John Donaldson
Encyclopedia
John Wesley Donaldson (February 20, 1891 – April 12, 1970) was an American baseball
pitcher in Pre-Negro league and Negro league baseball
. He was born in Glasgow, Missouri
.
s, as research teams scour the landscape and the search continues. Over 150 games that Donaldson pitched in report no strikeout game totals, dramatically under reporting his overall totals.
Printed box scores reveal 378 wins and 84 losses and a winning percentage of .737. He also notched 4,409 strikeouts, an ERA
of 1.37, and 86 shutouts against all levels of competition. He completed 296 of 322 starts
(92%).
Donaldson can be credited with 13 no-hitter
s, a perfect game
, and dozens of one-hitters. He also has two 30 strikeout games, 11 games with more than 25 strikeouts (including two back-to-back 25 strikeout games), 30 games with more than 20 strikeouts, 109 games with more than 15 strikeouts, and a total of 203 double digit strikeout games. Donaldson could also hit well, batting .334 in over 1,800 at bats.
It seems that sometime during the 1910 campaign, he was exposed to barnstorming clubs that traveled through the area and knew then what he wanted to do for a living.
Donaldson established himself as a remarkable pitcher, posting a reported record of 44-3. Known highlights of that season include an 18-inning 31 strikeout game, a 27 strikeout performance and on at least four separate occasions, he whiffed 19.
based in Des Moines, Iowa
, in 1912, for a reported sum of $150/month. Donaldson went on to star for the team, which included a female player named Carrie Nation, as well as players of several different races. The experiment of an interracial ball club was thought to be impossible to keep together. Not only did the All Nations
co-exist, they thrived traveling throughout the Midwest and Upper Midwest
from 1912 to 1917.
During Donaldson's 1915 season, he struck out an average of 18 batters a game and fanned 30 in a marathon 18-inning contest. Donaldson not only struck out more than 500 batters that season, but did it three years straight. Most of his accomplishments were against semi-professional competition, but Donaldson also did very well in his relatively few contests against highest level professional baseball teams, and there were a number of first-person reports of his talent from such opposing managers and players.
Donaldson and his ball-clubs prior to the organization of the Negro National League
in 1920 played ball all year round, both in the Midwest
and venues as far west as Los Angeles, California
as far east as Palm Beach, Florida
.
, during the time of the 1918 flu pandemic, and during many of the nation's racial unrest such as the Red Summer of 1919
, John Donaldson was somehow interwoven into all of these places during those dates, playing and pitching in some of the United States' most populous cities like Brooklyn
, Detroit, and Chicago
. After being in the middle of all that turbulence, Donaldson made his way back to Kansas City, Missouri
.
, J. L. Wilkinson
formed the Kansas City Monarchs
in 1920, where John Donaldson worked as a pitcher and center fielder. In fact, it has been reported that Donaldson came up with the name "Monarchs." A Kansas City
Newspaper even reported that Donaldson would manage the Monarchs, but it appears there was a change in the 11th hour, and José Méndez
was chosen as the Monarchs manager. Donaldson played with the Monarchs at different times through much of the 1920s.
Donaldson was known to have also played part-time with various semi-pro barnstorming teams during this era. However, for at least two years, Donaldson managed and played on the revamped All Nations baseball team, which now served as a way to train, recruit and make money for Wilkinson's "parent club", the Kansas City Monarchs. Players for the All Nations would show up on the roster one week, then appear on the Kansas City Monarchs roster in the next week. Crowds of over 5,000 people sometimes watched these exhibition games, well into the mid-1920s.
was active in the state. Three years after the notorious lynchings of three black circus workers in 1920 in Duluth, Minnesota
, Donaldson led a barnstorming troupe into Duluth, where he pitched and beat a team of white all-stars from the Iron Range
, 6-3.
Donaldson made a comfortable living traveling through rural America, even during the Depression
. Like many black barnstormers of the time, Donaldson faced white major leaguers and fared well enough to prompt New York Giants
manager John McGraw to say, "I think he is the greatest I have ever seen." McGraw is also alleged to have said about Donaldson: "If I could dunk him in calamine lotion, I'd sign him."
