DUANE
Duane's take
The marker in Calvert, Robertson County, tells this story, and I'm gonna do my best to do it justice. Some names belong to history before history even knows what to do with them. Andrew Foster was one of those names.
Born September 17, 1879, right here in Calvert, Texas — son of Reverend Andrew and Evaline Foster — he finished eighth grade in Calvert and then, apparently, decided the rest of his education was going to happen on a pitcher's mound. By 1897, he was throwing for the Waco Yellow Jackets. By the time 1902 rolled around, he'd also pitched for the Fort Worth Colts.
He had a fastball that got attention and a screwball that kept it. Those gifts carried him north and east — to Frank Leland's Chicago Union Giants, then to teams in Philadelphia, New York City, and Otsego, Michigan. Championship teams, every one of them.
Now, here's a number that ought to stop you cold. In 1903, pitching for the Cuban X Giants, records show he won more than fifty games. More than fifty.
And then, in 1905 with the Philadelphia Giants, he did it again — more than fifty wins. The man wasn't just pitching; he was making the opposition feel like the whole enterprise was hopeless. And the nickname?
Well, that's a story worth savoring. There was a great White pitcher of the day — G. E. "Rube" Waddell.
Foster beat him in an exhibition game, and somewhere in the aftermath, that nickname attached itself to the young man from Calvert. Rube Foster. He wore it like a tailored suit for the rest of his life.
In 1907 — the same year he wrote "How to Pitch" for Sol White's Official Base Ball Guide: History of Colored Base Ball — Foster became playing manager of the Leland Giants. Under his hand, that team won 48 straight games and finished the season 110 and 10. You want to pause on that record a moment.
A hundred and ten wins. Ten losses. Then in 1910, he organized his own team of all-stars, and they went 128 and 6.
His Chicago American Giants became a dynasty — eleven championships from 1911 to 1922. His teams were known for bunting, base stealing, hit and runs. Smart baseball.
Beautiful, disciplined, relentless baseball. But the achievement that cast the longest shadow came in 1920. Foster gathered the owners of seven other clubs, met them in Kansas City, Missouri, and together they formed the first successful African-American professional baseball circuit.
Foster was elected president. And his American Giants? They won the Negro National League's first three pennants.
The man built the house and then won the deed to it. In 1926, Foster was admitted to Kankakee State Hospital in Illinois. He stayed there four years before he died on December 9, 1930.
Thousands of mourners came to his funeral in Chicago. In 1981, the National Baseball Hall of Fame elected him to its ranks. They call him the Father of Black Baseball.
A boy who finished eighth grade in Calvert, Texas. Threw a screwball. Beat Rube Waddell.
Built a league. Some names belong to history before history even knows what to do with them — and Rube Foster's been proving that ever since.
What the marker says
(September 17, 1879 – December 9, 1930) Calvert native Rube Foster was a pioneer player, manager and executive in baseball’s Negro Leagues. The son of Rev. Andrew and Evaline Foster, he finished eighth grade in Calvert and pitched for the Waco Yellow Jackets and Fort Worth Colts from 1897 to 1902. Renowned for his fastball and screwball, he became a dominant pitcher on Midwest and Northeast championship teams, first with Frank Leland’s Chicago Union Giants and later on teams in Philadelphia, New York City, and Otsego, Michigan. Records show that he won more than fifty games in 1903 with the Cuban X Giants and in 1905 with the Philadelphia Giants. Foster wrote “How to Pitch” in Sol White’s Official Base Ball Guide: History of Colored Base Ball in 1907. His nickname “Rube” came from a great White pitcher of the day, G. E. “Rube” Waddell, whom Foster beat in an exhibition game. Foster became playing manager of the Leland Giants in 1907. Under his leadership, the team won 48 straight games and finished with a 110-10 record. His teams were known for successful bunting, base stealing, and hit and runs. In 1910, Foster organized his own team of all-stars and compiled a 128-6 record. His Chicago American Giants were a dynasty, winning eleven championships from 1911-22. In 1920, Foster and owners of seven other clubs met in Kansas City, Missouri to form the first successful African-American professional baseball circuit; Foster was elected president. His American Giants won the Negro National League’s first three pennants. In 1926, Foster was admitted to Kankakee State Hospital in Illinois, where he stayed for four years before his death. Thousands of mourners attended his funeral in Chicago. Foster, the “Father of Black Baseball,” was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981. (2008)