The best sight in all of baseball this past week was Tuesday at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Ala., where the city and the military celebrated the 100 th birthday of an American hero: Rev. Bill Greason.
Greason, who grew up in Birmingham with Willie Mays, is the oldest living member of the Negro Leagues and was the St. Louis Cardinals’ first Black pitcher.
Greason, who lived across the street from Dr. Martin Luther King and went to Sunday School together, has been an ordained minister since 1971 at the Bethel Baptist Church and still preaches every Sunday.
One of the first Black Marines, Greason served in World War II and fought at Iwo Jima where two of his best friends were killed. He had the U.S. Marine Corps in full dress uniform saluting him Tuesday.
Greason was celebrated at the poignant event organized and sponsored by the Heart and Armor Foundation for Veterans Health.
Greason, speaking to USA TODAY Sports the following day, says he still can’t believe there was such a fuss just for him.