Dear Shadow Ball: I have a feeling that I am going to learn some things. Is third baseman Judy Johnson (a 1975 Hall of Fame inductee) a male or female? David Nivens, parts unknown … I should note that Mr. Nivens has supplied two questions thus far and I very much appreciate both … this column exists for only one purpose and that is to answer your questions on Negro League baseball history. To that end, I need your help … if you are reading this column and enjoy it and want it to continue and you don’t already know everything about Negro League history … then please submit a question on any aspect of Negro League history.

 – players, teams, events, and more – Your questions are the lifeblood of Shadow Ball—they shape where we go next. Your participation is important and appreciated. Submit your questions to shadowball@truthseekersjournal.com.

Dear David: I have a feeling that I am going to learn some things also. Judy Johnson, like Dolly King, Connie Johnson, Bunny Downs, Bonnie Serrell, Beverly Boanes and Judy Gans, was very much a man. All these fellows were Negro League baseball players. William Julius Johnson was nicknamed “Judy” due to a resemblance to another player with that nickname – “Judy.” Why that player, Robert Edward Gans, was called “Judy” is a question for another day when I figure it out.

Last week’s Shadow Ball Significa question What was the name of Atlanta’s most prolific franchise (in terms of years in the league) in the Negro Leagues? Since this question has stood unanswered for a month, I am going to provide the answer – the Atlanta Black Crackers.

The Atlanta Black Crackers were founded in 1919 as the Atlanta Cubs and lasted, active most years, until their demise in 1943. They were members of the Negro Southern League, later the Negro American League and played as an independent. They never won a pennant.

The Shadow Ball Significa Question of the Week: What Georgia native was the first African American to hit a home run in Yankee Stadium?

Ted Knorr is a Negro League baseball historian, longtime member of the Society for American Baseball Research’s Negro League Committee, and founder of the Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference and several local Negro League Commemorative Nights in central Pennsylvania. You can send questions for Knorr on Negro League topics as well as your answers to the week’s Significa question to  shadowball@truthseekersjournal.com or Shadow Ball, 3904 N Druid Hills Rd, Ste 179, Decatur, GA 30033

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