Plaques honoring Macon Negro Leaguers unveiled at ballpark

The old moundsman glanced over his left shoulder, way back toward the outfield fence that he belted a homer or two over in his day.

Robert Scott, 84, a Negro League pitcher who saw action with the New York Black Yankees and a Jackie Robinson barnstorming team, said, "I hit a few home runs to left field. But then I ain't gonna talk about the ones that they hit off me."

Scott was one of four former Negro Leaguers from Macon who were honored Saturday in a ceremony at Luther Williams Field.

The salute, which included mounted plaques at the ballpark for the honorees, was part of an Eagle Scout service project by local Boy Scout Gordon Smith.

"I am so thrilled," Scott told a gathering of a few hundred or so.

Smith, the Boy Scout, said he got the idea to recognize the ballplayers publicly after visiting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City.

Smith, 15, said he wanted "to show the community what we had here."

Ernest Fann, another player who was honored, spoke of the Negro Leagues heritage and its influence not only on the modern-day game but also on society.

"A lot of doors opened," said Fann, 72, who played for the Atlanta Black Crackers and was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals.

Fann, a catcher and later a pitcher, helped lead Ballard-Hudson High School teams to state titles in the early 1960s on a squad that included future Oakland A's player John "Blue Moon" Odom.

Fann praised Smith for remembering the players of old and noting six other Negro Leaguers who were from Macon.

"You need to know what this young man has done," Fann said, "and I want to thank him from the bottom of my heart."

This story was originally published February 6, 2016 at 7:53 PM with the headline "Plaques honoring Macon Negro Leaguers unveiled at ballpark ."