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And thanks to you, DTF,for an awesome post. At one point, I had actually planned on providing more explanation for the role Roy and Pat played in integrating the major leagues, but I confess that I forgot about it in my eagerness to play the 1921 season.
I would be proud to include your addition as part of the Pat O'Farrell canon. There is also a possible historical explanation for why integration happened with Hitt and O'Farrell in 1921, rather than with Wagner, for example, in the decade before.
I intentionally left the effects of World War I on the major leagues out of Pat's story, mainly because I wanted to play complete seasons. (Incidentally, I am planning to do the same with World War II, because I'm curious to see what the careers of some of the era's stars will look like without several missing seasons.)
I'm a history teacher, and I'm aware that the participation of men of color in World War I had nowhere near the effect on society that their efforts in World War II would later have. However, creating Pat's universe allows me to create a world the way I would like it to be. The reality of black and white men, both fighting to "make the world safe for democracy," as Woodrow Wilson charged the nation to do, has broken down a few racial barriers in Pat's universe. In reality, it certainly broke down enough gender barriers for the Nineteenth Amendment to pass, granting women all over the country the right to vote.
Your tie to Colonel O'Farrell's Civil War experiences rings very true, too. There were USCT (US Colored Troops) at several of the battles in which the Colonel's regiment fought, so it's very possible that he might have been saved by an African-American soldier.
Thanks again for your addition to the story. I'm glad you were interested enough in Pat's tale to take the time to write it up!
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