This is from a watercolor illustration I created some years ago of baseball legend Satchel Paige for the documentary The First Boys of Spring by Larry Foley, which chronicles early 20th-century spring training in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Paige is often celebrated on Juneteenth because his life reflects what the day represents: freedom delayed, but not denied. Like the formerly enslaved people who were not informed of their freedom until Juneteenth, Paige spent most of his prime excluded from Major League Baseball by segregation despite being one of the greatest pitchers ever to play the game. He dominated Black baseball, proving Black excellence long before MLB integration, and finally reached the majors at age 42. The recognition came far too late, but it came. His story embodies resilience, dignity, and the long distance between justice promised and justice delivered.