Charlotte Museum of History hosts national baseball exhibit 

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

Roberto Clemente, one of the first Latino athletes to merge baseball excellence with cultural impact as a Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder, is included in a traveling exhibit at Charlotte Museum of History through Oct. 18.

Latinos’ impact on baseball and global culture is the focus of an exhibit in Charlotte.

“¡Pleibol! In the Barrios and the Big Leagues / En los barrios y las grandes ligas,” is at the Charlotte Museum of History through Oct. 18. The bilingual exhibit is part of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in collaboration with the National Museum of American History. 

Access to the exhibit is included with museum admission.

Baseball opened pathways to economic mobility for 20th century working-class people in the Americas and the Caribbean. Workers in agriculture and industrial communities in the United States and abroad used the sport to make ends meet as well as a vehicle to strengthen community and organize for civil rights and justice. 

As a result, the sport produced culture-defining athletes like Roberto Clemente (Puerto Rico), Fernando Valenzuela (Mexico), Rod Carew (Panama) and Sammy Sosa (Dominican Republic).

“It is an honor to bring this nationally recognized exhibition to Charlotte and provide an opportunity for visitors to connect with these inspiring stories and the lasting impact of baseball and Latino culture on our nation’s history,” said Charlotte Museum of History CEO Terri White said in a statement. “We are especially excited to partner with the Charlotte Knights to help bring our region’s own baseball history into the conversation and create meaningful connections between this national story and our local community.”

“¡Pleibol!” showcases the sport from community teams to the Major Leagues and highlighting how baseball brings people together across race, class, and gender through reproductions of historic and personal photographs, graphic and a short bilingual video. 

QR codes provide more information in a virtual gallery as part of a 3D digitization collaboration with Smithsonian Latino Center and Smithsonian Digitization Program Office.

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