Quote:
Originally Posted by TomVeal
On the other hand, I seriously doubt (though I'm willing to be set right by evidence) that the overall quality of competition in the Negro Leagues equaled that of their white counterparts. If it didn't, an average NNL player is accurately rated below the average of MLB.
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I would agree with that. The Negro Leagues were probably comparable to the Nippon Pro Leagues of today, which most observers consider to be at a "AAAA" level. Of course, a big reason for that was because Blacks who might otherwise have considered a career in baseball were put off by the appalling conditions, abysmal pay, and lack of prestige that came with being a member of the Negro Leagues. As a result, league clubs didn't really have strong rosters from top to bottom, even though they had a total monopoly on Black talent. The good players were really good, and the not-so-good players were ... well, for the most part, they were forgettable and forgotten.