Donaldson's charisma, composure and stellar character were a countermeasure to the deep-seated prejudices of the time, baseball historian Pete Gorton has said. "But I don't want anyone to look at the career of John Donaldson and think 'Oh, here's another poor black ball player exploited by the "Man" or by the times he lived,'" the writer noted. "This is a story of a man who was covered by the media and adored by the fans and had an outstanding career on the baseball diamond."
A May 17, 1928 Letter to the Editor in Melrose, Minnesota
tells of one fan's appreciation of watching Donaldson: "Two-thirds of the attendance at Melrose wanted to see Donaldson, the great. They did not come because they wanted to see the Melrose or Scobey ball teams, but they wanted to see Donaldson, the master of base ball."
After more than 30 years as a player, Donaldson retired in 1941
. Settling in Chicago, some historians believe he worked for the U.S. Postal Service.
of the American League
, in 1949. It is known that he pursued Willie Mays
and Ernie Banks
for the team and is credited with the signing of several prominent Negro Leaguers of the time, including Bob Boyd and Sam Hairston
.
owes much of his style and acumen to Donaldson, who's barnstorming efforts pre-dated Paige's by two decades.
Elden Auker
, a former major league pitcher, who had played against Donaldson, related this anecdote when he (Auker) was 95 years old, in 2006: "I played against Donaldson in 1929. I was in college and we played at an Arapaho
Indian reservation
in Kansas
. I pitched against Paige and I won, 2-1. Donaldson played center field. Donaldson got out in center field and squatted like a catcher," Auker related. "The Monarchs had a catcher named Young, and he squatted behind home plate and they played catch from 300 feet. They threw the ball on a line. If I hadn't seen it, I wouldn't have believed it."
player-voted poll of the Negro Leagues best players ever.
Donaldson died at age 78 in Chicago and is buried in Burr Oak Cemetery
in Alsip, Illinois
. He was buried in an unmarked grave at the cemetery, until Peoria, Illinois
, anesthesiologist Jeremy Krock raised enough money for a proper headstone.
Donaldson was nominated for a special ballot of pre-Negro leagues candidates for inclusion in baseball's Hall of Fame
. A 12-member voting committee, appointed by the Board of Directors and chaired by former Major League Baseball
Commissioner
Fay Vincent
, however, did not choose Donaldson for membership in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown
, in a vote in February 2006.
As of 2011, researchers working as a networking team calling themselves "The Donaldson Network", living and working in several states around the United States, have located Donaldson's 4,409 career strikeouts and 378 career wins as a pitcher.
in 1920, and advertisements for the game called Donaldson "the colored wonder pitcher."
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
pitcher in Pre-Negro league and Negro league baseball
Negro league baseball
The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams predominantly made up of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relatively successful leagues beginning in...
. He was born in Glasgow, Missouri
Glasgow, Missouri
Glasgow is a city in Chariton and Howard counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. The population was 1,263 at the 2000 census.The Howard County portion of Glasgow is part of the Columbia, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
.
Highlights
Researchers have documented only portions of his career. Published totals from local newspaper accounts covering his 30-plus year career provide a glimpse at his prowess on the diamond. 381 wins have been discovered and 141 losses with 4,445 strikeoutStrikeout
In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike-out occurs when a batter receives three strikes during his time at bat. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters....
s, as research teams scour the landscape and the search continues. Over 150 games that Donaldson pitched in report no strikeout game totals, dramatically under reporting his overall totals.
Printed box scores reveal 378 wins and 84 losses and a winning percentage of .737. He also notched 4,409 strikeouts, an ERA
Earned run average
In baseball statistics, earned run average is the mean of earned runs given up by a pitcher per nine innings pitched. It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine...
of 1.37, and 86 shutouts against all levels of competition. He completed 296 of 322 starts
Starting lineup
A starting lineup in sports is an official list of the set of players who will actively participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.The starters are commonly the best...
(92%).
Donaldson can be credited with 13 no-hitter
No-hitter
A no-hitter is a baseball game in which one team has no hits. In Major League Baseball, the team must be without hits during the entire game, and the game must be at least nine innings. A pitcher who prevents the opposing team from achieving a hit is said to have "thrown a no-hitter"...
s, a perfect game
Perfect game
A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...
