Rosilyn Stearnes-Brown | The Legend of Turkey Stearnes

Black Diamonds

SiriusXM

History, Baseball, Black History, Sports, Negro Leagues, Documentary, Equality, Society & Culture, Civil Rights

4.8 • 617 Ratings

🗓️ 18 May 2023

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What if we told you the greatest baseball player the city of Detroit has ever known, NEVER played a game for the Tigers? Bob Kendrick tells the story of Hall of Famer Norman "Turkey" Stearnes, the five-tool legend of the Detroit Stars who could hit, slug, field, run, throw, and even sing, like no one baseball had ever seen. Hear how "The Gobbler" got his name, how Satchel Paige showed him as much respect as anyone who had ever stepped in the batter's box, how he had the power of Josh Gibson before Josh Gibson ever hit his first home run, and how he never became bitter, despite having to work winters in the auto factories owned by the same man who banned him from the Detroit Tigers due to the color of his skin. Plus, hear from Norman Stearnes' own daughter, Rosilyn Stearnes-Brown, as she tells stories of the man who the fans called "Turkey", but she just called "Dad".

Transcript

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0:00.0	Is Norman Turkey Stern Detroit's greatest baseball player?
0:13.4	Not only is he Detroit's greatest baseball player.
0:18.5	He's the world's best baseball player. Mark my words on me.
0:29.6	People oftentimes ask me who are the greatest Negro League players.
0:38.4	Or if I was picking a team who would make up my nine greatest Negro League players,
0:46.3	and man, that is an almost impossible task.
0:51.3	There were so many great baseball players who called the Negro
0:57.2	League's home. And picking nine would be like trying to pick out of 3,000 kids. If you
1:05.3	had 3,000 kids, who your nine favorite kids would be. It be an almost monumental task but whenever i talk about
1:16.5	my outfield for that team there's one player that always comes to mind and that's the great Norman Turkey Stearns. Now, it may vary from day to day
1:32.4	depending on when I'm in the museum and what my mind state is like, who the other two outfielders.
1:39.4	Oscar Charleston would certainly be there right alongside Turkey Stearns. And for me, cool Papa Bell would round
1:47.4	out what I think would be one of the greatest outfields, not in Negro League's history, but one of the
1:53.1	great outfields in baseball history, if the three of them would have all played together.
2:03.1	Now, who would cover center field?
2:10.8	Because all three were tremendous centerfielders. The player that we're discussing today on Black Diamond, the gobbler, as Buck O'Neill would call them, the legendary Norman Turkey
2:17.1	Stearns, is one of the greatest
2:20.0	centerfielders, one of the greatest hitters that this game has ever seen. And yes, he is rightfully
2:27.9	enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, but Turkey should be a household name.
2:36.3	As I oftentimes say, every Thanksgiving.
2:39.5	There was nothing jive about this turkey.
2:43.5	Norman Thomas Stearns was born in Nashville, Tennessee on May 8th, 1901, a date that was
	...

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