Holway began his research of Negro league baseball by interviewing those who had been involved in the various Negro leagues. These interviews continued for many years before resulting in Voices from the Great Blackball Leagues (1975), a collection of interviews.

Young readers as well as adults are likely to enjoy the down-to-earth stories told by players and others associated with the leagues. Blackball Stars (1988) and Josh and Satch (1991; see separate entry, Vol. 9) are Holway's other major books on the Negro leagues. Blackball Stars is a gathering of numerous rewritten articles Holway had published about Negro leaguers. It has short biographies of many of the players, owners, and executives involved in both the creation of the leagues and those involved in the playing of league games. Blackball Stars is somewhat earthier than Josh and Satch, featuring some off-color stories of ballplayers' romantic adventures. Josh and Satch focuses on...