Pittsburgh Keystones (baseball)

The Pittsburgh Keystones was the name of two historic professional Negro league baseball teams that operated in 1887 and again in 1921 and 1922. The first team was a member of the first black baseball league in 1887, the League of Colored Baseball Clubs. The league only lasted a week, which resulted in a 3-4 record for the Keystones, and included Weldy Walker, the second African-American to play in the major leagues and future hall of famer, Sol White.[1]

Pittsburgh Keystones
(1887, 1921-1922)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
League affiliation(s)
Ballpark(s)

The second club was founded by Alexander McDonald Williams, a Barbadian immigrant and pool hall operator.[2] The Keystones' home field was Central Park, located in the Hill District at the corner of Chauncey Street and Humber Way.[3] The park was built by the prominent African American architect Louis Arnett Stuart Bellinger, who would later design Greenlee Field for the Pittsburgh Crawfords.[4][5]

In their first season the Pittsburgh Keystones played as associate members of the Negro National League. Managed by Fred Downer, they compiled a 7-14-1 record against league and other associate clubs.[6] The Keystones joined the league as full members in 1922, finishing sixth with a 14-23-2 record in league play under managers Dizzy Dismukes and Dicta Johnson.[7] The team disbanded after the season.

Year-by-year record

(from Baseball Reference Bullpen)

YearRecordFinishManagerNotes
18873-4--Walter BrownLeague folded after 1 week
19217-14-15thFred Downer
192214-23-26thDizzy Dismukes & Dicta Johnson

References
  1. "Seamheads.com Negro Leagues Database". 2011. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  2. Ashwill, Gary (2009-09-09). "Central Park, Pittsburgh 1920-1925". Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  3. Ashwill, Gary (2006-05-07). "Pittsburgh's Central Park". Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  4. Tannler, Albert M. (2006-05-07). "Pittsburgh's African-American Architect Louis Bellinger and the New Granada Theater". Retrieved 2012-04-10.
  5. Strecker, Geri, "The Rise of Greenlee Field: Biography of a Ballpark," Black Ball: A Negro Leagues Journal 2:2 (Fall 2009): 39-40.
  6. "Seamheads.com Negro Leagues Database". 2011. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  7. "Seamheads.com Negro Leagues Database". 2011. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
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