Community Baseball Academy of Kansas City

DON B. MOTLEY- CHAIRMAN
Don B. Motley became the executive director of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) in 1991, after retiring from the U.S. Postal Service. Having spent most of his life in baseball as a player, scout, coach and manager, Motley’s appointment to the NLBM was only “natural” as stated in a Kansas City Star. Motley has coached and managed baseball since 1952. Also, he was a scout for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Kansas City Royals and instrumental in signing Frank White to the Kansas City Royals and Ray Sadecki to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Motley served in a variety of middle- and upper-management positions with the U.S. Postal Service’s Human Resource Department. As an Equal Employment Opportunity counselor/investigator, Motley worked to preserve the rights of all employees. Before the postal districts were consolidated, Motley was responsible for overseeing the Equal Employment Department (Mid-America District) for Kansas and a considerable part of Missouri. In addition, he worked on a national level within the Chicago and Washington, D.C. regions investigating complaints and as an instructor.

Motley’s involvement in civic and community services has enabled him to achieve many “firsts.” As a result of his influence, the Greater Kansas City chapter of the Ban Johnson Baseball League accepted its firstAfrican-American player in 1951. The Ban Johnson Baseball League was established in 1927 for college and professional level baseball players. The following year, he became the first African-American manager of an American Legion Baseball team in Missouri. He arranged for the first African-American to play baseball in the Jackson County and Greater Kansas City 3 & 2 Baseball Leagues. In 1968, he became thefirst African-American coach in the Ban Johnson Baseball League and was promoted as the first African-American manager in 1970. In 1978, breaking a 50-year barrier, he selected the Ban Johnson League’s first female coach and was the firstrecipient of the Urban League’s Top Notch Image Award in the area of sports for making a difference in the quality of life in the community in 1987. In addition, he was thefirst African-American to be selected to the Ban Johnson Baseball League Hall of Fame, which includes members such as Ewing and Muriel Kauffman, former owners of the Kansas City Royals.
Motley has worked continuously in the areas of education and discrimination with many organizations. He has been instrumental in securing college scholarships for young men who did not have the financial meanings to attend. In addition, many outstanding awards and honors have been bestowed upon him, including the “Nite of Sports” award for Leadership to Mankind and the Keys to the City of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for conducting baseball clinics.

In 1981, for his outstanding service in community, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the Greater Kansas City Jaycees presented him with the Lester Milgram Memorial Award. In 1995 and 2009, Motley was selected by the Kansas City Globe as one of the 100 most influential men of Kansas City. In June 1999, he was inducted into the Greater Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation’s Kansas City Area Amateur Sports Hall of Champions. In 2006, he received the Rachel E. Neeley Award from the Multiracial Family. The award is given annually in the area for outstanding achievement promoting racial equality. In 2007, he was the recipient of the Civic Leadership Award given by the Missouri Municipal League.

In 2009, Motley was honored by The Baptist Ministers Union of Kansas City as the 2009 Business Person of the Year.
Also the same year, he received the Special Achievement Scouting Award by The Midwest Professional Baseball Scouts Association f or his passion and dedication to the game of baseball.

As executive director of the NLBM, Motley developed unique opportunities to promote the history of the Negro Baseball Leagues and the museum not only in Kansas City but throughout the United States and the world. Beginning as a small, cramped office in 1991, under Motley’s direction, the NLBM moved into a 10,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility in November 1997. It is now recognized as one of Kansas City’s top cultural attractions.

The NLBM has been featured in many leading newspapers, magazines, and on television stations such as NBC, CBS, ESPN and BET. In addition, it was showcased in the Showtime Original Cable Network production, Finding Buck McHenry, which featured movie star Ossie Davis, as a former Negro Leagues player.

Motley led several major events for the NLBM. In 1995, he was instrumental in the development of the Negro Leagues 75th Anniversary Celebration, which culminated with the reunion of more than 200 Negro Leagues veterans and their guests for a weekend in Kansas City. During his tenure, he collaborated with the Kansas City Royals to pay tribute to the Negro Leagues at Kauffman Stadium. In November 2000, Motley oversaw the execution of an extraordinary historic event, the Legacy 2000 Players’ Reunion and Awards Banquet. More than 130 players and their guests attended this gala, which celebrated John “Buck” O’Neil’s 89th birthday, the 10th Anniversary of the opening of the museum, the 80th Anniversary of the establishment of the Negro National League and the debut of the Legacy Awards. After retiring as executive director in 2008, Motley remains actively involved with the NLBM as a board member.

