Ruling Over Monarchs, Giants & Stars: Umpiring in the Negro Leagues & Beyond

As a novice to the subject, I found this a most enjoyable read. It is full of lived history, love of sport and great humor. I highly recommend this book.

THIS BOOK IS WRITTEN BY BOB MOTLEY, WHO WAS AN UMPIRE IN THE NEGRO LEAGUES. HE TELLS OF HIS EXPERIENCES AND LIFE AS A BASEBALL UMPIRE. THIS IS A GREAT READ BY MR MOTLEY AS HE TELLS US OF SOME IMMORTAL GREATS AS SATHEL PAIGE, JACKIE ROBINSON, ROY CAMPANELLA AND MANY MORE. PLUS MANY OTHER STORIES ON THE JIM CROW LAWS AND HIS EXPERIENCE IN UMPIRE SCHOOL AND THE MANY BROKEN PROMISES AND DISAPPOINTMENTS HE HAD BECAUSE OF HIM BEING A NEGRO IN WHITE MAN'S WORLD. I HIGHLY ADVISE THIS FOR ALL BASEBALL FANS.

It's great to focus on some great moments in history. Bob Motley has lived an incredible life. Well worth reading and admiring!

A must have book on baseball history, and what the Negro Leagues went through. It's an amazing life that unfolds as you turn the pages. Hard to put down as each chapter will leave you wanting more.

With a triple-play of anecdotes, humor and history, former Negro Leagues Baseball umpire Bob Motley and co-author/son Byron Motley present a unique perspective of the game from behind the plate and calling balls & strikes. Motley, the last living umpire from NLB, worked games for more than ten years, starting in the mid-1940s. He had a flamboyant style which is captured in the photographs. There are sections on established stars like the legendary Satchel Paige, young players who ultimately reached iconic status in Major League Baseball like Ernie Banks, Willie Mays and Henry Aaron, and trail-blazing females Connie Morgan, Toni Stone and Peanut Johnson. "Nothing compares to the sound of an oncoming Satchel (Paige) fastball," recalls Bob Motley. There are diamond gems like NLB players were the first to wear batting helmets. Willie Wells wore an old coal miner's hat to the plate because he was tired of getting hit in the head with errant - or aimed - pitches. As enjoyable as Ron Luciano's The Umpire Strikes Back, the Motleys show that one of the game's most famous arbiters also oversaw a wealth of great memories that makes for a great read.