Grant “Home Run” Johnson, a Findlay native, was considered among the best African American baseball players of the early 20th century. As a 20-year-old shortstop for the semi-pro Findlay Sluggers in 1894, Johnson reportedly acquired his nickname after being credited with 60 home runs. He then embarked on a long professional career with Negro League teams in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Buffalo, where he retired in 1932 at age 58. He was a member, and manager, of several championship teams, playing second base as well as shortstop. Johnson also played for several winters in Cuba, where he was captain of the Havana Reds, a top team in the National League there. He was the first American player to lead the Cuban league in batting and, over five seasons on the island, had a .319 average. In Havana, he also played in exhibition games against U.S. major league teams. His Reds beat the World Series champion Philadelphia As in a series after the 1910 season. The same year, he batted .412 in games against the Detroit Tigers. Johnson, who later worked for the New York Central Railroad, died in Buffalo in 1963 at age 90.