Between 1884 and 1947, a significant era in baseball history unfolded. From Moses Fleetwood Walker's time with the Toledo Mud Hens to Jackie Robinson's entry into the lineup, American Indians emerged as the most prominent minority. Larry Ritter's "The Glory of Their Times" offers profound insights, with an interview featuring John Tortes "Chief" Meyers. A California Cahuilla Indian, Meyers attended Dartmouth and batted at a.291 lifetime average. His 1912 mark of.358 was second only to Henry Zimmerman's.372.

The Significance of the "Chief" Nickname

From 1890 to the 1950s, the nickname "Chief" was commonly attached to Indian baseball players. It was a subtle form of racism in that era. Alongside "Chief" Meyers, there was Albert "Chief" Bender, a Minnesota Chippewa who led the Philadelphia A's to three World Series titles. Bob "Chief" Johnson, one-quarter Cherokee, was a five-time.300 hitter and knocked in 100 or more runs eight times for the Philadelphia Athletics. Allie "Super Chief" Reynolds, a one-quarter Creek, was a member of the New York Yankees' dominant 1950s teams.Some big-league Indian players managed to avoid this nickname, such as Jim Thorpe. The first Indian to reach the major leagues was Louis Sockalexis, an outstanding outfielder with the Cleveland Spiders from 1897 to 1899. He attended Holy Cross before becoming a professional.Moses J. "Chief" Yellow Horse was a Skidi Pawnee and the first full-blooded American Indian to play professional baseball. Born in 1898 on an Oklahoma reservation, his family was forced to move. He worked on Wild West shows and developed baseball skills at the Chilocco Indian Agricultural School. He played in the minor leagues and joined the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1921 with high expectations but faced challenges due to his alcoholism. Rooming with Walter James "Rabbit" Maranville accelerated his downfall. He lasted only two injury-plagued seasons with the Bucs and drifted through various minor league teams.In 1945, Yellow Horse gave up drinking and found steady employment as a groundskeeper and later with the Oklahoma State Highway Department. By 1964, when he died at 66, he had earned the respect of his tribe. However, his gravesite in the Northern Indian Cemetery shows the unjust second-class citizen status of Indians. Gravediggers placed his headstone in a remote corner, separated by cedar trees from the white section.Footnote: American scholars have discovered through interactions with tribal elders that most American Indians prefer to be called Indians rather than Native Americans or the politically correct "indigenous people" to preserve their rich but vanishing history.