By Cameron Lee
April 12, 2025
Since 2004, Major League Baseball has honored and celebrated Jackie Robinson — the Hall of Fame player who broke the color barrier in 1947. It was a feat that ended 80 years of segregation in baseball, and a recognition long overdue for the six-time All-Star, National League MVP, and World Series champion.
To celebrate the momentous day this year, local nonprofit the Knothole Foundation will host a three-day event (April 14-16) in Charlotte called Westside Story, paying tribute to Robinson with baseball and softball tournaments featuring several Charlotte-area schools, including West Charlotte, Julius L. Chambers High School, West Mecklenburg, and Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology, along with Rocky River, Garinger, and Jackson Day School.
The nonprofit, founded in 2018 by former Major League Baseball players Jeff Schaefer and Morris Madden, is dedicated to providing access and opportunities for underserved youth to participate in America’s pastime through free clinics and educational programs. Operating out of the Richard “Stick” Williams Dream Fields off Tuckaseegee Road in west Charlotte — named after philanthropist and former president of the Duke Energy Foundation, who was instrumental in the foundation’s formation — it also serves as home to the Queens University baseball and softball teams.
The three-day tournament will kick off on Monday, April 14 at 9:00 a.m., with the championship baseball (6:00 p.m.) and softball (6:30 p.m.) games taking place on Jackie Robinson Day (Tuesday, April 15). The Knothole Foundation will also hold a special dedication to Robinson before the games, placing an outfield wall banner with his number, 42, to be permanently displayed.
Former Negro Leagues player and South Carolina native Wali Cathcart will throw out the ceremonial first pitch, while Charlotte historians Michael Webb and Brandon Lunsford will be on hand to showcase historical artifacts and discuss the city’s rich baseball legacy. Filmmaker Ashleigh Breanne Curry, who wrote and directed Toni. Mamie. Connie. — a film about three trailblazing women (Toni Stone, Connie Morgan, and Mamie Johnson) who all played in the Negro Leagues in the 1950s — will also be in attendance.
On Wednesday, April 16, the Knothole Foundation will host a free youth baseball clinic beginning at 10 a.m. for kids ages 5-12, with lunch provided.
The Westside Story tournaments and clinic (April 14-16) will take place at the Richard “Stick” Williams Dream Fields and Education Center, located at 7531 Tuckaseegee Rd. All games and the clinic (sign-up link here) are free and open to the public. You can learn more about the Knothole Foundation, its programs, and mission by visiting their official website.
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