Tulsa honors T-Town Clowns with caps, jerseys

Every year since 2010, the Tulsa Drillers have paid tribute to the T-Town Clowns -- a semi-professional Black baseball team from North Tulsa that played from 1946-65. This year, the club is taking it to a new level.

For the first time, the Dodgers’ Double-A affiliate will don on-field T-Town Clowns caps in addition to a newly designed jersey, making it a full theme night collection.

“The response has been tremendous,” Tulsa assistant GM Justin Gorski said. “We know where our history is, we know where we play, and we do everything that we can to try and honor and celebrate that each and every day.”

When the Drillers first revealed they would be donning the jerseys in-game in 2020 -- the team ultimately didn't wear the uniforms until 2021 due to the canceled season -- several Tulsa residents mentioned they had family members who once played for the team. Those types of comments haven’t stopped throughout the years.

“I was looking at our Facebook post from a couple days ago, and there were all these shares from all these people saying, ‘My grandfather played,’ or ‘My great-grandfather played,’ and other family members,” Gorski said. “It’s just so cool to see all that. People are just so excited about it.”

Dallas Black Giants hosting the T-Town (Tulsa) Clowns https://t.co/swIYatx4nP

— Benjamin Hill (@bensbiz) September 8, 2022

That history was especially important to honor, given where the Drillers currently play baseball.

Tulsa's ONEOK Field is located in the city’s Greenwood District, a historic neighborhood that rose to prominence in the early 20th century as America's "Black Wall Street" and was decimated by a white mob in what is now referred to as the Tulsa Race Massacre. Over 800 were injured and as many as 300 died, and the search for victims' remains continues to this day.

As people continue to become more educated about the race riots, the Drillers make sure the players know the history behind the jerseys they’re wearing -- and that has made a lasting impact.

“It’s very important for them to realize where they play,” Gorski said. “It’s kinda cool, players from throughout the years have come back and told us that this is their favorite weekend.”

In fact, in 2016, the Drillers brought Negro League Hall of Famer and former Clowns player Porter Reed out to throw the first pitch, and they honored former Clowns shortstop Lee Edward Ezell and his family in 2022.

The Drillers’ commitment to honoring the local Negro Leagues team has become something the community looks forward to every year.

“When we started, it was, ‘Hey, how can we start to celebrate this?’ We talked to one person, and it was like, ‘Oh, go talk to this other person.’ It kept snowballing,” Gorski said. “Now there are baseball historians who tell the story of the T-Town Clowns. It’s cool to see that progress throughout the years.”