![]() But they should for both from a baseball perspective as well as a historical perspective." And unfortunately, the majority of the public, they don't know these names. We're talking about some of the greatest athletes to ever put on a baseball uniform. "I tell people all the time that the talent in the Negro Leagues would not take a backseat to any league. "It's not to disparage Jackie at all, but this is how great the talent was in the Negro Leagues," Kendrick said. He said the league had such a rich talent pool of players who played in a "bold, brash way" and were "fast and daring." Russell said the process was a tedious one, but it couldn't have fully come together without the expertise of Kendrick - who he says knows the real history of the Negro Leagues and players "more than anyone else." He said Kendrick was the perfect person to narrate the storyline mode, because of his well-rounded knowledge about each player's greatness.Įven though Jackie Robinson was the first African American player to play in a Major League Baseball game in 1947, Kendrick said during his narration in the mode that Robinson was not the best player from the Negro Leagues. That helped nail down the fine animation details for each player, jerseys and the stadiums where games were held. Not a lot of game footage from the Negro Leagues exists, so game creators gathered archival video and photos from the museum along with family members of the deceased players to collect as much as they could. But about two years ago, I felt like now is the time." "I've been asked, 'Hey, when are you going to have the Negro Leagues?' My answer would be, 'As soon as we can find the right way to do it.' As you know, perfection is the enemy of progress. "So many of our fans - even when they hear the word 'Negro Leagues' - they have no context of what the Negro League is and what it represents," Russell continued. He played a vital role in working across multiple teams who did a "tremendously smart job" in creating the mode. "This is a project I've always wanted to do," said Russell, the product development communications and brand strategist for Sony Interactive Entertainment. He has been mulling over the idea for more than a decade as a mainstay for the development and marketing team for the MLB The Show series. Ramone Russell was the first to pitch Sony executives the concept of breathing life into the Negro League players through the franchise's popular video game. I have to get to them in the mode of which they are getting information. "How do I establish a relevant connection with an ever-changing generation of young people? I can't sit back and wait for them to come to me at the doors of the museum. ![]() "For the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, this is all about creating relevancy," he said. Kendrick said the multiyear partnership is a "gigantic step in keeping the legacy alive" for the Negro Leagues. This is something we are inherently proud of." And I didn't really think it would happen with arguably the biggest baseball video game of them all. "I never really dreamt this would become reality. This has been stirring for several years. People were popping into my timeline on social media. "There were so many gaming fans who have been clamoring for the inclusion of the Negro Leagues. "The way the Negro League players played, it fits perfectly for a video game," he said. Along with the museum, he partnered with Sony for the historic Black players' insertion into the game. "This made sense on multiple levels," said Bob Kendrick, the narrator of storyline experience and president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, which is located in Kansas City, Missouri. The narrative experience will feature short videos about the players along with gameplay focused on the epic moments of their careers.Īlong with Robinson and Paige, the game also features other players including Buck O'Neil, Rube Foster, Hilton Smith, John Donaldson, Hank Thompson and Martin Dihigo. Video gamers are now able to venture into a storyline mode involving eight Negro League legends through MLB The Show 23, which releases Tuesday. ![]() LOS ANGELES - MLB The Show has broken a video game barrier: For the first time, the franchise will insert some of the Negro Leagues' greatest players - from Satchel Paige to Jackie Robinson - into the 2023 edition of the game as playable characters. ![]() MLB The Show 23 to feature several Negro League greats You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser ![]()
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