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MLB Star Elston Howard On How The New York Yankees Helped Him Integrate Their Team
One of baseball’s biggest stars from the past believed he played for MLB’s best team
Shamefully, it took Major League Baseball decades to even start to integrate their teams. Even then, it was not done all at once, and one of the last teams to do so was the venerated New York Yankees. Catcher Elston Howard became the first Black player in their history in 1955. Although the experience wasn’t easy, he later recalled his pride in holding this distinction and how the team assisted him in this pioneering experience.
Howard was born in 1929 and enjoyed athletics from a young age. He passed up multiple football scholarships from major schools like Michican and Michigan State to play baseball with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League (1948–1950). The right-handed outfielder played for manager Buck O’Neil, and in 1950 was the roommate of future star and Hall-of-Famer Ernie Banks. That same year, his contract was purchased by the Yankees and sent to their farm system.
After serving in the military and missing the 1951 and 1952 seasons, Howard returned to the minors. In 1955, he was finally brought up to New York, becoming the first Black player in their history, and helping the team become…