BRITTAN A. MOTLEY - PRESIDENT
Brittan Motley is an accomplished baseball player from the Kansas City area and co-founder of the CBA-KC. In 1997, Brittan was selected for the High School All-American, All State, All-District Teams and was ranked 35th in the nation by High School Baseball Players of America. That same year, Brittan was ranked 92nd in the nation among high school and collegiate players by USA Today’s Baseball Players of America and was drafted in the 6th round by the San Diego Padres organization. After his first season, Brittan was invited to the Padres Mini Camp and continued his career with the Padres until 2000.

After baseball, Brittan earned a B.S. in Telecommunications Management (Computer Science) from DeVry University. Immediately after college, he was employed by Health Midwest/Hospitals Corporations of America and is currently a Systems Administrator in the Data Center Operations department for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City. In addition, Brittan holds a position with the Kansas City Royals baseball organization as an Area Scout.

Motley is also the founder and Executive Director of the Diamond Masterz Baseball Club (DMBC). DMBC consists of youth tournament showcase teams that serve a total of 45 children from both the inner-city and the suburban areas. In the past, Brittan worked as a Senior Hitting and Defense instructor at the Tom Urquhart School of Baseball and trained a countless amount players during his time there. His passion for the game and love for teaching have fueled him to devote his time in developing strong baseball fundamentals in Kansas City’s youth.

Brittan is married to JaNia Motley. They have two children; Laila and Brittan II.

RONALD STEVENSON – VICE PRESIDENT
Ronald has lived in Kansas City, Missouri, most of his life and has been a member of Sheffield Family Life Church for nine years. He has three sons – Ronnie; Brian, who played professional baseball with the San Angelo Colts in San Angelo, Texas; and Rafeal. Ronnie graduated from Lincoln High School in May 1974 and earned a B.S. in Health and Physical Education at Alcorn State University. Currently, he is the Program Director for the Kansas City Reviving Baseball in the Inner-city (RBI) program. Also, Ronald has worked as an assistant head baseball coach at Lincoln Preparatory Academy and has held various coaching and management positions in various leagues including the Ban Johnson and Missouri 3&2 Leagues. In addition, he is the RBI lead coaching instructor and the RBI winter baseball academy director.

His player experience and honors include:

Draft by the New York Mets in 1981
Ban Johnson League, Kansas City, Missouri – Two Year All-Star
Alcorn State University, Lorman, Mississippi – Catcher-1978 to 1981
Team Captain (2 year)
All Tournament Team
Tournament M.V.P.
National Dean’s List – 1982
National Dean’s List Student – 1982
Baltimore’s Who’s Who – 2006
Boys and Girls Club Volunteer of the Year – 2006
Baseball Recruiter for South Western Athletic Conference
Member of Missouri State High School Umpires Association

MELVIN THOMPSON - TREASURER
Melvin has managed and played semi-professional baseball over 25years. Presently he plays in the Men’s Senior Baseball League. He also has played in the Stan Musial and various American Amateur Baseball Congress Leagues. Melvin is currently managing the 18 years and under Diamond Masterz Knights and the Junior RBI Select teams. He also has managed in the Frank White, Inter-City Amateur Athletic Association (ICAAA), Kansas City, Missouri 3&2 and various American Amateur Baseball Congress Leagues. In 2006, his team won the USSSA Missouri State Class A Championship. Also, his RBI teams have won several championship tournaments in Missouri and Kansas. Melvin employed at the Kansas City Water Department.

ALAN C. MOORE, SR - SECRETARY
Alan attended Kansas University (KU) from 1985-87. After leaving KU, he started his own business, A. C. Moore Construction Company. Alan serves as the president of the Inner-City Neighborhood Association and currently is the vice-president of the youth committee for the Ivanhoe Neighborhood Association. In 2003, he received the RBI Coach of the Year Award and was selected to coach the Kansas City National RBI. All-Star Team. He has also coached the Lincoln College Preparatory Academy Baseball Team; serve as an instructor at the Tom Urquhart School of Baseball and manage the Tri-County Jays Baseball Team. In addition, Alan is a life long member of Metropolitan Missionary Baptist and is in charge of the Youth Ministry Department and mange their RBI baseball team.

