Dear Friends and Fans:
At the Oakland Coliseum, May 28- June 4 the Negro League Baseball
Museum traveling exhibit will be on display behind section 219 and
220. Various Negro League merchandise will be available for purchase
with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the Black Aces Foundation,
which promotes baseball in inner cities.

Before the game on Wednesday, May 29, the A's will honor 20 game
winners Mudcat Grant, Mike Norris, Vida Blue, and Dave Stewart.

Grant, who played for the A's for parts of the 1970 and '71 seasons,
was the first African American 20-game winner in the American League,
as he posted a 21-7 record for the Minnesota Twins in 1965. Blue,
Norris and Stewart posted their 20-win seasons while pitching for the
A's. Blue enjoyed three 20-win seasons during his tenure with the
A's, the first coming in 1971, when he earned AL Most Valuable Player
honors and the Cy Young Award after posting a 24-8 record to go along
with a 1.82 ERA. Two more 20-win seasons followed in 1973 (20-9) and
1975 (22-11). Norris, who spent his entire 10-year major league
career with the A's, posted a 22-9 mark in 1980. Stewart strung
together four straight 20-win seasons from 1987-90, helping the A's
to three AL pennants and one World Series title during that time
frame.

In 2006, Grant authored "Black Aces: Baseball's Only African-American
20-Game Winners." The book not only details the 20-win seasons of the
13 African American pitchers, but it also examines the lives of 10
Negro League pitchers who might have won 20 games in the Majors if
not for baseball's color barrier. In addition, it details several
topics, including the integration of African Americans into baseball
in America, the prejudice and hardships faced by the pitchers and
their road to success. More information on the book is available
online at theblackaces.com.

Come on out to the ballpark,
Marlene

Marlene Vogelsang