In the early 1900s, baseball was a big part of life in West Virginia’s coal towns. Coal companies formed teams to boost morale and often gave good players easier jobs and more time off.

Teams like the Raleigh Clippers, Tams Black Sox, and Gary Grays played in company leagues, union leagues, and Black leagues. Even in the majors, the pay was often lower than what miners made.

Black players couldn’t join the major leagues until 1947, so many played in the Negro Leagues. Some, like Harry “Tin Can” Kincannon and Grover Lewis, came from West Virginia or played for local teams.

After World War II, coal jobs and coal town populations began to shrink. By the 1960s, many of the teams were gone. Former miner and player John McGraw said it best: “Whenever they played, they played hard. Whenever they worked, they worked hard.”