With him are, from left, Monarchs manager Buck ONeil, Sylvester Vaughn, Frank Duncan and Philly Stars manager Oscar Charleston.

Racial integration didnt come to the major leagues until 1947, when Jackie Robinson broke the color line at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

In the interim, black umpires called balls and strikes in the Negro League.

He also served with the first-ever black Marine regiment in World War II, the Montfort Point Marines.

He tells Tess Vigeland, guest host of NPRs weekends on All Things Considered, that his umpiring career began as he recovered from a gunshot wound at a military hospital on Okinawa.

I could look out the window and see there was a ball field, so I decided Id hop down with my crutches.

So they gave him a mask and chest protector, and he began calling balls and strikes for the Marines.

Motley was eventually discharged from the U.S.

When he moved to Kansas City, he went to the nearby stadium and asked if they needed an umpire.

Eventually, thanks to his determination, he was given a chance to umpire at third base.

The president of the league happened to be there and told Motley he did a good job, and offered him a job to start traveling with the league.

There was one condition: he had to ride on the bus with the players, the same players hed be making calls against.

Ten years into his umpire career, Motley finally went to umpire school in Florida.

He was the first black person to do so after, a law in the state banning whites from teaching blacks was lifted.

The only time he got called to the major leagues is when their umpires were on a strike, and Motley was asked to cross the picket line.

I said, Ill let you know right now, Im not crossing the picket line then.

After that, he said he wasnt going to try for the major leagues anymore.

But he kept umpiring and eventually, helped found a museum dedicated to preserving the history of the Negro League.

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