Today on Louisiana Considered, we listen to an episode of a new podcast, “American Colony,” all about the history of Puerto Rico. In this episode produced by WWNO’s Alana Schreiber, we dive into baseball history on the archipelago, specifically how the sport was shaped by Black American baseball players.
During the golden age of the Negro Leagues, the biggest stars came to play in Puerto Rico. Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Monte Irvin and more than 200 others spent their winter on Puerto Rica teams, playing integrated baseball years before Jackie Robinson crossed the color line in the U.S. They experienced a sense of fame, freedom and dignity they never received on U.S. soil, and in turn, changed how the game was played and inspired some of the Puerto Rican greats, including Roberto Clemente.
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This episode of American Colony was produced by Alana Schreiber and hosted by Julio Ricardo Varela. It was edited by Nuria Net. Translation help from Illan Ireland. For archival recordings, special thanks to the Lewis B. Nunn Center for Oral History at the University of Kentucky Libraries.
Credits
American Colony is a production of The Latino Newsletter and Shake It Easy Media
Senior Editor: Nuria Net
Senior Producer: Joaquín Cotler
