Johnny Wright (baseball player)
Encyclopedia
John Richard "Johnny" Wright was a Negro League pitcher who played briefly in the International League
of baseball's minor leagues in 1946, and was on the roster of the Montreal Royals
at the same time as Jackie Robinson
, making him a plausible candidate to have broken the baseball color barrier. Instead, Wright was demoted from Montreal and returned the next season to the Negro Leagues.
Playing in Louisville in 1937, Wright was picked up by the Newark Eagles of the Negro National League
, a big league club. He also played for the Atlanta Black Crackers
and Pittsburgh Crawfords
in 1938, Toledo/Indianapolis Crawfords from 1939-40 before joining the famed Homestead Grays
in 1941.
The Grays of the era won an unprecedented nine consecutive pennants. The club, managed by Candy Jim Taylor
, boasted some of the game's all-time greats: Cool Papa Bell, Josh Gibson
, Buck Leonard
, Howard Easterling, Sam Bankhead
, Jud Wilson
.
The club won its first Negro World Series in 1943 behind the pitching of Ray Brown, Roy Partlow and Wright. Wright won 25 games during the regular season and posted two shutouts during the series.
Wright was known as a speedy pitcher with good control and a sharp curve. Opponents described Wright as throwing harder than Satchel Paige. "Johnny was exceptional, as good as anyone we had," said George "Tex" Stephens, a longtime local observer of Negro Leagues baseball who played against Wright as a youth. "As good as Satchel Paige," Stephens said. "Certainly faster (than Paige)."
After the 1943 season, Wright joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. While in the Navy he pitched for the Great Lakes Naval Station team, a black club.
By 1945, he was playing for the Brooklyn Naval Air Base team where he posted a 15-4 record and was said to have the best ERA in the armed forces. Also in early 1945, he pitched well in an exhibition game against the Brooklyn Dodgers. At the end of the season in 1945, Wright joined the Grays and pitched in three contests; winning them all. He also appeared in the Negro World Series.
claiming that Rickey was tampering with their players. Wright and Robinson were the named players. In fact, reports suggest that Wright actually signed a contract on November 20, 1945 with the Dodgers.
Some speculated that Rickey merely wanted a compatriot for Robinson during his first spring in organized ball, a speculation that Clyde Sukeforth, Rickey's scout, agreed with: "I don't think that the reports indicated that Johnny Wright was an outstanding pitcher, but apparently Mr. Rickey thought he would be an excellent companion [for Robinson]." Other reports were more complimentary of Wright. Influential black sports writer Sam Lacy
of the Baltimore Afro-American said: "Wright doesn't boast the college background that is Jackie's, but he possesses something equally valuable - a level head and the knack of seeing things objectively. He is a realist in a role which demands divorce from sentimentality." Hall of Famer Monte Irvin, who played with and against Wright in the Negro Leagues, feels strongly that Wright's curveball was of major-league quality. But, in his autobiography, "Nice Guys Finish First," Irvin said Robinson had one advantage in spring training: Rachel, his wife, who accompanied her spouse to the South in what she knew would be a trial by fire. Wright, by contrast, although married with two children, was alone in Daytona Beach, where the Dodgers trained.
On March 4, 1946, in Sanford, Florida, Robinson donned his Montreal Royals uniform for the first day of spring training in the Dodgers' organization, joined by Wright. That day would not feature an official game. Wright would be on the active roster on March 17, 1946, when Robinson started at shortstop for the Royals in an exhibition game against their parent club the Dodgers, the first step in breaking baseball's color barrier.
In the spring, Wright had a bad outing as pitcher in an intrasquad game against the Dodgers, giving up 8 runs on 10 hits in five innings. In another intrasquad game, he walked four in four innings, giving up two runs on three hits. In his last appearance, he walked four and hit another in one inning.
Both Robinson and Wright landed with the AAA Montreal Royals of the International League when the season began. In his first appearance, against Syracuse, Wright entered in relief. He gave up 4 runs and 5 hits over 3.1 innings. The next time on the mound Wright pitched in Baltimore, the southern-most city in the International League, and a hostile environment for black players. He entered in the sixth inning behind by five. He retired the side and finished the game without giving up a hit. In general, however, during his six weeks with the club, he was used sporadically and often suffered from control problems. On May 14, he was demoted to the Class-C Trois Rivieres (Quebec) Royals of the Canadian-American League. The Dodgers immediately replaced Wright on the Montreal roster with Roy Partlow, another black pitcher, but Partlow's time with Montreal was limited and he was eventually reassigned to join Wright at Trois Rivieres.
