The Class of '76

Robin Roberts

Pitchers Robin Roberts and Bob Lemon are elected to the Hall of Fame 48 years ago today, joining a 1976 class that includes longtime center fielder Oscar Charleston – a phenomenal player unfamiliar to casual baseball fans mostly because his career plays out in the relatively obscurity of the old Negro Leagues.

Bob Lemon

During his career in the majors, Roberts wins 286 games, including 234 in 14 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, while Lemon wins 207 in 13 seasons for the Cleveland Indians.

Alas, because of segregation in the game, Charleston never gets a chance to play in the major leagues.

He does just fine for himself, too, batting .365 in the Negro Leagues during a 26-year playing career that ends in 1941. Only Ty Cobb at .366 has a higher batting average in history.

Oscar Charleston

Charleston’s career on-base and slugging percentage of 1.064 is the highest of any hitter in Negro League history and ranks fourth all-time behind only Hall of Famers Babe Ruth (1.164), Ted Williams (1.116) and Lou Gehrig (1.080).

While Roberts and Lemon are present for their inductions in the summer of ’76, Charleston posthumously receives his honors with his election coming 22 years after he passes away in 1954 at the age of 57.

“The greatest MLB player I ever saw was Willie Mays,” Negro League legend Buck O’Neil once says, “but the greatest baseball player I ever saw was Oscar Charleston. … Oscar Charleston was Willie Mays before we knew who Willie Mays was.”