The Minneapolis Keystones was a small club of black

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

players formed in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Minnesota, running from approximately 1908 to 1911."LEADING BASEBALL CLUBS" Indianapolis Freeman, Indianapolis, IN, April 1, 1911, Page 7, Column 5
/ref> While the Negro National League was not formed until 1920, the Keystones did have many top notch players, and at least one of them,

Hurley McNair Hurley Allen McNair (October 28, 1888 - December 2, 1948) was a baseball player in the Negro leagues and the pre-Negro leagues. At the age of 21, he was pitching for the Minneapolis Keystones. He left the Keystones halfway through the 1911 season ...

would go on to play with the

Kansas City Monarchs The Kansas City Monarchs were the longest-running franchise in the history of baseball's Negro leagues. Operating in Kansas City, Missouri, and owned by J. L. Wilkinson, they were charter members of the Negro National League from 1920 to 19 ...

and several other teams. Many of the top players of the day who were too old by the time the league was formed, and include William Binga, George Hopkins,

Bobby Marshall Robert Wells Marshall (March 12, 1880 – August 27, 1958) was an American sportsman. He was best known for playing football; however, Marshall also competed in baseball,

, and Archie Pate. Many researchers do not consider the Keystones a "formal"

Negro league The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

team. However, like other barnstorming teams of the time, they had considerable impact on the

desegregation Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...

of baseball. Today, the Keystones are rarely mentioned in Negro baseball history, and stats and rosters are hard to find. By at least 1911, sources say the team was being managed by Col. Edward F. Mitchell, and the team's address is listed at 1313 Washington Avenue in South Minneapolis.

References

"seamheads.com" Minneapolis Keystones information for 1911
Negro league baseball teams Sports in Minneapolis Defunct baseball teams in Minnesota Baseball teams disestablished in 1911 Baseball teams established in 1908 {{Negro-league-baseball-team-stub