For baseball fans, the Negro Leagues remain a vital part of American history. They represent the struggle for equality and the greatness of athletes who were shut out of Major League Baseball for decades. Today, only one man remains as a living witness to that era. His name is Bill Greason. He is 100 years old, and his story is bigger than baseball.
Greason’s life reads like a film script. He grew up in Atlanta across the street from Martin Luther King Jr., fought as a Marine during World War II, landed at Iwo Jima in 1945 and took the mound for the Birmingham Black Barons, played alongside a young Willie Mays and later became the first Black pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. Yet his life did not stop with sports. After baseball, he returned to Birmingham, found his calling in the church, and preached at Bethel Baptist Church.
A Childhood Near Greatness
Bill Greason’s story began in Atlanta across the street from Martin Luther King Jr. But that was just the beginning of his remarkable journey. Greason’s path first led him into the United States Marines. Afterward, he became part of the Montford Point Marines. They were the first African Americans to serve in the Marine Corps after President Roosevelt ordered the end of racial exclusion in 1941. In 1945, he was deployed to the Pacific and landed at Iwo Jima during one of the most brutal battles of World War II. After the war ended later that year, Greason was honorably discharged and returned home. From that point on, he shifted focus to baseball, joining the Nashville Black Vols and later the Birmingham Black Barons in 1947.
When he joined the Birmingham Black Barons, he met a young outfielder named Willie Mays where they both shared the field before Mays rose to become one of the greatest players in Major League history. For Greason, those years were about pride, identity, and proving that Black athletes deserved the same opportunities as anyone else.
Negro League and Breaking Barriers in Baseball
As a pitcher, Greason quickly became one of the team’s most reliable arms. In 1948, he appeared in eight games, recording four complete games, one shutout, and one save. He finished the season with an ERA of 4.44. That same year, he played a pivotal role in helping the Black Barons reach the Negro League World Series. His talent was recognized league-wide when he earned a spot in the prestigious East West All Star Game in 1949. It was a showcase for the best Negro League talent. After his time in Birmingham, Greason also pitched in the Mexican League with the Charros de Jalisco in 1950 and 1951. There he found opportunities in an integrated baseball environment.
Incredibly, Greason’s talent carried him beyond the Negro Leagues. He made history as the first Black pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. At a time when the color line had only just been broken by Jackie Robinson, every step forward was brave. Greason played only a short time in the Major Leagues with the Cardinals. Nevertheless, his presence on the mound inspired young Black children to dream that baseball’s doors were slowly beginning to open for them.
A Pastor and a Witness to History
When his baseball career ended, Greason did not fade into the background. Instead, he became a steady presence in Birmingham, Alabama. There he was a parishioner at 16th Street Baptist Church, the same church bombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1963. Moving on, in 1971, he became pastor at Bethel Baptist Church, a role he held till 2024. For decades, he has guided his community with the same discipline and strength he once showed on the pitcher’s mound.
Today, as the last living Negro Leagues player, Bill Greason embodies an entire century of struggle and progress. He has lived through moments that shaped America, and he still stands to share that with the world.
