May Pickups

[Mark]

Originally Posted by Topnotchsy

Possibly the most exciting pickup I've had in a few years. It's an item I've been looking for (and posting on the BST boards here) for a few years.

1946 Nashua Dodgers Don Newcombe Contract

To provide a bit of historical background (which I'm sure is familiar to many here). In the off-season between the 1945 and 1946 baseball seasons, the Dodgers made history by signing 4 black players. Famously, the first player they signed (who would also break the color barrier when he was the first called up to the Majors after 1 season in the Minors) was Jackie Robinson. After Robinson, they signed a pitcher named John Wright who was to be Jackie's roommate. He had talent, but struggled under the circumstances and never made the Majors. Both players initially played for the Dodger's AAA team in Montreal. Branch Rickey understood the challenge these players would face, and so wanted to make sure they were paired off.

The other pair of black players that Rickey signed were Roy Campanella and Don Newcombe. While initially assigned to Danville, IL, they were reassigned to play for the Nashua Dodgers (under manager Walt Alston) after the Danville team indicated they were not ready to integrate.

A number of years back I was lucky enough to acquire Roy Campanella's 1946 Nashua contract (as well as his Danville contract). I had been searching and trying to acquire Newcombe's Nashua contract for years with no success.

Recently I was able to work a deal for Newcombe's Nashua contract, and I'm thrilled to be able to add it to the collection alongside the Campanella contracts from the same season.

For me when it comes to integration, the contract, which was in many ways the first step towards integration, was a huge deal. Both Newcombe and Campanella signed their contracts before Jackie (or any other black player) had played a game in the Minors or Majors.

That's a very interesting piece. It's gratifying to learn that your focused collecting meets with success.