, and dozens of one-hitters. He also has two 30 strikeout games, 11 games with more than 25 strikeouts (including two back-to-back 25 strikeout games), 30 games with more than 20 strikeouts, 109 games with more than 15 strikeouts, and a total of 203 double digit strikeout games. Donaldson could also hit well, batting .334 in over 1,800 at bats.
Early years
Donaldson's early career was spent in our around his hometown of Glasgow, Missouri. He is known to have played for the Missouri Black Tigers of nearby Higbee, Missouri, in 1908, and subsequently for the Hannaca Blues, an all-black contingent from Glasgow during the 1909-10 seasons.It seems that sometime during the 1910 campaign, he was exposed to barnstorming clubs that traveled through the area and knew then what he wanted to do for a living.
Tennessee Rats
He pitched for Brown's Tennessee Rats, who were managed by W.A. Brown out of Holden, Missouri. The team traveled with a complement called "Brown's Tennessee Minstrels". Together, the group of about 20 individuals crisscrossed the upper Midwest, playing ball during the day and providing an evening minstrel program much to the delight of their mostly white ticket buyers.Donaldson established himself as a remarkable pitcher, posting a reported record of 44-3. Known highlights of that season include an 18-inning 31 strikeout game, a 27 strikeout performance and on at least four separate occasions, he whiffed 19.
All Nations
He contracted to pitch for the World's All NationsAll Nations
All Nations was the name of a barnstorming professional baseball team that toured the Midwest from 1912 to 1918. It derived its name from the fact that its team including players of several nationalities, including blacks and whites, Indians, Hawaiians, Orientals, and Latin Americans. The team was...
based in Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
, in 1912, for a reported sum of $150/month. Donaldson went on to star for the team, which included a female player named Carrie Nation, as well as players of several different races. The experiment of an interracial ball club was thought to be impossible to keep together. Not only did the All Nations
All Nations
All Nations was the name of a barnstorming professional baseball team that toured the Midwest from 1912 to 1918. It derived its name from the fact that its team including players of several nationalities, including blacks and whites, Indians, Hawaiians, Orientals, and Latin Americans. The team was...
co-exist, they thrived traveling throughout the Midwest and Upper Midwest
Upper Midwest
The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the midwest. Although there are no uniformly agreed-upon boundaries, the region is most commonly used to refer to the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and...
from 1912 to 1917.
During Donaldson's 1915 season, he struck out an average of 18 batters a game and fanned 30 in a marathon 18-inning contest. Donaldson not only struck out more than 500 batters that season, but did it three years straight. Most of his accomplishments were against semi-professional competition, but Donaldson also did very well in his relatively few contests against highest level professional baseball teams, and there were a number of first-person reports of his talent from such opposing managers and players.
Donaldson and his ball-clubs prior to the organization 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...
in 1920 played ball all year round, both in the Midwest
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
and venues as far west as Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
as far east as Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach, Florida
The Town of Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of West Palm Beach and Lake Worth...
.
WWI, Flu Pandemic, and Racial Unrest from 1918 to 1920
During the time of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, during the time of the 1918 flu pandemic, and during many of the nation's racial unrest such as the Red Summer of 1919
Red Summer of 1919
Red Summer describes the race riots that occurred in more than three dozen cities in the United States during the summer and early autumn of 1919. In most instances, whites attacked African Americans. In some cases groups of blacks fought back, notably in Chicago, where, along with Washington, D.C....
, John Donaldson was somehow interwoven into all of these places during those dates, playing and pitching in some of the United States' most populous cities like Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, Detroit, and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. After being in the middle of all that turbulence, Donaldson made his way back to Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.
