Page 10 - Florida Sentinel 6-21-19

Feature
Bob Mitchell, Advocate For Negro Leaguers, Dies
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
On Wednesday, June 12, 2019, Mr. Robert “Bob” Mitchell died of an appar- ent heart attack at Tampa General Hospital. Mr. Mitchell was 86-years-old, his wife, Mrs. Wanda Mitchell said.
Mr. Mitchell was a pitcher in the historic Negro Baseball League. He launched his career with the Florida Negro League in 1951, being chosen as a pitcher with the West Palm Beach team.
He pitched for the Florida Cubans, based in Lakeland, in 1952, at their home field and training center of the major league Detroit Tigers.
After a showdown game with the Kansas City Mon- archs, Mr. Mitchell was ap- proached by Buck O’Neil. He was then invited to throw batting practice to the Mon- archs. He earned a contract with the team that included Satchel Paige.
Mr. Mitchell made his debut with the Monarchs in 1954. Two years later, he asked manager Jelly Taylor to allow him to pitch an evening game.
During the game, Mr.
MR. ROBERT “BOB” MITCHELL 11/18/1932 --- 6/12/2019
Mitchell pitched the com- plete game, striking out 13 batters in nine innings.
Mr. Mitchell retired in 1957 with a career record of 30-14.
He returned to his native West Palm Beach and ob- tained employment with Pratt-Whitney Aircraft. He retired after 26 years of em- ployment.
He then relocated to Tampa, and married his cur- rent wife, Mrs. Wanda
Mitchell. They were mar- ried for 26 years.
Although Mr. Mitchell retired from baseball, he did not retire from trying to ob- tain a pension for former Negro League players.
He launched his role as advocate for former Negro League players to receive a pension. In 1993, his efforts were rewarded when Major League Baseball approved a pension for Black players who had been excluded from the pension plan after 1947, when Jackie Robinson in- tegrated professional base- ball.
After several years of fighting, Mr. Mitchell, along with the help of U. S. Senator Bill Nelson, was successful in obtaining the pensions.
In 2004, Black players or their surviving widows were given the financial assis- tance.
Mr. Mitchell is sur- vived by his wife, Mrs. Wanda Mitchell, a son, Marc Mitchell, other fam- ily members and friends.
A Memorial Service for Mr. Mitchell will be held on Saturday, June 22, at 11 a.m., at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, 509 E. Twiggs, Street, Tampa, 33602..
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