Wright went 12-8 with Trois Rivieres, plus winning the deciding game of the championship series. At the end of the season, Wright would barnstorm with Robinson's "All-Star" squad.
Wright appears in only one paragraph of Robinson's autobiography:
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
of baseball's minor leagues in 1946, and was on the roster of the Montreal Royals
Montreal Royals
The Montreal Royals were a minor league professional baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec, that existed from 1897–1917 and from 1928–60 as a member of the International League and its progenitor, the original Eastern League...
at the same time as Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt "Jackie" Robinson was the first black Major League Baseball player of the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947...
, making him a plausible candidate to have broken the baseball color barrier. Instead, Wright was demoted from Montreal and returned the next season to the Negro Leagues.
Negro League experience
Wright was a New Orleans-born, 5'11", 175-lbs, right-handed pitcher who started his professional career with the New Orleans Zulus in 1936 at age 17. The Zulus were as much sports enterainment as a legitimate baseball team, in the mold of the Harlem Globetrotters of the era.Playing in Louisville in 1937, Wright was picked up by the Newark Eagles of the Negro National League
Negro National League
Negro National League can refer to either one or both of these two leagues of major league baseball in the USA in the first half of the twentieth century:* Negro National League * Negro National League...
, a big league club. He also played for the Atlanta Black Crackers
Atlanta Black Crackers
The Atlanta Black Crackers were a professional Negro league baseball team which played during the early to mid 20th century.- Founding :The Crackers were founded in 1919...
and Pittsburgh Crawfords
Pittsburgh Crawfords
The Pittsburgh Crawfords, popularly known as the Craws, were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Named after the Crawford Grill, a club in the Hill District of Pittsburgh owned by Gus Greenlee, the Crawfords were originally a youth semipro team sponsored by...
in 1938, Toledo/Indianapolis Crawfords from 1939-40 before joining the famed Homestead Grays
Homestead Grays
The Homestead Grays were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and would remain in continuous operation for 38 seasons. The team was based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, adjacent to Pittsburgh.-Franchise...
in 1941.
The Grays of the era won an unprecedented nine consecutive pennants. The club, managed by Candy Jim Taylor
Candy Jim Taylor
James Allen "Candy Jim" Taylor was an American third baseman and manager in Negro league baseball.-Biography:Born in Anderson, South Carolina, Taylor was one of four brothers who played in the Negro Leagues, along with Ben, C. I. and "Steel Arm" Johnny...
, boasted some of the game's all-time greats: Cool Papa Bell, Josh Gibson
Josh Gibson
Joshua Gibson was an American catcher in baseball's Negro leagues. He played for the Homestead Grays from 1930 to 1931, moved to the Pittsburgh Crawfords from 1932 to 1936, and returned to the Grays from 1937 to 1939 and 1942 to 1946...
, Buck Leonard
Buck Leonard
Walter Fenner "Buck" Leonard was an American first baseman in Negro league baseball. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in along with his long-time teammate Josh Gibson.-Biography:...
, Howard Easterling, Sam Bankhead
Sam Bankhead
Samuel Howard Bankhead was a baseball player in the Negro Leagues. He played pitcher, infielder, and outfielder from 1930 to 1950. He also played for the Dragones de Ciudad Trujillo along with Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson. His brother Dan Bankhead played in the Major Leagues.-References:*...
, Jud Wilson
Jud Wilson
Ernest Judson Wilson , nicknamed "Boojum," was an American third baseman, first baseman, and manager in Negro league baseball. Born in Remington, Virginia, he served in World War I, and during his career played primarily for the Baltimore Black Sox , Homestead Grays , and Philadelphia Stars...
.
The club won its first Negro World Series in 1943 behind the pitching of Ray Brown, Roy Partlow and Wright. Wright won 25 games during the regular season and posted two shutouts during the series.
Wright was known as a speedy pitcher with good control and a sharp curve. Opponents described Wright as throwing harder than Satchel Paige. "Johnny was exceptional, as good as anyone we had," said George "Tex" Stephens, a longtime local observer of Negro Leagues baseball who played against Wright as a youth. "As good as Satchel Paige," Stephens said. "Certainly faster (than Paige)."
After the 1943 season, Wright joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. While in the Navy he pitched for the Great Lakes Naval Station team, a black club.
