HR0443 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0443 LRB097 12214 GRL 56613 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, This year, the Chicago White Sox will host the fourth annual Double Duty Classic, an event that celebrates the history and tradition of Negro League baseball in Chicago and showcases the next generation of minority baseball players; and

WHEREAS, On June 29, 2011, elite minority high school baseball players from across the country will participate in an All-Star game at U.S. Cellular Field, where they will dress in uniforms honoring the Negro Leagues East-West All-Star game; and

WHEREAS, The annual Double Duty Classic is named in honor of Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe, to commemorate the 78th anniversary of the first East-West All-Star game, played at Comiskey Park in Chicago; Radcliffe was a six time East-West Negro League All-Star and one of the most famous players in Negro League history; he was nicknamed "Double Duty" by writer Damon Runyon, who saw Radcliffe play in the 1932 Negro League World Series doubleheader; and

WHEREAS, Ted Radcliffe caught Satchel Paige in a shut-out victory and then pitched a shutout in the second game; the next day, Runyon wrote in his column, "It was worth the price of two admissions to see 'Double Duty' Radcliffe play."; and

WHEREAS, Ted Radcliffe was born in Mobile, Alabama on July 7, 1902; he went on to have a career in baseball for 32 years, which included time as a player, manager, secretary, mentor, bus driver, and later, a Major League scout for the Cleveland Indians; and

WHEREAS, To continue playing games into the evening that started in the afternoon, Ted Radcliffe and his teammates are known to have ignited rags soaked in kerosene and are now credited with the invention of night games; and

WHEREAS, Ted Radcliffe is believed to be the first African American to manage an all-white professional baseball team, which was based in North Dakota and traveled through Canada playing games; and

WHEREAS, Over his lifetime, Ted Radcliffe received the State of Illinois Historical Committee's Life Achievement Award, was inducted into the Illinois Department on Aging Hall of Fame and Mobile Sports Hall of Fame, was honored by Mayor Richard Daley as being an outstanding citizen, and was the guest of three U.S. Presidents at the White House; a WGN documentary about Radcliffe's life, narrated by Morgan Freeman, won an Emmy Award; and

WHEREAS, The Double Duty Classic serves as a reminder to the City of Chicago and the baseball community of the history of Negro Leagues and provides an opportunity for elite minority baseball players to showcase their talents in the same manner as their ancestors; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we join the Chicago White Sox in commemorating the life and legacy of Ted 'Double Duty' Radcliffe and wish for the continued success of the annual Double Duty Classic; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the family of Ted 'Double Duty' Radcliffe and the Chicago White Sox as a symbol of our esteem and respect.