On August 27, 2023, the Somerset Patriots (AA affiliate of the New York Yankees) celebrated the New York Black Yankees. As the Black Yankees wore uniforms from the American League’s Yankees, Somerset created new uniforms and branding “inspired” by the long running Negro National League. But did the Black Yankees indeed wear the uniforms of the Yankees? Let’s take a deeper look.
The Black Yankees started as the Harlem Stars in 1931, stepping into the void created by the downfall of the New York Lincoln Giants. Almost immediately, the team faced an identity crisis. Branding in those days wasn’t as clear. Team logos didn’t cover the ballparks, there were no sales of jerseys, hats, and other merchandise that you can find at any ballpark today.
A recap of a doubleheader against the Brooklyn Bushwicks in their first season explains the confusion in the first paragraph:
“….a colored team that, among other things, called itself the Harlem Stars, All-Stars, Colored Yankees, Black Yankees, and was tempted at any moment to revert to its old name of Lincoln Giants. Mr. Charles Stoneham, who manages matters at the Polo Grounds, found objection to the name of Yankee because, after all, the Polo Grounds is no place for the Yankees…So the team, at the latest reports, is now Bill (Tap Dancer) Robinson’s Harlem Stars” (1)
The Black Yankees had their roots in the Lincoln Giants, who played for nearly 3 decades, mostly before organized leagues were formed. Some sources say they “evolved” from the former. A brief release in the New York Age on March 28, 1931 sheds light on the true origin story:
“With James J. Keenan. for nearly two decades an outstanding figure in colored baseball, retiring from the game, the Lincoln Giants will open their 1931 season early in April under new management, and possibly under a new name. Mr. Keenan has been suffering from rheumatism throughout the winter and does not feel equal to the task of going through another strenuous season. The new owner of the team, which will have on its roster most of the Lincoln Giants players, is Marty Forkins, well known theatrical booking agent, and for twenty five years manager of Bill Robinson, the tap dancer. Mr. Forkins is understood to have the backing of Ed Barrow of the New York Yankees, and is said to have arranged to have his team play at both the Yankee Stadium and Polo Grounds during the coming season.” (2)
Another article in the same paper on April 11 announced that John Lloyd was named manager of “Marty Forkins’ new Yankee baseball team.” (3) Forkins and Bill Robinson clearly wanted to associate themselves with the most popular team in the country, and to look the part, the story goes, Robinson bought uniforms from their namesake.
The written evidence of this decision is scant, and nobody is alive to verify the account. This is why uniform research is so difficult, especially in dealing with black and white photographs. To make a determination of whether this is true, we must examine a few pieces of visual evidence. The 1931 New York Yankees wore uniforms that were simple but with direct lineage to their uniforms today: pinstripes at home, and road grays with “New York” stitched onto the front. Absent was the interlocking NY on the chest, which briefly appeared in the 1910s, but wouldn’t appear again until 1936. Ruth is seen here in the blank pinstripe home set in May of 1931. Earle Combs is seen here in the road grays.
As for the Black Yankees/Harlem Stars, the New York Age printed a team photo of them at Yankee Stadium. The graininess of the photos make the image difficult to view, but it would appear that they are wearing the same pinstripes that the Yankees were wearing. This Pittsburgh Courier photograph of a group of Black Yankees in 1934 shows them in a set that looks an awful lot like what the Yankees were wearing at the time. Perhaps this and the use of Yankee Stadium made up the “support” of Yankees owner Ed Barrow.
The other piece of evidence we have concerns little known infielder Al Fennar, who played on the Harlem Stars in 1931 and 1932. According to Fennar himself, he wore a legend's old uniform. Fennar described his experience of in a 1990 interview:
“One of the clubhouse guys said, 'Here kid, try these’ and he tossed me a pair of pants. When I looked inside, sewn right in there was the name Gehrig. I was wearing Lou Gehrig's pants." (4)
Fennar would leave to play for the independent Brooklyn Royal Giants before the end of the next season. The Black Yankees would change into their own style by 1935, but retained the interlocking NY on the caps as their Bronx neighbors for years.
For me, all evidence points to the Yankees sharing uniforms with Bill Robinson’s new club until at least 1934. As for the Somerset Patriots’ tribute, I personally think it is a great modern take on the past and hopefully sparked some conversations.
Sources:
1. Bushwicks Receive Split With Stars On Glaring Error. (1931, May 18). The Standard Union, p. 11. Retrieved from https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-standard-union-black-yankees-identit/131446186/
2. Fennar remembers Negro League days. (1990, July 24). Florida Today, p. 22. Retrieved from https://www.newspapers.com/article/florida-today-al-fennar-black-yankees-st/131449704/
3. John Lloyd to Head Marty Forkins' New Yankee Baseball Team. (1931, April 11). New York Age. Retrieved from https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-new-york-age-new-york-age1931-4-11/1761924/
4. New Baseball Team to Start Season in New York City. (1931, March 28). New York Age, p. 6. Retrieved from https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-new-york-age-new-york-age1931-3-28/1761918/
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