Black Aces

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For the fighter squadron, see VFA-41 Black Aces. For the South African football team, see Mpumalanga Black Aces F.C. For the Zimbabwean football team, see Black Aces FC.
Mudcat Grant in 2011

The Black Aces are a group of black pitchers who have won at least 20 Major League Baseball games in a single season. The term comes from the title of a book written by former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Mudcat Grant, one of the members of the group.[1]

In the first years after the desegregation of MLB, teams who drafted African American pitchers often converted them into position players; few were allowed to continue pitching.[2] Grant is the first African American 20-game winner in American League history.[3] Two members of the Black Aces, Bob Gibson and Ferguson Jenkins, are members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The group has organized formally to promote their successes and encourage the development of future black players.[4]

Some black pitchers from Latin America, notably Luis Tiant (a 20-win pitcher four times in his career), have expressed disappointment that they are not included in this group.[5] Meanwhile, Ferguson Jenkins is a Black Canadian, although he can trace his ancestry on his mother's side to escaped U.S. slaves.

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum had a traveling exhibit honoring the Black Aces.[6] The Black Aces were celebrated at McAfee Coliseum in 2007.[3][7]

Pitchers described by Grant as Black Aces[]

Bob Gibson in 1962
Key
# Number of 20-win seasons
Seasons Seasons in which the pitcher won 20 games
dagger
 Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
Black Aces
Pitcher # Seasons
Vida Blue 3 1971 (24–8), 1973 (20–9), and 1975 (22–11)
Al Downing 1 1971 (20–9)
Bob Gibsondagger 5 1965 (20–12), 1966 (21–12), 1968 (22–9), 1969 (20–13), 1970 (23–7)
Dwight Gooden 1 1985 (24–4)
Mudcat Grant 1 1965 (21–7)
Ferguson Jenkinsdagger 7 1967 (20–13), 1968 (20–15), 1969 (21–15), 1970 (22–16), 1971 (24–13), 1972 (20–12), 1974 (25–12)
Sam Jones 1 1959 (21–15)
Don Newcombe 3 1951 (20–9), 1955 (20–5), 1956 (27–7)
Mike Norris 1 1980 (22–9)
J. R. Richard 1 1976 (20–15)
Dave Stewart 4 1987 (20–13), 1988 (21–12), 1989 (21–9), 1990 (22–11)
Earl Wilson 1 1967 (22–11)

Other African-American pitchers to win 20 games[]

Pitcher # Seasons
Dontrelle Willis 1 2005 (22–10)
CC Sabathia 1 2010 (21–7)
David Price 1 2012 (20–5)

References[]

  1. ^ "The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Major League Baseball News". Archived from the original on June 21, 2008.
  2. ^ Ostler, Scott (31 May 2007). "Pass it on -- Norris wants to keep Aces' legacy alive". SFGate.
  3. ^ a b "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-18. Retrieved 2012-03-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ Kroichick, Ron (28 February 2006). "The Black Aces / Book profiles 13 pitchers who changed perceptions". SFGate.
  5. ^ "Topic Galleries – South Florida". Sun-Sentinel.com.
  6. ^ Simmons, Rusty (30 May 2007). "New problem for Geren when DL ranks thin". SFGate.
  7. ^ [1][dead link]
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