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When African-Americans began to play baseball in the late 1800s, they eventually found their way to professional teams with white players, however racism forced them away from these teams by 1900. Thus, black players formed their own units around the country to play anyone who would challenge them and so in 1920, an organized league structure was formed – the Negro National League.

Soon, rival leagues formed in Eastern and Southern states, bringing black baseball to major towns and cities in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America. The Leagues maintained a high level of professional skill and became a centrepiece for economic development in many black communities.

Then in 1947, Negro League player, Jackie Robinson broke the baseball colour line when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him in 1947 as the first major league team to play a black man. The historic move ended the racial segregation that relegated black and Hispanic players to the Baseball Negro Leagues for six decades.

While this historic event was a key moment in baseball and civil rights history, it prompted the decline of the Negro Leagues. The best black players were now recruited for the Major Leagues, and black fans followed.

The last Negro Leagues teams folded in the early 1960s, but their legacy lives on through the surviving players and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and a portion of sales from the NLBM x Starter caps goes towards helping the families of NLBM players.

In celebration of this story comes the size? exclusive ‘Dugout’ range in the NL team colours for Baltimore Black Socks, Birmingham Black Barons, House of David, New York Black Yankees and St Louis Stars. Headwear giants, Starter Black Label are the only headwear brand officially licensed to produce Negro League Baseball Museum headwear, partnering together perfectly to tell the story that changed sport and crossed racial boundaries forever.

The collection is now available online and in selected stores, featuring Melton wool panelling, designed to represent the heavy wool uniforms of the time and features the iconic diamond logo along with a team inspired initial sin off in off-white to call out the heritage feel.

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