This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/11/2019
Back in the pre-Depression days of the 1920s when major league baseball was still decidedly segregated, black players showcased their talents in various Negro leagues and on semi-pro traveling teams. One such organization was the Mutual Association of Eastern Colored Clubs, more commonly known as the Eastern Colored League (ECL), which operated from 1923-28. The league featured six teams that played for the league's entire six years (Atlantic City Bacharach Giants, Baltimore Black Sox, Brooklyn Royal Giants, Cuban Stars (East), Hilldale of Darby, Pennsylvania and New York Lincoln Giants) with other teams that participated for part of the time, including the mighty Homestead Grays. Starting in 1924, the ECL and rival Negro National League (NNL) arranged a "Colored World Series" between league champions and this game-worn sweater, bearing the ECL mark, is a surviving relic from that time. Since the sweater displays the league name, it was likely worn by a player on the ECL championship team as they met the NNL champ in the Colored World Series. A Vandeco Buddy label appears inside the collar and the heavy-knit white sweater is surprisingly well-preserved given its almost century of age. A fantastic piece of baseball history that pre-dates the rise of the legendary teams that created what is commonly known as the Negro League.