November 8, 2024

Buffalo’s Negro League roots, told by Cutch

Buffalo #Buffalo

Tuesday night will see Buffalo’s Sahlen Field — usually the stadium for the Triple-A Bisons — transformed into the big league home for the Blue Jays as they take on the Marlins. But that’s not the total extent of baseball history in the region. In fact, Buffalo was home to

Tuesday night will see Buffalo’s Sahlen Field — usually the stadium for the Triple-A Bisons — transformed into the big league home for the Blue Jays as they take on the Marlins. But that’s not the total extent of baseball history in the region. In fact, Buffalo was home to plenty of historic Negro League moments, as well.

As we honor the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues this season, Phillies outfielder and filmmaker extraordinaire Andrew McCutchen sat down to teach us about the rich baseball tradition in the city.

In a quick two-and-a-half minutes, McCutchen — wearing a Kansas City Monarchs cap and Philadelphia Stars T-shirt — introduces us to the Indianapolis Clowns, who won three league titles while playing in Buffalo from 1951-59. While there, they gave Hank Aaron his professional debut (and first nickname: Porkchop), and signed Toni Stone, the first woman to play professional baseball, and later added Peanut Johnson and Connie Morgan.

Check out Cutch’s video below:

Michael Clair writes for MLB.com. He spends a lot of time thinking about walk-up music and believes stirrup socks are an integral part of every formal outfit.