South Texas Negro League  Championship Trophy

The South Texas Negro League was founded in 1945 when Royal Brock (owner of the San Antonio Black Sox) and Odie Davis (owner of the Denver Heights Bears) brought together the best semiprofessional black baseball teams in south Texas to form a semi-professional league. The South Texas Negro League would play a regular season schedule from 1945 until the end of the 1978 baseball season.



The league provided former Negro League players like Cleveland Grant (Satchel Paige All-Stars), Bernard Willis (Kansas City Monarchs), Sterling Fuller (Ligon’s All-Stars), Roy White (Chicago American Giants and Ligon’s All-Stars), Freddie Taylor (Atlanta Black Crackers) and John “Mule” Miles (Chicago American Giants) the opportunity to still play baseball on a competitive level. The South Texas Negro League also provided young ball players the opportunity to develop their skills and take their game to the next level. Former Major League ball players Odie Davis (Texas Rangers), Cliff Johnson (New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians) and Cito Gaston (San Diego Padres) all got their start in professional baseball in the South Texas Negro League. 

Over the years the following teams played in the South Texas Negro League:

• Austin Greyhounds
• Denver Heights Bears
• Grand Prize 
• Houston Black Buffaloes
• San Antonio Black Missions
• San Antonio Black Sox
• San Antonio Bombers
• San Antonio Eagles
• San Antonio Indians
• San Antonio Reds
• San Antonio Yankees
• SP (Southern Pacific Railroad) Giants

The South Texas Negro League played most of its league games at Black Sox Stadium (west San Antonio) and Pittman – Sullivan Park (south San Antonio). The San Antonio Black Sox and the Denver Heights Bears played every season from 1945 through 1978. The San Antonio Black Sox were the perennial power house of the league and won more league titles than all the other teams put together.



The South Texas Negro League folded after the 1978 season. The Denver Heights Bears and the San Antonio Yankees moved to the Spanish American League and the other teams in the league folded.