Southern League by Larry Colton
Rating = ****

Southern League is the story of the 1964 Birmingham Barons, newly organized as an 
integrated team in AA baseball after the team was disbanded over integration several 
years earlier. 1964 is the year after the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, so 
tensions were high, to say the least. The team was managed by Haywood Sullivan, who 
would go on to run the Red Sox for many years. The team had a few future MLB stars, 
such as Blue Moon Odom, Bert Campaneris, and Paul Linblad. Fergie Jenkins makes several 
appearances pitching for the opposition. They are in the race for the pennant right up 
until the last day. You'll have to read the book to see if they win it. I think the 
story of that season is most notable for what didn't happen. There were no racial 
issues on the team, there were no major issues at home games, the KKK didn't bomb the 
ballpark, and blacks and whites managed to sit side by side in the stands and enjoy 
baseball. Maybe, just maybe, that summer taught at least some people in Birmingham that 
this integration thing would work out okay.