The Castle Museum Hosts the Smithsonian’s Bilingual Exhibition on the History of Baseball
For nearly a century, baseball has been a crucial social and cultural force in Latino communities across the United States. And, for just as long, Latino/a players have had a huge impact on the game. To celebrate this history, The Castle Museum of Saginaw County History is hosting a temporary exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service’s (SITES) new bilingual (Spanish and English) exhibition, “¡Pleibol! In the Barrios and the Big Leagues / En los Barrios y las Grandes Ligas.” The exhibition will be on view at the Castle Museum from January 23, 2021, through April 18, 2021.
Developed in collaboration with the National Museum of American History, ¡Pleibol! examines how generations of Latinos/as have helped make the game what it is today. From youth and community teams to the Major League, the exhibition reveals how baseball brings people together regardless of race, class, or gender. These inspirational baseball stories reflect larger themes in American history that connect us all, on and off the diamond.
It will feature reproductions of historic and personal photographs, and graphic elements as well as a short bilingual video produced by “La Vida Baseball.” Throughout the 20th century in the United States and Latin America, baseball provided a path for a better future. Workers in agriculture and industry in the United States used baseball to make ends meet and as a socially acceptable space to find community and organize for rights and justice.
“¡Pleibol! In the Barrios and the Big Leagues / En los Barrios y las Grandes Ligas” has been made possible through close collaborations with over 30 partners in 14 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico to help bring visibility to Latino community histories through baseball. Smithsonian curators collaborated with partners and local communities across the country to document and preserve baseball stories at the heart of Latino communities. The traveling exhibition will visit 15 cities through 2025.
