John Henry Lloyd (April 25, 1884 – March 19, 1964), nicknamed "Pop" and "El Cuchara", was an American

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

in the

Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be used narrowly for the seven relativel ...

. During his 27-year career, he played for many teams and had a .343

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

. Lloyd is considered to be the greatest shortstop in Negro league history, and he was inducted into the

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...

in 1977.

Early life

Lloyd is thought to have been born in

Palatka, Florida Palatka () is a city in and the county seat of Putnam County, Florida, Putnam County, Florida, United States. Palatka is the principal city of the Palatka Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is home to 72,893 residents. The Palatka micropolitan ...

. He was a descendant of slaves, and his father died when Lloyd was a baby. Lloyd's maternal grandmother, Maria Jenkins, raised him in Jacksonville. Jenkins had lived in Jacksonville prior to moving to Palatka. The return to Jacksonville may have been prompted by a great fire that had damaged businesses and changed the overall economic situation in Palatka.Singletary, pp. 8-9. Before Lloyd completed elementary school, he had to go to work full-time. Early on, he delivered items for a grocery store, and then he became a railroad porter.

Baseball career

Early career (1905–20)

Lloyd began his professional baseball career in 1905, playing

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

for the Acmes of

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

. He played

second base In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the infield, between second and first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must ...

with the

Cuban X-Giants The Cuban X-Giants were a professional Negro league baseball, Negro league baseball team that played from 1896 to 1906. Originally most of the players were former Cuban Giants, or ex-Giants. Like the Cuban Giants, the original players were not Cu ...

of Philadelphia in 1906. The following season,

Sol White King Solomon White (June 12, 1868 – August 26, 1955) was an American professional baseball infielder, manager (baseball), manager and executive, and one of the pioneers of the Negro league baseball, Negro leagues. An active sportswriter for m ...

signed him for the X Giants' archrivals, the Philadelphia Giants, and moved him to shortstop, where he would remain through the bulk of his career. Sportswriters Harry Daniels and Jimmy Smith both named Lloyd to their 1909 "All American Team" saying he "is a wonder at fielding and hitting, also a fair base runner.""The Base Ball Spirit In The East." Indianapolis Freeman, Indianapolis, Indiana, Saturday, December 25, 1909, Page 7, Columns 1 and 2
/ref> At various points in his baseball career, Lloyd worked non-baseball jobs due to the precarious financial situations of the black leagues. 1912LincolnGiants

In 1910, Lloyd accepted

Rube Foster Andrew "Rube" Foster (September 17, 1879 – December 9, 1930) was an American baseball player, manager, and executive in the Negro leagues. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981. Foster is considered by sports historians to hav ...

's invitation to join the Chicago Leland Giants, where he anchored a team that Foster described as the greatest of all time. He rejoined White on the newly-organized

Lincoln Giants The New York Lincoln Giants were a Negro league baseball team based in New York City from 1911 through 1930. Founding The Lincoln Giants can trace their origins back to the Nebraska Indians, of Lincoln, Nebraska, from the 1890s. According t ...

in 1911, batting .475 against all competition. Lloyd took over as player-manager for 1912 and 1913, and in the latter year the Lincolns defeated the

Chicago American Giants The Chicago American Giants were a Chicago-based Negro league baseball team. From 1910 until the mid-1930s, the American Giants were the most dominant team in black baseball. Owned and managed from 1911 to 1926 by player-manager Andrew "Rube" F ...

in a playoff series to become the undisputed champions of black baseball. In 1914, Lloyd travelled west again to play for the American Giants. He split the 1915 season between the New York-based

Lincoln Stars The Lincoln Stars are a Tier I junior ice hockey team playing in the United States Hockey League (USHL). The Stars' home ice is the Ice Box on the former Nebraska State Fair grounds and adjacent to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Histo ...

and the American Giants, then spent all of 1916 and 1917 with Foster's team. In 1918, Lloyd served as player-manager of the

Brooklyn Royal Giants The Brooklyn Royal Giants were a professional Negro league baseball team based in Brooklyn, New York, Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. Formed in 1905 by John Wilson Connor (1875–1926), owner of the Brooklyn Royal Cafe, the team initiall ...

, leaving the club early to work for the Army Quartermaster Depot in Chicago. 1919 saw him join the

Bacharach Giants The Bacharach Giants were a Negro league baseball team that played in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Founding The club was founded when two African-American politicians moved the Duval Giants of Jacksonville, Florida, to Atlantic City in 1916 and ...

of Atlantic City, then 1920 found him back with the Royal Giants. Negro Leagues statistics entered into Major League Baseball’s official records visible through this reference.

Later career (1921–32)

In 1921, he was hired to organize a new team in Foster's young Negro National League. Lloyd's Columbus Buckeyes were not a notable success, however, on the field or in the box office, finishing seventh in a field of eight, and folded upon season's end. The following year, Lloyd was back in the east managing the

, who had moved to New York City. When the

Eastern Colored League The Mutual Association of Eastern Colored Clubs, more commonly known as the Eastern Colored League (ECL), was one of the several Negro leagues, which operated during the time organized baseball was segregated. League history Founding The ECL ...

was formed in 1923, Ed Bolden hired Lloyd to manage the

Hilldale Club The Hilldale Athletic Club (informally known as Darby Daisies) were an American professional Negro league baseball team based in Darby, Pennsylvania, west of Philadelphia. Established as a boys team in 1910, the Hilldales were developed by their ...

