Indianapolis Indians prepare for Negro Leagues Night

In a tradition that has been going on for over a decade, the Indianapolis Indians will pay tribute to the history of the Negro Leagues through a collaboration with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission on June 22 at Victory Field in downtown Indianapolis. Director of communications for the Indianapolis Indians Cheyne Reiter spoke about how the importance of Negro Leagues Night. “We have been doing it for the greater part of the past decade,” Reiter said. “As the sole baseball team of the city that has been around for the last 122 years or so, it is our job to honor those teams and players that paved the path to get baseball where it is today. We are honored.” Indy native Oscar Charleston, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1976, managed the Indianapolis Clowns during the early 1950s. The Indians will wear Clowns jerseys in recognition of key figures like Charleston and the Negro Leagues team. Indianapolis Clowns jerseys will be auctioned off until the end of the seventh inning to benefit Indianapolis Indians charities. Reiter said that last year’s auction during Negro Leagues week brought in around $10,000, which was mostly donated to Indy...