Negro Leagues
After World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, J. L. Wilkinson
J. L. Wilkinson
James Leslie Wilkinson was an American sports executive who founded the barnstorming All Nations baseball club in 1912, and the Negro league baseball team Kansas City Monarchs in 1920....
formed the Kansas City Monarchs
Kansas City Monarchs
The Kansas City Monarchs were the longest-running franchise in the history of baseball's Negro Leagues. Operating in Kansas City, Missouri and owned by J.L. Wilkinson, they were charter members of the Negro National League from 1920 to 1930. J.L. Wilkinson was the first Caucasian owner at the time...
in 1920, where John Donaldson worked as a pitcher and center fielder. In fact, it has been reported that Donaldson came up with the name "Monarchs." A Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
Newspaper even reported that Donaldson would manage the Monarchs, but it appears there was a change in the 11th hour, and José Méndez
José Méndez
José de la Caridad Méndez was a Cuban right-handed pitcher and manager in baseball's Negro Leagues. Born in Cárdenas, Matanzas, he died at age 41 in Havana. Known in Cuba as El Diamante Negro , he became a legend in his homeland. He was one of the first group of players elected to the Cuban...
was chosen as the Monarchs manager. Donaldson played with the Monarchs at different times through much of the 1920s.
Donaldson was known to have also played part-time with various semi-pro barnstorming teams during this era. However, for at least two years, Donaldson managed and played on the revamped All Nations baseball team, which now served as a way to train, recruit and make money for Wilkinson's "parent club", the Kansas City Monarchs. Players for the All Nations would show up on the roster one week, then appear on the Kansas City Monarchs roster in the next week. Crowds of over 5,000 people sometimes watched these exhibition games, well into the mid-1920s.
Post Negro Leagues, Farm League
Perhaps most impressive, Donaldson traversed towns in Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Canada to play ball, sometimes as the only black player on a small-town semipro team, at a time when the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
was active in the state. Three years after the notorious lynchings of three black circus workers in 1920 in Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
, Donaldson led a barnstorming troupe into Duluth, where he pitched and beat a team of white all-stars from the Iron Range
Iron Range
The Iron Range is a region that makes up the northeastern section of Minnesota in the United States. "The Range", as it is known by locals, is a region with multiple distinct bands of iron ore...
, 6-3.
Donaldson made a comfortable living traveling through rural America, even during the Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Like many black barnstormers of the time, Donaldson faced white major leaguers and fared well enough to prompt New York Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
manager John McGraw to say, "I think he is the greatest I have ever seen." McGraw is also alleged to have said about Donaldson: "If I could dunk him in calamine lotion, I'd sign him."
Donaldson's charisma, composure and stellar character were a countermeasure to the deep-seated prejudices of the time, baseball historian Pete Gorton has said. "But I don't want anyone to look at the career of John Donaldson and think 'Oh, here's another poor black ball player exploited by the "Man" or by the times he lived,'" the writer noted. "This is a story of a man who was covered by the media and adored by the fans and had an outstanding career on the baseball diamond."
A May 17, 1928 Letter to the Editor in Melrose, Minnesota
Melrose, Minnesota
Melrose is a city in Stearns County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,598 at the 2010 census. It is part of the St. Cloud Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
tells of one fan's appreciation of watching Donaldson: "Two-thirds of the attendance at Melrose wanted to see Donaldson, the great. They did not come because they wanted to see the Melrose or Scobey ball teams, but they wanted to see Donaldson, the master of base ball."
After more than 30 years as a player, Donaldson retired in 1941
1941 in sports
1941 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.Note — many sporting events did not take place because of World War II-American football:* Minnesota Golden Gophers National college football champions....
. Settling in Chicago, some historians believe he worked for the U.S. Postal Service.
Major League Scout
Although Donaldson never gained the full recognition for his pitching skills during his lifetime and was never admitted into major-league baseball during his career, he made history by becoming the first full-time black talent scout in the big leagues for the Chicago White SoxChicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
of the American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
, in 1949. It is known that he pursued Willie Mays
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his...
and Ernie Banks
Ernie Banks
Ernest "Ernie" Banks , nicknamed "Mr. Cub", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and first baseman. He played his entire 19-year baseball career with the Chicago Cubs . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977.-High school years:Banks was a letterman and standout in football,...
for the team and is credited with the signing of several prominent Negro Leaguers of the time, including Bob Boyd and Sam Hairston
Sam Hairston
Samuel Harding Hairston is a former Negro League baseball and Major League Baseball player. He played for the Birmingham Black Barons and the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro Leagues and played part of one season with the Chicago White Sox as a catcher...
.