ERNIE BANKS
Ernie signed with the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues in 1950 and broke into the Major League in 1953 with the Chicago Cubs as their first black player. Banks played his entire 18 year career with the Chicago Cubs. His nickname is Mr. Cub. In 1977, Ernie was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. He was a 11-time All-Star and won the National League Most Valuable (MVP) twice in 1958 and 1959, and was the first shortstop in the history of the National League to win the MVP award back to back in two seasons. Also, in 1960 he won the Gold Glove Award. Ernie had a .274 career batting average, 512 home runs and 1,636 RBI (runs batted in). In 1982, his uniform number 14 became the first to be retired by the Cubs. On March 31, 2008, a statue of Ernie was unveiled outside of Wrigley Field.

FRANK WHITE, JR.
White, a Kansas City-native, graduated from Lincoln High and was the first graduate of the experimental Kansas City Royals Academy to be invited to “big league” Spring Training with the Royals in 1973. He went on to become one of the most decorated second basemen in baseball history during his 18-year career with the Royals. He won eight Gold Gloves and was a five-time All-Star and two-time Royals Player of the Year. The Royals played in seven postseasons during his career, including two World Series. Helping lead Kansas City to its first-ever World Series appearance, White was named ALCS MVP in 1980. The Royals retired his number 20 in 1995, the same year he was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame. A statue was erected in his honor in 2004. White began his coaching career in the Red Sox organization as manager of the Gulf Coast Rookie team in 1992 and then spent three seasons (1994-96) as the Red Sox first base coach before rejoining the Kansas City Royals as the club’s Community Outreach representative. In 1997, he became the first base coach and held the position through the 2001 season. He spent 2002-03 in the Royals front office as special assistant to the general manager and managed Peoria in the Arizona Fall League in 2003. White spent three seasons as manager of the Wichita (AA) Wranglers from 2004-2006.

GARY BURNS
Gary is the Head Baseball Coach of Rockhurst University. Gary graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1981, and was their ace pitcher. He was the assistant coach at Indiana State, Vanderbilt and Clemson Universities. Under his direction, Rockhurst University has become one of the top baseball collegiate programs in the country. 91 percent of his players graduate from Rockhurst. Gary played baseball in the Kansas City Ban Johnson League for Coach Motley.

MAJOR ANTHONY ELL
Major Ell is a native Kansas City resident and a graduate of Southeast High School. In addition to completing his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Missouri Southern State College, Major Ell has been employed with the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department since December of 1984. He has been in a variety of assignments throughout his career to include the Street Narcotics Unit, several stints in the Tactical Response Unit, Employment Unit, Special Operations Division, and the Property Crimes Division. He attained the rank of major in October of 1998 and is currently the Commander of the East Patrol Division.
Major Ell was Commander of the Violent Crimes Division from December 14, 2004 to January 19, 2009.

He is presently involved with numerous groups and individuals within the community, working toward a common goal of stemming the violence within our city.

JOHN MAYBERRY
Former Major League player who played for the Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees. He was a two times All-Star and had a .274 career batting average, 255 home runs and 879 runs batted in (RBI). In 1982After retiring he spent five years as a coach for the in the Toronto Blue Jays farm system and two years as coach with the Kansas City Royals. He was inducted into the Kansas City Royals Hall of Fame in 1996. Mayberry’s son John Jr., is currently an outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies.

DON NEWCOMBE
Newcombe was a pitcher in the Negro Leagues for the Newark Eagles before joining the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National League. He was a durable and reliable major league pitcher with a fiercely competitive spirit. He played for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds and the Cleveland Indians. In his first three years of his career, he won 17, 19 and 20 games for the Dodgers and led the team with 164 strike outs in 1951. He is the only baseball player to have won the Rookie of the year, Most Valuable Player and Cy Young awards in his career. In 1949, he became the first African-American pitcher to start a World Series game. In 1956, he was the first pitcher to win the National League MVP and the Cy Young award in the same season. He was the first-ever recipient of the Cy Yong Award... Also, he was a 4- time All-Star and had a career of 149 wins, 90 losses and 1,129 strike outs. Newcombe and Larry Doby are the only players in baseball history to play in the Negro Leagues, Major Leagues, and the Japanese Leagues. He is currently on the board of the owner of Los Angeles Dodgers.

AMOS OTIS
Amos played 17 years in the major leagues. He played with the New York Mets, Kansas City Royals and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was a 5-time All-Star and 3- time Gold Glove Award Winner. In the 1980 World Series, Otis batted .478 with 3 home runs and 7 runs batted in. Otis had a .277 career batting average, 193 home runs and 1,007 RBI (runs batted in). In 1971, he led the American League with 52 stolen bases.

