with one out in the ninth shocked the crowd into silence and provided the difference in the game. A controversial umpire call and three defensive misplays helped set the table for Johnson’s heroics. Until the fatal ninth, the game had been a classic pitchers duel between staff aces Winters and Rogan. Winters finished the game with a flourish, retiring 25 of the last 26 men he faced. Hilldale had a 3-1 lead in games.

::Rube Foster had originally scheduled games Five, Six and Seven for his own ballpark, but Kansas City ownership and fans strenuously objected to losing such lucrative dates, and Foster relented.

Game Six

October 12 1924 at Muehelbach Park in Kansas City

::In one of Negro League baseball’s legendary games, the Monarchs rallied for three runs in the ninth to stun Hilldale. Because of an injury to shortstop Jake Stephens some weeks before and to get maximum offensive output from his lineup, Hilldale manager Warfield moved regular third baseman Judy Johnson to short, moved catcher-short stop Mackey to third, and installed aging backup receiver Louis Santop as the regular catcher. With three players playing out of position at critical defensive positions, Warfield’s moves came back to haunt him in the ninth when Mackey and Johnson both missed key plays, and when Santop dropped Frank Duncan’s foul popup, Duncan lined a single past Mackey that scored the tying and winning runs.

::Also legendary was the vicious verbal assault that Warfield launched against Santop following the loss, laying blame for the loss squarely at Santop's feet. Santop and others were already in tears in their locker room following the game, and it is one of Blackball's legends that Santop never recovered from the humiliation of Warfield's tirade.

Game Nine

October 19 1924 at Schorling Park in Chicago

::Starting and completing his fourth game of the series, Nip Winters won for the third time to tie the series. William Bell started for Kansas City, but was shelled with none out in the fifth inning when Hilldale tied the score 2-2. Drake pitched creditably until tiring in the ninth, when Hilldale scored two to win. The Series was now tied for the third time.

Game Ten

October 20 1924 at Schorling Park in Chicago

::Although still weak from surgery before the series and advised by a doctor not to exert himself, Méndez had already pitched 10 innings of relief in the first nine games, and upon the advice of Rube Foster named himself to start the final game. Game Ten became part of his legend. He matched Hilldale starter Scrip Lee zero for zero for seven full innings until Lee tired in the bottom of the eighth. Lee changed from his normal submarine delivery to an overhand style in that inning, and the Monarchs scored five runs off of him, including one by Méndez himself. When Hilldale went out in the ninth, the Monarchs had won the first Colored World Series.::Lee, the losing pitcher in the Series finale, later umpired the opening game of the 1942 Colored World Series.

ources

*Books
**cite book | author= Lester, Larry | title=Baseball’s First Colored World Series| location=Jefferson, NC| publisher=McFarland & Co| year=2006 | id=ISBN 0-7864-2617-9
**cite book | author=Holway, John | title=The Complete Book of Baseball's Negro Leagues | location=Fern Park | publisher=Hastings House | year=2001 | id=ISBN 0-8038-2007-0
*Newspapers
**Baltimore "Afro-American", October 1924
**Chicago "Defender", October 1924
**Kansas City "Call", October 1924
**Pittsburgh "Courier", October 1924