In 1920, the Negro National League started play and the historic Kansas City Monarchs took the field for the first time. Leading the way was a 5-foot-7 two-way ballplayer who was about to embark on a journey that didn't end until 1938 - Bullet Joe Rogan. What no one knew then was that Rogan was going to put up numbers that ultimately led him into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Rogan is considered by many to be one of the top 5 baseball players of all time. In fact, some say he is the greatest. On the mound, in the Negro National League he was 120-52 with an ERA of 2.65. But, when you combine the barnstorming tours and other leagues that Bullet played in, there is evidence that he won more than 350 games and struck out more than 2,000 batters. And, he did all of this without a windup. He just stood on the mound reared back and fired the ball. But, that's only half the story. Bullet was a star in the batter's box too. He hit cleanup for the Monarchs and for his NNL career, he hit .338 with an OPS of .934, connected for 50 home runs, drove in 419. He was an all-around superstar. But there is so much more to the Bullet Joe Rogan story and joining me on this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes is a very special guest - The President of Negro Leagues Baseball Museum Bob Kendrick. Bob shares some very fascinating stories with us, talks about how spectacular Bullet was and recalls so much more about the Negro Leagues and who Bullet compares to today ... and that might surprise you.

The name "Wahoo Sam Crawford" might not sound familiar to many Major League Baseball fans. But, it's probably quite familiar to fans of the Detroit Tigers. Wahoo Sam played for the Tigers back in the early 1900s. He was a phenomenally good hitter. In fact, if not for Ty Cobb, one could argue that Wahoo Sam might be the greatest to ever play for the Tigers. He had a career batting average of .309 to go along with a career OPS of .814. He averaged 191 hits a year as well. Not known for blazing speed, perhaps the most surprising of all when it comes to Wahoo Sam is this - he holds the record for most triples in a Major League career with 309 ... and ... he also holds the record for most inside-the-park home runs in a year with 12! But, the fact that he played during the same period as Ty Cobb stifled Crawford's popularity. Along with Cobb, however, Wahoo Sam helped the Tigers to three straight American League pennants: 1907, 1908, 1909. Unfortunately, Detroit never came out on top of any of those World Series. And the fact that this was the early 1900s also contributes to the fact that Wahoo Sam is not widely as known as he should be. However, the Veteran's Committee, at the constant urging of Cobb, elected Crawford to the Hall of Fame in 1957; and honor that was long overdue. Joining me on this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes to talk about Sam is author Kent Krause. Kent's book "Wahoo Sam Crawford, The King of Sluggers" is a must read for any fan of baseball, particularly fans of the Detroit Tigers. Kent shares so much with us, from Sam's upbringing, to his days working in a barber shop, through his career in the Majors, to his days playing in the Pacific Coast League.

Back in the early 1900s, the National League was the only game in town. It was Major League Baseball, thus the name the "Senior Circuit". In 1901, Ban Johnson, and others, joined the game with the American League and it was granted Major League status in 1903. Both leagues operated as separate entities, but met every year in the World Series. In 1913, the Federal League was a minor league, but it wanted to join the party and in 1914 and 1915 it called itself a Major League as well. The Federal League, however, did not gain widespread acceptance. Despite going to head-to-head in Pittsburgh, Chicago, Brooklyn and St. Louis with established NL and AL teams, it couldn't gain a foothold. It also played in Buffalo, Indianapolis, Kansas City and Baltimore, it struggled in those cities as well. Poor attendance and high salaries for the players it poached from its NL and AL rivals, the Federal League didn't make it. In fact, very - very - few have challenged MLB. On this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes, baseball historian and author Dan Levitt joins the podcast to discuss the Federal League. Its teams, players, the court cases and so much more. Dan is an expert on the Federal League having written the book, "The Outlaw League And The Battle That Forged Modern Baseball."

When Football Is Football is part of the Sports History Network - The Headquarters For Sports Yesteryear.

HIGHLIGHTED SHOW: THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

Relive the greatest moments in sports every day of the year. From the triumphs to the tragedies, the first to do it to the last time it happened, the unbelievable to the strange, This Day in Sports History is a 365-day journey remembering those significant events that made a lasting impact.

HOST: STEVE WHITE

Steve White has spent most of his life behind a microphone. As a kid, he realized the power of the spoken word, hanging out with his dad while the pair talked to people around the world via ham radio.

Later, Steve put that penchant for communication into practice and ventured into radio and TV. He worked for a few television stations in North Carolina doing sports reporting and anchoring before transitioning to voiceover in 2015. He’s voiced more than 80 audiobooks in a variety of genres.

He’s never been much for awards, probably due to the fact he’s never won any but he loves the challenge of diving into new projects. His ‘This Day in Sports History’ evolved from a lifetime of watching, listening to, and going to ballgames, reading books, magazines, and newspaper articles about his favorite teams and sports heroes. It’s not only a labor of love but a voyage of discovery, finding those forgotten tidbits or fascinating things he never knew.

Learn more about the show on the Sports History Network.

