Buck Leonard 1991 Ron Lewis Negro Leagues Fine Art Postcard # 22

A smooth-fielding first baseman for the Homestead Grays dynasty of the late-1930s and 1940s, Walter “Buck” Leonard teamed with Josh Gibson to form an offensive combination called the “Ruth and Gehrig” of black baseball. Leonard played in a record 11 East-West All-Star games, and his 17-year tenure with the Grays was the longest term of service with one team in Negro leagues history. Eddie Gottlieb, an instrumental figure in founding the National Basketball Association once said: “Buck Leonard was as smooth a first baseman as I ever saw. A great glove, a heck of a hitter, and he drove in runs.”