Legends Coming to Cooperstown for East-West Classic

Game, Museum Exhibit To Celebrate History of Black Baseball

COOPERSTOWN—The Negro Leagues East-West Classic was an annual showcase for some of the best talent of the era. On Memorial Day Weekend in Cooperstown, another all-star lineup—with rosters bolstered by Dave Winfield, Sam Allen, and Doug Glanville—will celebrate the history of Black baseball and the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s new exhibit,” The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball.”

The Hall of Fame East-West Classic: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues All-Star Game will be played on Saturday, May 25 at Cooperstown’s historic Doubleday Field and will feature Hall of Famer Dave Winfield, who joins previously announced Hall of Famers Harold Baines, Ken Griffey Jr., Fergie Jenkins, Jim Kaat, Fred McGriff, Eddie Murray, Jim Rice, Lee Smith, and Ozzie Smith as managers and coaches.

Fueled by assistance from Major League Baseball, the East-West Classic rosters will consist of more than two dozen former big leaguers, including nine-year big league veteran and ESPN analyst Doug Glanville, who joins team captains CC Sabathia and Chris Young along with previously announced players Josh Barfield, Tim Beckham, José Contreras, Ian Desmond, Prince Fielder, Dexter Fowler, Curtis Granderson, Tony Gwynn Jr., Jerry Hairston, Scott Hairston, LaTroy Hawkins, Ryan Howard, Edwin Jackson, Jeremy Jeffress, Adam Jones, Howie Kendrick, Russell Martin, Darrell Miller, Melvin Mora, David Price, Tony Sipp, Dee Strange-Gordon, B.J. Upton, Justin Upton, and Dontrelle Willis.

Former Kansas City Monarchs star Sam Allen joins Pedro Sierra as Negro Leaguers who will attend the East-West Classic. Known as the last living player who suited up for the Monarchs, Allen was one of the top hitters in the Negro Leagues in the late 1950s.

Harold Reynolds of MLB Network and Mets’ World Series hero Mookie Wilson will join the rosters as honorary team members. 

Fans at The Hall of Fame East-West Classic will also be treated to food and beverage options, music, giveaways including a commemorative program, and a special appearance by Chicago Cubs voice Jeremiah Paprocki, the team’s first Black public address announcer, who will serve as the guest PA announcer for the game.

The East-West Classic game will be part of a weekend celebration as the museum opens its new exhibit, “The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball.”

The Negro Leagues East-West All-Star Game debuted in 1933 at Chicago’s Comiskey Park and was played annually through 1962, including several years that featured multiple games. Hall of Famer Bill Foster was the winning pitcher in the inaugural East-West All-Star Game and several future Hall of Famers starred in the game throughout the years, including Cool Papa Bell, Ray Brown, Andy Cooper, Leon Day, Martín Dihigo, Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, Minnie Miñoso, Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, and Willie Wells.

Located on the museum’s second floor in the Yawkey Gallery, “The Souls of the Game: Voices of Black Baseball” will cover stories of early Black baseball, the Negro Leagues era, the complexities of reintegration, Jackie Robinson, post-reintegration progress and retrogress, and calls for change in today’s game while celebrating the newest superstars of the era. Meaningful stories from Black baseball are also being added to other exhibits throughout the museum.

The exhibit is part of the Hall of Fame’s Black Baseball Initiative that includes additional outreach programs, educational materials, and virtual programming, and is made possible by the Yawkey Foundation with additional support from Bill Janetschek in honor of his siblings Robert and Ann, the Anthony A. Yoseloff Foundation, and the Bisignano Family. The initiative will also enhance Black Baseball stories found throughout the museum.

The Souls of the Game, a title that pays tribute to W.E.B. Du Bois’s seminal 1903 book, “The Souls of Black Folk,” will explore the Black baseball experience of those men, women, and children who were and are an integral part of our National Pastime.

Subtitled “Voices of Black Baseball,” the exhibit will highlight first-person accounts by the many individuals whose experiences shaped them, their community, baseball and America at large. Featuring historically significant artifacts, documents, and photographs, and utilizing audio, video, and interactive elements, the exhibit will tell a more inclusive story of baseball, shine a light on and correct misconceptions about Black baseball.

Tickets for the Hall of Fame East-West Classic are on sale now at baseballhall.org/east-west. For more information about the museum’s Black Baseball Initiative, visit baseballhall.org/BBI.