By 1945, he was playing for the Brooklyn Naval Air Base team where he posted a 15-4 record and was said to have the best ERA in the armed forces. Also in early 1945, he pitched well in an exhibition game against the Brooklyn Dodgers. At the end of the season in 1945, Wright joined the Grays and pitched in three contests; winning them all. He also appeared in the Negro World Series.
Minor League callup
In late October 1945 Branch Rickey made the announcement of the Jackie Robinson signing. Rickey likewise announced the signing of Wright on January 29, 1946, making him the second officially recognized African-American to sign a contract with organized baseball during the integration era. In reality, Wright had likely signed months earlier. Two weeks after the Robinson announcement, the Negro Leagues issued a protest to baseball Commissioner Happy ChandlerHappy Chandler
Albert Benjamin "Happy" Chandler, Sr. was a politician from the US state of Kentucky. He represented the state in the U.S. Senate and served as its 44th and 49th governor. Aside from his political positions, he also served as the second Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1945 to 1951 and...
claiming that Rickey was tampering with their players. Wright and Robinson were the named players. In fact, reports suggest that Wright actually signed a contract on November 20, 1945 with the Dodgers.
Some speculated that Rickey merely wanted a compatriot for Robinson during his first spring in organized ball, a speculation that Clyde Sukeforth, Rickey's scout, agreed with: "I don't think that the reports indicated that Johnny Wright was an outstanding pitcher, but apparently Mr. Rickey thought he would be an excellent companion [for Robinson]." Other reports were more complimentary of Wright. Influential black sports writer Sam Lacy
Sam Lacy
Samuel Harold Lacy was a pioneering African-American and Native American sportswriter, reporter, columnist, editor, and TV/radio commentator who worked in the sports journalism field for parts of nine decades...
of the Baltimore Afro-American said: "Wright doesn't boast the college background that is Jackie's, but he possesses something equally valuable - a level head and the knack of seeing things objectively. He is a realist in a role which demands divorce from sentimentality." Hall of Famer Monte Irvin, who played with and against Wright in the Negro Leagues, feels strongly that Wright's curveball was of major-league quality. But, in his autobiography, "Nice Guys Finish First," Irvin said Robinson had one advantage in spring training: Rachel, his wife, who accompanied her spouse to the South in what she knew would be a trial by fire. Wright, by contrast, although married with two children, was alone in Daytona Beach, where the Dodgers trained.
On March 4, 1946, in Sanford, Florida, Robinson donned his Montreal Royals uniform for the first day of spring training in the Dodgers' organization, joined by Wright. That day would not feature an official game. Wright would be on the active roster on March 17, 1946, when Robinson started at shortstop for the Royals in an exhibition game against their parent club the Dodgers, the first step in breaking baseball's color barrier.
In the spring, Wright had a bad outing as pitcher in an intrasquad game against the Dodgers, giving up 8 runs on 10 hits in five innings. In another intrasquad game, he walked four in four innings, giving up two runs on three hits. In his last appearance, he walked four and hit another in one inning.
Both Robinson and Wright landed with the AAA Montreal Royals of the International League when the season began. In his first appearance, against Syracuse, Wright entered in relief. He gave up 4 runs and 5 hits over 3.1 innings. The next time on the mound Wright pitched in Baltimore, the southern-most city in the International League, and a hostile environment for black players. He entered in the sixth inning behind by five. He retired the side and finished the game without giving up a hit. In general, however, during his six weeks with the club, he was used sporadically and often suffered from control problems. On May 14, he was demoted to the Class-C Trois Rivieres (Quebec) Royals of the Canadian-American League. The Dodgers immediately replaced Wright on the Montreal roster with Roy Partlow, another black pitcher, but Partlow's time with Montreal was limited and he was eventually reassigned to join Wright at Trois Rivieres.
Wright went 12-8 with Trois Rivieres, plus winning the deciding game of the championship series. At the end of the season, Wright would barnstorm with Robinson's "All-Star" squad.
Wright appears in only one paragraph of Robinson's autobiography:
Shortly after Branch Rickey had signed me for Montreal, he had signed John Wright, a black pitcher, for the farm club. Johnny was a good pitcher, but I feel he didn't have the right kind of temperament to make it with the International League in those days. He couldn't withstand the pressure of taking insult after insult without being able to retaliate. It affected his pitching that he had to keep his temper under control all the time. Later I was very sad because he didn't make the Montreal team.