Anecdotes
Research also suggests that Satchel PaigeSatchel Paige
Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige was an American baseball player whose pitching in the Negro leagues and in Major League Baseball made him a legend in his own lifetime...
owes much of his style and acumen to Donaldson, who's barnstorming efforts pre-dated Paige's by two decades.
Elden Auker
Elden Auker
Elden le Roy Auker was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball noted for his submarine pitching style....
, a former major league pitcher, who had played against Donaldson, related this anecdote when he (Auker) was 95 years old, in 2006: "I played against Donaldson in 1929. I was in college and we played at an Arapaho
Arapaho
The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...
Indian reservation
Indian reservation
An American Indian reservation is an area of land managed by a Native American tribe under the United States Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs...
in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. I pitched against Paige and I won, 2-1. Donaldson played center field. Donaldson got out in center field and squatted like a catcher," Auker related. "The Monarchs had a catcher named Young, and he squatted behind home plate and they played catch from 300 feet. They threw the ball on a line. If I hadn't seen it, I wouldn't have believed it."
Efforts to resurrect Donaldson's baseball career after his death
At age 60, Donaldson was voted a first-team member of the renowned 1952 Pittsburgh CourierPittsburgh Courier
The Pittsburgh Courier was an American newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which was published from 1907 to 1965. Once the country's most widely circulated Black newspaper, the legacy and influence of the Pittsburgh Courier is unparalleled.A pillar of the Black Press, it rose...
player-voted poll of the Negro Leagues best players ever.
Donaldson died at age 78 in Chicago and is buried in Burr Oak Cemetery
Burr Oak Cemetery and Restvale Cemetery
Burr Oak Cemetery is a cemetery located in unincorporated Cook County, Illinois, adjacent to Alsip, a suburb slightly southwest of Chicago. As one of the few cemeteries focused on the needs of the African-American community, it is the final resting place of many black celebrities, including...
in Alsip, Illinois
Alsip, Illinois
Alsip is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,725 at the 2000 census. It is a suburb of Chicago.Alsip was settled in the 1830s by German and Dutch farmers. The village is named after Frank Alsip, the owner of a brickyard that opened there in 1885...
. He was buried in an unmarked grave at the cemetery, until Peoria, Illinois
Peoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
, anesthesiologist Jeremy Krock raised enough money for a proper headstone.
Donaldson was nominated for a special ballot of pre-Negro leagues candidates for inclusion in baseball's Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
. A 12-member voting committee, appointed by the Board of Directors and chaired by former Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
Commissioner
Baseball Commissioner
The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. Under the direction of the Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts...
Fay Vincent
Fay Vincent
Francis Thomas "Fay" Vincent, Jr. is a former entertainment lawyer and sports executive who served as the eighth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from September 13, 1989 to September 7, 1992.-Early life and career:...
, however, did not choose Donaldson for membership in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown
Cooperstown, New York
Cooperstown is a village in Otsego County, New York, USA. It is located in the Town of Otsego. The population was estimated to be 1,852 at the 2010 census.The Village of Cooperstown is the county seat of Otsego County, New York...
, in a vote in February 2006.
As of 2011, researchers working as a networking team calling themselves "The Donaldson Network", living and working in several states around the United States, have located Donaldson's 4,409 career strikeouts and 378 career wins as a pitcher.
Film footage
Amateur film footage made on August 16, 1925, of Donaldson at a game in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, was uncovered in 2010. Thirty-nine seconds exist. Donaldson faced off that day against Joe Jaeger, who made two relief appearances for the Chicago CubsChicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
in 1920, and advertisements for the game called Donaldson "the colored wonder pitcher."
Sources
- Pete Gorton, contributed a chapter to the book Swinging for the Fences: Black Baseball in Minnesota, which chronicles Donaldson's career and is available here: http://johndonaldson.bravehost.com/pdf/00235.pdf
- Shades of Glory: The Negro Leagues and the Story of African-American Baseball, Lawrence D. Hogan (National Geographic 2006)
- http://baseballpastandpresent.com/2010/06/07/a-greate-pitcher-youve-never-heard-of/
- http://www.lemarssentinel.com/story/1140029.html
- http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=9517683
- http://www.winonadailynews.com/articles/2006/02/26/news/1news26.txt