When one thinks of the Negro Leagues, Colorado is not usually a point of interest. To be clear, there was Negro Leagues baseball being played in Colorado, but there was never Negro major leagues baseball in the Centennial State. The minor league scene in Colorado, specifically the Denver area, was reportedly vibrant. From that area, there was one major leaguer who would emerge, Theodore “Bubbles” Anderson.
Bubbles started his major league career in 1922 with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro National League. At the time, Bubbles was only 17 years old. This may seem young, but those who know their baseball history know that it wasn’t terribly uncommon for professional baseball to sign younger American players in the past, though today the overwhelming majority of under-18-year-old signings come from Latin American countries. Either way, Bubbles would get off to a shaky start with the Monarchs before firmly establishing himself as an average gloveman for the Monarchs in his sophomore season. The 1923 season saw the diminutive second baseman put up an OPS+ of 92 at the plate while his Range Factor of 5.22 helped to give him an end-of-year sWAR slightly above replacement level at 0.3.
In 1924 Bubbles initially took his wares to the Eastern Colored League where he again manned second base, only this time for the Washington Potomacs. Only 16 games into the season the Potomacs released Bubbles, despite his career-high OPS+ of 96. The Potomacs were not a good team, registering last or second to last in every offensive and pitching category on the season. Bubbles’ replacement, J.H. Hamilton, provided less production than Bubbles, but alas, Bubbles found himself back in the NNL to finish the 1924 season, only this time with the Birmingham Black Barons. In 19 Games with the Barons, the Denver native had the best season of his career, exemplified by his 109 OPS+. All combined, 1924 saw Bubbles slash .227/.356/.355 with an OPS+ of 103 and an sWAR of 0.5.
Anderson would finish his major league career in 1925 in the NNL with the Indianapolis ABCs. It was a rather forgettable season as Bubbles hardly played, reverted to an OPS+ of 80 and after returning to Denver mid-season due to an illness Bubbles would never see major league action again. He did spend a few more years playing in the minors in Colorado, but little is known about that time other than that he finished out his career where it had all started, with the Denver White Elephants.
Bubbles Anderson didn’t have a stellar or noteworthy career. His lone claim to fame is that he was the only Denver-born player to compete in the Negro major leagues. Still, his nickname was Bubbles, which is hella cool, but more importantly, his ability to make the Negro major leagues out of Denver shows just how enmeshed baseball was in black society throughout America in the early 1900s. Bubbles sadly died at the age of 38 from a gastric ulcer, but for a few years he was a productive major leaguer and no one can ever take that from him.
Lead photo courtesy of Unknown – Nego Southern League Museum
