First Generation of Black Stars Quiz - Moderate Difficulty

Rick Swaine - Author of books about baseball's unsung heroes


	First Generation of Black Stars Quiz: Moderate Difficulty Solutions

	Here are the correct answers and explanations to the moderate quiz.

	1. Who was the first black pitcher in the major leagues?
		a. Satchel Paige
		b. Dan Bankhead
		c. Sam Jones
		d. Connie Johnson
	The correct answer is (b), Dan Bankhead, 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers. He went 0-0 in 4 games for the pennant-winning Dodgers.

	2. Who was the first black pitcher to pitch in the World Series?
		a. Satchel Paige
		b. Don Newcombe
		c. Joe Black
		d. Dan Bankhead
	The correct answer is (a), Satchel Paige, 1948 Cleveland Indians. He retired the only two batters he faced in relief.

	3. Who was the first black pitcher to win a World Series game?
		a. Satchel Paige
		b. Don Newcombe
		c. Joe Black
		d. Dan Bankhead
	The correct answer is (c), Joe Black, 1952 Brooklyn Dodgers. He pitched a complete game against the Yankees in Game 1.

	4. Who was the first black player to hit a World Series homer?
		a. Larry Doby
		b. Jackie Robinson
		c. Monte Irvin
		d. Roy Campanella
	The correct answer is (a), Larry Doby, 1948 Cleveland Indians. It was a game winner (Robinson did not homer in the 1947 Series).

	5. Who was the first black player to play for two major league franchises?
		a. Monte Irvin
		b. Satchel Paige
		c. Sam Jones
		d. Hank Thompson
	The correct answer is (d), Hank Thompson, 1947 Browns and 1949 Giants. Hank was one of the Browns leading hitters when released in 1947.

	6. Who was the first black player to win the American League MVP Award?
		a. Elston Howard
		b. Minnie Minoso
		c. Larry Doby
		d. Luke Easter
	The correct answer is (a), Elston Howard, 1963 New York Yankees. Doby finished second in 1954 and Easter was named The Sporting News Outstanding Player in the American League in 1952.

	7. Who was the first black player to win the Jackie Robinson Award?
		a. Jackie Robinson
		b. Willie Mays
		c. Roy Campanella
		d. Larry Doby
	The correct answer is (a), Jackie Robinson, 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers. The Rookie of the Year Award was re-named for Robinson in 1997.

	8. Who was the first black American Leaguer to win the Jackie Robinson Award?
		a. Elston Howard
		b. Minnie Minoso
		c. Tony Oliva
		d. Mudcat Grant
	The correct answer is (c), Tony Oliva, 1964 Minnesota Twins. Despite finishing 4th in the MVP voting in 1951, Minoso lost out to Gil McDougald of the Yankees for rookie honors.

	class="name">9. Who is the oldest black player to win the Jackie Robinson Award?
		a. Minnie Minoso
		b. Sam Jethroe
		c. Luke Easter
		d. Satchel Paige
	The correct answer is (b), Sam Jethroe, 1950 Boston Braves. He was 32 (but claimed to be only 28) and is still the oldest of any race.

10. Who comprised the first all-black outfield to appear in the major leagues?
	a. Hank Aaron, Billy Bruton, and Jim Pendleton
	b. Larry Doby, Al Smith, and Dave Pope
	c. Willie Mays, Monte Irvin, and Hank Thompson
	d. Jackie Robinson, Sandy Amoros, and Jim Pendleton
The correct answer is (c), Mays/Irvin/Thompson. It was Thompson's first major league appearance in the outfield, replacing injured Don Mueller in the 1951 World Series.

11. Who was the first black player to lead a major league in HRs?
	a. Monte Irvin
	b. Larry Doby
	c. Roy Campanella
	d. Willie Mays
The correct answer is (b), Larry Doby, 1952 Cleveland Indians. He had 32 HRs and also led the league in runs scored and slugging while finishing 12th in MVP balloting.

12. Who was the first black player to lead a major league in RBIs?
	a. Monte Irvin
	b. Larry Doby
	c. Roy Campanella
	d. Willie Mays
The correct answer is (a), Monte Irvin, 1951 New York Giants. He had 121 RBIs in his first full major league season at age 32.

13. Who was the first black pitcher to lead a major league in ERA?
	a. Bob Gibson
	b. Don Newcombe
	c. Sam Jones
	d. Joe Black
The correct answer is (c), Sam Jones, 1959 San Francisco Giants. Joe Black had the lowest National League ERA in 1952 but did not pitch enough innings to qualify for the title.

14. Who was the first black pitcher to lead the American League in ERA?
	a. Connie Johnson
	b. Luis Tiant
	c. Juan Pizarro
	d. Al Downing
The correct answer is (b), Luis Tiant, 1968 Cleveland Indians. He had a 1.60 ERA with 21 victories in "The Year of the Pitcher."

15. Who was the first black pitcher to strike out 200 batters in a season?
	a. Don Newcombe
	b. Sam Jones
	c. Brooks Lawrence
	d. Bob Gibson
The correct answer is (b), Sam Jones, 1958 St. Louis Cardinals. He fanned 225 to break Dizzy Dean's club record.

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First Generation of Black Stars Quiz: Moderate Difficulty Solutions