Ron Teasley

Ronald Teasley
(Schoolboy)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 180 lb.
• School Wayne State University
• High School Northwestern High School (Detroit)
• Debut 1948
• Final Game 1948
• Born January 26, 1927 in Detroit, MI USA
• Died February 3, 2026 in Novi, MI USA

BR page

Biographical Information

As of 2023, Ron Teasley was one of three surviving players to have played in the Negro Leagues during the period when they were major leagues, as recognized retroactively by Major League Baseball in 2020. The others were Willie Mays and Bill Greason. Both Mays and Greason were stars who later played in the National League or American League, so their status as major leaguers was never in doubt, which was not the case for Teasley, who was part of the rank-and-file of the Negro Leagues. He played for the New York Cubans of the Negro National League in 1948 as a utility player. While most of the players on the team had Latin American roots, not all of them did, as was the case for Teasley who was born and raised in Detroit, MI.

He was one of a number of Negro Leaguers who were college graduates, having graduated from Wayne State University in his hometown. His nickname "Schoolboy" derived from the fact he was a star player in high school (he was the first African American to be team captain at Northwestern High School) and would often play in games against grown men.

He did sign a contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948 and played 23 games for the Olean Oilers of the PONY League that year, hitting .267, but was released towards the end of the season, before signing with the Cubans. He spent two months with the team and while preliminary statistics credit him with only two game appearances, the reconstruction of the full records of Negro League players remains an ongoing project. He also played in the integrated Man-Dak League, an independent league, in 1950. After baseball, he had a long career as a coach and educator in the Detroit area.

He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, seeing action in the Pacific. He died in February 2026 shortly after turning 99; he was the third oldest former major league player at the time and one of only two living former Negro Leagues players with Greason, as Mays had passed away by then.

Further Reading

• Anthony Castrovince: "The ongoing search through history to give Negro Leaguers their due: With 3 who played in Negro Leagues surviving, MLB works to incorporate stats into record", mlb.com, November 6, 2023. [1]
• Brian Murphy: "Former Negro Leaguer Ron 'Schoolboy' Teasley dies at 99", mlb.com, February 4, 2026. [2]

Related Sites

• Obituary