Jake Daubert was a star for the Brooklyn Robins and Brooklyn Dodgers during the early 1900s and finished his career with the Cincinnati Reds. He played during baseball's deadball era and was about as good as anyone. His play at first base was second-to-none and, at the plate, you would be hard-pressed to find many who could handle the bat as well as he did. In fact, when Daubert's career came to a tragic end in 1924, not only did he have a career batting average of .303, he was also 7th all-time in hits with 2,326. Now, back in those days, numbers like 3,000 hits weren't discussed. And, this was long before there was a Hall of Fame. However, had Daubert started his career earlier (he didn't break in until he was 26), perhaps he could have amassed 3,000 hits and his name would be much more familiar to baseball fans. As it is, though, he hit .300 or better 10 our of 12 years (including 6 in a row from 1911 through 1916) including 1913 when he hit .350 to lead the Majors and win the Chalmers Award. The Chalmers Award is what was given to the league's MVP at that time. Daubert holds the record for most sacrifices in one year, which was very important to Jake as he was a total team player. Daubert also fught hard for player's right and after the 1918 season in which baseball ad to shut down early because of the flu epidemic and World War I, Daubert fought for his pay. He ultimately won the battle, but was shipped by Charles Ebbets from Brooklyn to Cincinnati for his efforts. With the Reds, Daubert hardly missed a beat, helping Cincy to a World Series Championship over the White in the famous 1919 Series, and he continued to hit. In fact, in 1922, Jake hit .336 and played in all but 14-innings the whole year. Two years later, however, tragedy struck and Jake's career and, more importantly, his life ended tragically. On this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes I discuss it all with author/sports writer Harry Deitz who recently published a book about the life of Jake Daubert, "Gentleman Jake."

The 1955 U.S. Open Golf Championship was supposed to be the crowning achievement to one of the greatest careers in the history of sports. Golf enthusiasts and sports fans all thought the U.S. Open, staged at San Francisco's Olympic Club, was a virtual lock for Ben Hogan to win. In fact, Hogan almost proved everyone to be right. The Hawk calculated what he needed to shoot to win on this "terror" of a course. And, he wasn't that far off. Hogan found himself 5-strokes back after the first round having shot a 2-over 72. He then started working his way up the leaderboard by shooting a 3-over 73 in round 2, a 2-over 72 in round 3 and an even-par 70 in the final round, five strokes better then all but one other golfer. No one ever considered journeyman Jack Fleck to contend. But, he too worked a little magic that weekend. After a first round 76, Fleck fired a 1-under 69 in the second round, followed that with a 5-over 75 in the third round and then he masterfully conquered the course by shooting a 3-under 67 in the final round and found himself in a tie with Hogan. The two would face each other in an 18-hole playoff the next day. Fleck was a huge fan of Hogan. In fact, he was the first to carry Ben Hogan golf clubs in his bag. He was would follow Hogan around the course to see how Ben played. He even wore the same type of hat, sweater and slacks as Ben. Fleck had never won an official TOUR event. And now he was going to face his idol over the course of 18 holes for a date with infamy. Incredibly, he did it. He outlasted Hogan in the playoff to win the 1955 U.S. Open and enter his name into golf lore. On this episode of Sports' Forgotten Heroes, Neil Sagebiel who wrote the book "The Longest Shot," joins the podcast to talk about the career of Jack Fleck and that one magical weekend in June of 1955 when Davey took down Goliath.

The name "Shoeless Joe Jackson" is one of the most famous in baseball history. A key figure to the dominant Chicago White Sox of the late 19-teens, Joe led the team to the World Series Championship in 1917 when he hit .304 in the 6-game series. However, we all know the story of what happened next. In 1919, the White Sox threw the Series against the Cincinnati Reds and a year later, despite batting .375 in the series Jackson, along with seven of his teammates, was banned for life. So, every year, when voting for the Baseball Hall of Fame rolls around, the name Joe Jackson is brought up and debated as to whether or not his ban should be lifted and entrance into the Hall of Fame granted. But, that's not what this episode is about. Rather, this episode is a discussion about the great career Shoeless Joe put together. A career that included a season in which he hit over .400, a career in which he hit .356 over 13 years. A career in which he connected for 168 triples (at the time, a triple was also a sign of power), stole 202 bases and finished with an OPS of .940. Yes, Joe Jackson was one of the greatest to ever play the game. What he did over the course of his career, I think, gets overlooked and is not spoken about enough. Sure, the debates rage on as to whether or not his lifetime ban should be lifted so he can gain entrance into the Hall of Fame. But, what gets lost in the debate is the conversation that focuses on the incredible numbers he put up. And, BTW, in his final year, at the age of 32, he hit .382, with an OPS of 1.033, led all of baseball with 20 triples and had 121 RBI. Another phenomenal year, in fact, it was one of the best seasons he ever had. On this episode of SFH, we are going to explore his career. Not debate whether or not he should be in the Hall of Fame, we're just going to discuss the great numbers he put up with David Fleitz, the author of "Shoeless - The Life and Times of Joe Jackson".

Jim Bottomley played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1922 to 1933. During his 11 years with the Redbirds, Bottomley just might have been the best first baseman in the National League. If he wasn't you'd be hard-pressed to find another first baseman who was better. During that 11 year span, Bottomley hit .325, whacked 181 home runs and knocked in 1,105. In 1928, he won the National League MVP. Four times, he helped the Cardinals win the pennant and in 1926, he helped St. Louis to a magical World Series Championship over the juggernaut that was to become the New York Yankees. He again, helped the Cardinals to a World Series Championship in 1931 over the Philadelphia Athletics. Bottomley is one of the only players in Major League history to twice have 6 hits in a single game and he once had 12 RBI in a game. Yet, when baseball fans are asked about Jim Bottomley, most have never heard of him. That could be because Bottomley played with Rogers Hornsby who was winning triple crowns while Jim was just going about his business. On this episode of SFH, Kent Krause, the author of "Sunny Jim Bottomley" joins the show as we explore Jim's career and just how magnificent a baseball player he was during a career that also saw him play for the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Browns.