Harrisburg Giants

Originally formed in April 1890 by Colonel William "C.W." Strothers as an amateur team, they became semi-professional by 1894, and by 1906 were known as one of the East's top teams. They joined the Eastern Colored League (ECL) for the 1924 season with Hall of Fame center fielder Oscar Charleston as playing manager. The Giants became known primarily for their hitting; along with Charleston, outfielder/first baseman Heavy Johnson, winner of the batting triple crown for the 1923 Kansas City Monarchs, was signed away from the rival Negro National League. In the 1920s, the outfield for the Giants was considered one of the best of all time: Rap Dixon, Oscar Charleston, and Fats Jenkins. The lineup, in its entirety, scored runs at a higher pace than the 1927 New York Yankees. Additionally, they are the only Negro League outfield which remained intact for four years—only nine MLB outfields have met the four-year standard. == Reincarnates ==

A new Giants team was formed mid-way through the 1928 season, led by Spottswood Poles, but it was rumored this team did not have "deep enough pockets" as Colonel Strothers did. After Colonel Strothers' death in 1933, there were several other black professional “Giants” teams representing Harrisburg, but baseball slowed as World War II arose in the 1940s. Following World War II, there weren't any Negro teams in Harrisburg, so the Harrisburg Giants were reincarnated in the 1953 by Richard Felton with Spottswood Poles again managing the team. By the next year this version of the Giants were an inaugural team of the new Eastern Negro League, where they won the title with a 16-6 season. They continued to play on City Island through 1957. ==Players==

Hall of Famers • Oscar Charleston • Ben Taylor ==See also==