Community center named after baseball legend proposed for McKees Rocks
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
A rendering of the proposed indoor baseball field for athletes with disabilities. Image: Courtesy of the Josh Gibson Foundation
The hard-hit borough of McKees Rocks lost its Boys and Girls club in 2020, but a new community center could be on its way thanks to a local baseball legend.
The big picture: The Josh Gibson Foundation — started in honor of Hall of Famer and Negro League legend — has proposed a 37,000-square-foot indoor community center in McKees Rocks, potentially doubling the size of the former facility, foundation executive director Sean Gibson tells Axios.
Driving the news: Last week, the foundation received a $2 million grant from Dick's Sporting Goods to go toward the community center plans.
- Sporting apparel brand Under Armour also gave $250,000 to the efforts, Gibson says.
Context: Josh Gibson grew up in Pittsburgh and played for the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Crawfords in the Negro Leagues in the 1930s and '40s. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972, and Negro League stats were integrated into official MLB records in 2024, giving him the all-time records for single-season and career batting averages.
What they're saying: "Our dream is to carry on Josh Gibson's legacy, through this center and the community of McKees Rocks," said Sean Gibson, the legend's great-grandson.
Zoom in: The proposed Josh Gibson Champions Club & Sports Matter Center will tear down the existing vacant building and replace it with a new center roughly double the size, said Gibson.
- It will include an indoor basketball court, a multipurpose turf field, computer labs, a cafeteria, a multipurpose room, rooms to rent and an indoor baseball field with a service designed to be safe for people with disabilities.
- Gibson said it will be open to youth, seniors and others.
- He wants it to provide school help and career readiness programs for the community.
Between the lines: McKees Rocks is one of the poorest municipalities in the region, and its school district has been going through difficult times.
- Gibson believes that the name recognition of Josh Gibson and brands like Dick's can help to raise the profile of the area to raise more money needed to build the center.
What's next: There is no timeline for construction.
- Gibson said anyone interested in donating can do so by visiting the foundation's website.