February 7, 2026
Greason grew up in Atlanta and served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II.
Bill Greason is now recognized as the last living player from the Negro Leagues era after the passing of Ron “Schoolboy” Teasley.
Teasley passed away Feb. 3, making Gleason, 101, the last surviving person who played in what is recognized as the Negro Leagues era. The Negro League lasted from 1920 until 1948 before the Negro National League dissolved. Greason grew up in Atlanta. and served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. He participated in the historic Battle of Iwo Jima. After the war, he spent more than a decade as a professional baseball player despite having no formal training, starting his career in the Negro Leagues and later playing in organized baseball, MLB reported.
During his Negro League career, Greason pitched for teams including the Atlanta Black Crackers, Nashville Cubs, and Asheville Blues from 1946 to 1948, and then for the Birmingham Black Barons. Though Greason lived during a time when hostility towards Black people was the norm, he was not deterred. A hardened soldier and proud Black man, Greason refused to let hatred steer him from his path and passion. In an interview with Fox Sports, he discussed how he drowned out the noise and walked in faith.
“We didn’t allow segregation to stop us from playing, from using our talents and gifts for what we were there for. It was a tremendous blessing to have a gift from God to be recognized as such.”
Once the Negro league was dismantled, Greason became the first Black pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1954. However, he only took the field for the MLB team 3-times. After his playing career, he spent decades as a pastor and civil rights advocate in Birmingham, Alabama.
Seventy-six years after his Negro League debut, Greason was honored at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, where he threw out a ceremonial first pitch at an MLB game between the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals.
Reflecting on the moment with Fox Sports, he said, “I have many memories of this place, because we were the only team that played here other than the white team. It was a pleasure to be a part of such an experience that we had here.”
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