DAVID SEGUI
Dave is a Kansas City native and the son of Diego Segui, a former major league pitcher He graduated from Bishop Ward High School (Kansas City, Kansas) and attended Louisiana Tech University. Dave was a switch hitter first baseman and played 15 years in the Major League with the Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Montreal Expos, Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians. He had a .291 career batting average, 139 home runs and 684 runs batted in. Dave is a product of the Kansas City Ban Johnson League.

KEVIN SHAW
Kevin received a baseball scholarship to William Jewell College and graduated with a degree in Computer Science. He started playing in the Ban Johnson League (BJ), a college level league at the young age of 16. Kevin was an outstanding catcher and was given a baseball scholarship to William Jewell College by Coach Fred Flook. In his freshman season, he hit the game-winning home run that won the districts for William Jewell, who went on to finish that season 5th in the NAIA. In his junior year, he led all NAIA catchers with a .493 batting average. He was voted on the BJ All-Star team for 4 years and played in Kauffman stadium. After graduating from college, he returned to coach the Milgram Mustangs of the BJ Baseball League. He played on two BJ championship teams for Milgram and has coached two BJ championship teams. On December 29, 2009, Kevin was honored for his 20 years of dedicated services to the Ban Johnson League.

RICK SUTCLIFFE
Rick is a Kansas City native and was a pitcher in the Major League for 16 years. He played with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles and the St. Louis Cardinals. In 1979, Rick won the National League Rookie of the Year Award. In 1984, he won the Cy Young Award and was a 3- time All-Star. In 1992, he was voted America League Comeback Player of the Year. He had 171 wins, 139 losses, and 1,679 strikeouts. Rick also received the Roberto Clemente and the Lou Gehrig Memorial Awards. He is current an ESPN sportscaster. Rick played in the Kansas City Ban Johnson League.

REGINALD WALKER
Reginald (Pug) was a gifted Kansas City Central High School athlete, playing baseball, football and basketball. He started playing Ban Johnson League Baseball, a college level league at age of 15. Upon graduating from high school, he received a baseball scholarship to Tuskegee University and made the Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) all-conference team. After graduating, he was signed as a infielder by the Cleveland Indians. After leaving the Cleveland Indians, he returned to Kansas City and help coach the Milgram Ban Johnson Baseball team for 10 years. He also coached high school basketball and is current the Athletic Director at Southeast High School.

BISHOP KEITH WESLEY, SR.
Bishop Keith Wesley is the senior pastor and founder of New Life in Christ Ministries. He has been in the gospel ministry for 29 years. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Northwest Missouri State University in radio and television broadcast. He and his wife, Pastor Lisa has been married 34 years and they have two sons and eight grandchildren, Bishop Wesley and Pastor Lisa, host a radio ministry in the Kansas City area called “Arrows Board of Deliverance” on KGGN 890 AM.

WILLIE WILSON
Willie is a former Major League Baseball player for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics and Chicago Cubs. Willie was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the first round in 1974. He was an outfielder known for his speed and was an outstanding lead-off hitter. He led the America League in stolen bases in 1979 and was a 2-time All Star. In 1980, Willie was named to the Sporting News American Silver Slugger Team and won the American League batting title in 1982. In 1980, he was a Gold Glove Winner and was a 2-time Silver Slugger Award winner in 1980 and 1982. Willie had a .285 career batting average, 2,207 hits and 668 stolen bases. In 2000 he was elected to the Royals hall of fame. He coached in the Toronto Blue Jays system for two years. Currently, Willie has teamed up with major sports organizations to provide quality dental care for unprivileged kids.

Thomas Lieser
Thomas Lieser; a resident of Leawood, KS is an accomplished Sales and Marketing professional. From 1965 to 1984, Lieser was employed with the Deluxe Corporation initially as a Sales Representative; successfully working his way to the Director of Marketing & Market Research. From 1984- 2006; Lieser was employed with Heildelberg as a Sales Manager achieving annual sales of $6 to $9 million. He currently serves as a Sales Manager within the J & J Printing & Mailing Company.

Before entering a successful marketing career, Lieser served as a 2nd Class Petty Officer aboard the U.S.S. Yosmite in United States Navy. He studied Business and Marketing at the University of Minnesota.