. Lloyd brought home the first ECL pennant by a wide margin, guiding Hilldale to a 32–17 league record. He did not get along with Bolden, was suspended in early September, and was fired at the end of the season. In 1924, Lloyd returned to the Bacharachs, now based again in Atlantic City. With the brilliant young shortstop Dick Lundy on the roster, the 40-year-old Lloyd moved himself to second base. He hit .444 to win the 1924 ECL batting title, at one point reeling off 11 straight base hits. The Bacharachs, however, were merely average under Lloyd during his two years there, finishing fourth both seasons (with records of 30–29 and 26–27). The

, who had finished in last place in 1925, hired Lloyd to manage them for 1926. They improved to fifth (19–22), then played 1927 and most of 1928 as an independent club. It was during the latter season that Lloyd moved himself to first base while enjoying a fine season at the plate, batting .402 against top black clubs. In 1929, the Lincolns compiled the second-best overall record (40–26) in the

American Negro League The American Negro League (ANL) was one of several Negro league baseball, Negro leagues established during the period in the United States in which organized baseball was segregated. The ANL operated on the East Coast of the United States in 1929. ...

. Lloyd finished up his career managing the

in 1931–32. Lloyd played extensively in Cuba, beginning with a 1907 visit to

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Cuban League The Cuban League ( Spanish: ''Liga cubana'') was one of the earliest and longest lasting professional baseball leagues outside the United States, operating in Cuba from 1878 to 1961. The schedule usually operated during the winter months, so the ...

from 1908/09 to 1930, batting .329 for his career, and playing on three championship teams (

Habana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Almendares in 1924/25 and 1925/26). In Cuba he was called "El Cuchara", which translates to "The Shovel" or "The Tablespoon", a reference to his ability to field batted balls. According to the historian John Holway, Lloyd batted .337 (970 hits in 2881 at bats) in the Negro leagues. According to a study sponsored by the

that covers the organized (post-1920) Negro leagues, Lloyd batted .343 with a .450 slugging percentage.

Legacy

Lloyd was a heavy hitter, usually batting cleanup during his prime, but also knew how to play " inside baseball" and was an expert place-hitter and bunter. He is generally considered the greatest shortstop in Negro league history, and

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional Baseball in the United States, baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nickna ...

reportedly believed Lloyd to be the greatest baseball player ever. Lloyd was called the "Black Wagner", a reference to

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

Hall of Famer

Honus Wagner Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner ( ; February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955) was an American baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1897 to 1917, mostly with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Nicknamed "the Flying Dutc ...

. On Lloyd, Wagner said "It's an honor to be compared to him." Writer

Bill James George William James (born October 5, 1949) is an American baseball writer, historian, and statistician whose work has been widely influential. Since 1977, James has written more than two dozen books about baseball history and statistics. His a ...

ranked Lloyd as the 27th greatest baseball player of all-time in the 2001 book ''

The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract ''The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract'' is a reference book written by Bill James featuring an overview of professional baseball decade by decade, along with rankings of the top 100 players at each position. The original edition was publi ...

''. Lloyd was probably the most sought-after African-American player of his generation. "Wherever the money was, that's where I was," he once said. His career record bears this out, showing him constantly moving from team to team. He was also known for his gentlemanly conduct. Lloyd was posthumously inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1977. He was nominated, along with several athletes and other public figures, for induction into the

New Jersey Hall of Fame The New Jersey Hall of Fame is an organization that honors individuals from the U.S. state of New Jersey who have made contributions to society and the world beyond. The Hall of Fame is a designated 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, overseen by ...

in 2014. However, basketball player

Patrick Ewing Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American basketball coach and former professional player who is a basketball ambassador for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he played most o ...

was the only sportsperson inducted. In April 2025, Atlantic City reopened a renovated community baseball stadium and named it Pop Lloyd Stadium in Lloyd's honor.

Later life

After his professional playing days, Lloyd lived in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

. He was a player-coach for the semiprofessional Atlantic City Johnson Stars until 1942. The team was named after politico Nucky Johnson and was later known as the Farley Stars after powerful state senator Frank S. Farley. (Farley had driven the creation of Atlantic City's Pop Lloyd Field to gain support from the city's large black population.)PBS History Detectives, "Pop Lloyd's Baseball Field," original air date: 14 July 2003 (season 1, episode 1) elevision program Lloyd could not run well by that time, and he shifted to playing first base, but a former teammate said that he was still able to hit line drives. Lloyd was a janitor for the Atlantic City School System, including Atlantic City High School. Though he did not have any children, Lloyd became a popular coach in the local youth baseball league. He died in 1964.

Notes

References

* * *(Riley.
John Henry "Pop" Lloyd
Personal profiles at Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. – identical to Riley (confirmed 2010-04-16) *

External links

* * an
Baseball-Reference Black Baseball stats
an
Seamheads
* an
Seamheads
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lloyd, John Henry 1884 births 1964 deaths National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Baseball shortstops Leland Giants players Chicago American Giants players Philadelphia Giants players Hilldale Club players Bacharach Giants players Habana players San Francisco Park players Club Fé players New York Lincoln Stars players Negro league baseball managers American expatriate baseball players in Cuba Sportspeople from Palatka, Florida Baseball players from Jacksonville, Florida Cuban X-Giants players New York Lincoln Giants players Brooklyn Royal Giants players Columbus Buckeyes (Negro leagues) players New York Black Yankees players