In July 1947 the St. Louis Browns were the worst team in major league baseball.  In hopes of improving their fortunes, the Browns purchased the contracts of Henry Thompson and Willard Brown from the Negro League Kansas City Monarchs.  The St. Louis Gazette-Democrat  called the move "an eyebrow-lifting experiment."  Thompson and Brown became the first black teammates in the major leagues.  The move provoked a mixed response in a city many considered part of the South. Several observers considered the inclusion of Brown and Thompson on the Browns roster a desperate attempt to improve attendance without any real commitment to integrating the major leagues.  A headline from The Sporting News  read" Gates Rusting, Browns Rush in 2 Negro Players."  An afternoon home game a few days before Thompson and Brown arrived drew just 478 people. Thompson, a 21-year-old infielder from Los Angeles, California, was ranked as a true major leage prospect. Before coming to the Browns, he was hitting .347 for the Monarchs.

Willard Brown had already spent a legendary career as one of the best players in the Negro Leagues.  A powerful and fast slugger with a 40-ounce bat, Brown had grown up in Shreveport, Louisiana and had once been the Monarchs' spring training bat boy.  He played his first games for the Monarchs in 1935.  Although he had hit .353 for the Monarchs in 1946, some thought his best days as a player had passed.

Brown and Thompson, unlike Robinson and Doby,  faced a mostly hostile reception by their fellow players and did not receive strong support from the white management.  Many of the Browns players refused to speak to them.  Thompson and Brown were greeted with silence when  introduced to the team.  The Browns refused to warm up with their new teammates on the field.

Henry Thompson made his first appearance in the majors on July 17. Willard Brown started in the outfield two days later on July 19.  Neither of the two hit well in their initial outings; after a few weeks both had batting averages less than .200.

Still, Thompson and Brown had their moments of inspired play.  Thompson continued to improve, raising his average to .256 and earning a place as the starting second baseman.  Though Brown could not live up to his legendary batting skill, he did manage to achieve one measurable place in the history books.  On August 13 he blasted a drive off the 426-foot marker at Sportsman's Park and raced around the bases for an inside the park home run.  It was the first home run ever hit by an African American in the American League.

Nonetheless, the club soon realized that Thompson and Brown were not the answer to sagging attendance at home.  Thompson and Brown were dismissed from the Browns just over one month after being signed to the major leagues.  When Thompson asked why, general manager Bill DeWitt simply replied "There are things I can't discuss."  The first black teammates in the majors became the first black men cut from a major league roster.

Being cut from the Browns, though, didn't end Thompson's and Brown's playing days.  Less than three years after he played with the Browns, Henry Thompson joined the New York Giants making him the first black man to play in both the National and American Leagues.  That year he set a major league record for the greatest number (43) of double plays started by a third baseman.  Thompson spent 9 years in the majors hitting .267 with 129 home runs.  He died at age 44 in 1969.

Willard Brown let his bat speak for him in the winter following his release from the Browns.  In the Puerto Rican Winter League, Brown hit 27 home runs while winning the league's Triple Crown.  He won the Negro American League batting title in 1951 with a .417 average.  In 22 years of professional baseball, Willard Brown hit for a combined average of .305 including .352 in the Negro Leagues.  He is often considered the best home run hitter not included in the Baseball Hall of Fame.