The 1944 Washington Homestead Grays baseball team represented the Washington Homestead Grays in the Negro National League (NNL) during the 1944 baseball season. Candy Jim Taylor managed the team for his second and final year, as Vic Harris would return as player-manager the following year. The team compiled a 63–29–3 (.679) record while winning the NNL pennant for the seventh time in franchise history. They met the Birmingham Black Barons once again in the 1944 Negro World Series and beat them in five games.
1944 Washington Homestead Grays | |
---|---|
League | Negro National League |
Ballpark | Forbes Field, Griffith Stadium |
City | Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C. |
Record | 63–29–3 (.679) |
League place | 1st |
Managers | Candy Jim Taylor |
The team played its home games at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh and Griffith Stadium in Washington, D.C.[1]
The team's leading batters were:
The team's leading pitchers were Ray Brown (11–1, 2.71 ERA, 52 strikeouts), Spoon Carter (6–4, 4.44 ERA), and Edsall Walker (6–4, 3.84 ERA).[3]
Five of the Grays players were later inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame: Cool Papa Bell; Ray Brown; Josh Gibson; Buck Leonard; and Jud Wilson.