Negro League veteran Samuel Taylor of East St. Louis passed away on Monday. He was 92.
,A catcher by trade, he also played leftfield with the legendary Kansas City Monarchs from 1952 through most of 1954 under manager Buck O‘Neill.
“The Negro Leagues had ball players like Sam Jethroe, Luke Easter and Al Smith, players who knew how to play the game,” Taylor told the St. Louis American back in 2005. “Elton Wallace was the manager and, to play for him, you had to know how to play correctly. And Wallace could have easily managed in the majors if given the chance.”
He was particularly proud of his Monarchs.
“The Monarchs had the best pitcher of all time, Satchel Page, who faced Gibson in the Negro Leagues World Series and made his outfielders sit down, then struck out Gibson on three pitches,” said Taylor.
The St. Louis Cardinals honored Taylor and the Negro Leagues when they played the Phillies last year – he threw out the first pitch of the game.
.Final services for Taylor are pending.
