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It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

The greenway or "promenade" that will link the Campus Green to Railroad Park will run right next to the museum... we won't recognize this part of Southside in 5 years. Exciting times at UAB!

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I got chills just reading that.

(01-23-2014 11:29 AM)UABslant Wrote:  The greenway or "promenade" that will link the Campus Green to Railroad Park will run right next to the museum... we won't recognize this part of Southside in 5 years. Exciting times at UAB!

The changes over the past 10 years have been dramatic. The next 10 should be even better.

Heck, I didn't recognize the place when I was in Bham in Sept

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

Wow! As a youngster, my Dad would take me to Candlestick Park (the Stick) to watch Mays, McCovey, Cepeda, and Mariachel play for the Giants.

Wow. Great story GN.

This will be a nice project.

Awesome!!!

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

I once had my picture taken with Neil Callaway & Eric Shumann.

(01-23-2014 05:13 PM)BlazerFromMD Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

It was an awe-inspiring moment. And we talked baseball for nearly an hour. He had memories of playing the Birmingham Black Barons, and was impressed I knew their history, what, being a white guy and all.

(01-23-2014 09:10 PM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 05:13 PM)BlazerFromMD Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

It was an awe-inspiring moment. And we talked baseball for nearly an hour. He had memories of playing the Birmingham Black Barons, and was impressed I knew their history, what, being a white guy and all.

There was a fast food restaurant that, if memory serves me right, used to be located on the corner of 17th Street between 4th and 5th Avenue North named, " Say Hey! Willie Mays Home Run." Had a big glove for a sign out front...

One day, a Saturday, I think it was, myself and a couple of friends went by there for a meal, and that's we met the man himself. Can't speak for anyone else with me, but that was my 1st and only encounter with the famous "Say Hey Kid." He also has a park in Fairfield named after him.

The fantastic Co-Ed softball league I played in held one weekend session of games there a year. I'd only gotten one hit in 3 years of playing those sessions at that park. This pending museum is a wonderful thing, I'd learned so much about Negro League Baseball from opening day at Regions Park alone, one of the most glaring of these is that there were some women who actively played in the Negro Leagues, I had never, ever known this , and I met and talked with one of them last season. Looking forward to the Grand Opening and frequent visits from there on.

(01-23-2014 09:10 PM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 05:13 PM)BlazerFromMD Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

It was an awe-inspiring moment. And we talked baseball for nearly an hour. He had memories of playing the Birmingham Black Barons, and was impressed I knew their history, what, being a white guy and all.

That tops my hanging up on reggie jackson story

(01-24-2014 10:23 AM)Matrix Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 09:10 PM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 05:13 PM)BlazerFromMD Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 10:53 AM)Grammar-Nazi Wrote:  It will be hard to top the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. That facility is top-notch.

It also doesn't hurt its perception with me that, the first time I visited and was reading the history of Willie Mays, this voice behind me said, "Now, that's a damn fine baseball player." I turned around, and it was Willie Mays.

I still get chills from that encounter, and it was 15 years ago.

I would have lost the capacity to speak.

It was an awe-inspiring moment. And we talked baseball for nearly an hour. He had memories of playing the Birmingham Black Barons, and was impressed I knew their history, what, being a white guy and all.

There was a fast food restaurant that, if memory serves me right, used to be located on the corner of 17th Street between 4th and 5th Avenue North named, " Say Hey! Willie Mays Home Run." Had a big glove for a sign out front...

One day, a Saturday, I think it was, myself and a couple of friends went by there for a meal, and that's we met the man himself. Can't speak for anyone else with me, but that was my 1st and only encounter with the famous "Say Hey Kid." He also has a park in Fairfield named after him.

The fantastic Co-Ed softball league I played in held one weekend session of games there a year. I'd only gotten one hit in 3 years of playing those sessions at that park. This pending museum is a wonderful thing, I'd learned so much about Negro League Baseball from opening day at Regions Park alone, one of the most glaring of these is that there were some women who actively played in the Negro Leagues, I had never, ever known this , and I met and talked with one of them last season. Looking forward to the Grand Opening and frequent visits from there on.

There was a scene in "A League of their Own" where Gina Davis' character overthrew the pitcher during warmups and the ball rolled some distance. A Black woman picked it up and threw a perfect strike back to the catcher (Davis). There were no spoken lines at that point - there didn't need to be. It was an acknowledgement that there were lines drawn in America of that time other than by gender.