Player Spotlight - Charles Peete

Charlie Peete was born on February 22, 1929 in Franklin, Virginia. He made his major league debut with the St. Louis Cardinals on July 17, 1956 after being called up from triple A Omaha. He became the fifth African American to play for the Cardinals. Peete was a great left handed hitter who had been groomed to be the first full time African American starting position player.

Peete had begun his professional career playing in the Canadian leagues in the early 50’s. Many African American players played there as the Negro leagues began to wind down with the invention of radio, television, and of course integration. The Canadian leagues were very different from the major leagues of America. The fan base was predominately white but they lacked the hang ups of those in the states. Players were frequently invited into the homes of fans and integrated into Canadian life without much hassle. Tom Alston, the first African American baseball player to play for the St. Louis Cardinals had also played in the Canadian leagues as well as Pumpsie Green, the first African American to play for the Red Sox, and John Kennedy the first African American to play for the Philadelphia Phillies.

From the Canadian leagues Peete went to his native state of Virginia and played for the Portsmouth Cubs of the Piedmont League. He was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the minor league draft of 1954 and sent to Omaha. He excelled in Omaha, batting .317 in 1955 and leading the league with an average of .350 in 1956. A thumb injury limited his production at the big league level and Peete decided to head to winter ball in Venezuela. He took his wife and three children with him. On November 27, 1956 the small plane he and his family were on crashed into a mountain near Cevilla, Venezuela. All 25 people aboard where killed.

Omaha erected a monument in his honor and in Portsmouth, Virginia there is now a Charles Peete little league.