Student baseball tournament honors Black history with Negro Leagues tribute

CHARLOTTE — Baseball and history are coming together in west Charlotte as local students get the chance to compete and learn in a three-day tournament, honoring Black history.

Blair Brown has been playing baseball for as long as he can remember.

“Around 2, 3 years old, my dad started me off with machines and stuff, just hitting around the house,” Brown told Channel 9’s Miana Massey. “I just fell in love with it from there.”

Now, the Phillip O. Berry Academy junior is one of several student athletes taking the field at the Knothole Foundation’s Westside Story tournament.

“I’m pretty excited,” he said. “Hopefully we can come out with a dub like we did last year.”

Morris Madden, the cofounder of the event, says this tournament brings together students from schools that don’t always get this kind of opportunity.

“We’re having a tournament for inner city kids of schools that are around the area, schools that don’t normally participate in a spring break tournament, and we want to give them an opportunity here,” he said.

The event is designed to give students exposure, experience and place to grow. Players will also have the chance to connect with college-level coaches.

“You got to put the work in yourself,” Brown said. “You can’t depend on other people to push you. It’s certain things that you have to meet to get to those requirements.”

The tournament honors the past and present with a special tribute to the Negro Leagues. Each of the days will feature an educational lunch with guest speakers, historians and more.

“Baseball is a pretty under-looked sport for my people,” Brown said. “I think bringing it it an area like this is bringing more opportunities for Black kids like myself.”

Madden says it’s about remembering the people who paved the way for the sport we know today.

“We want our kids to know the history of where they came from,” he said. “If you don’t know where you came from, then how are you going to know where you’re going to go?”

The event runs through Friday. The tournament championship will be held Thursday night at Richard “Stick” Williams Dream Fields and Education Center.

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