Top baseball pitcher Bingo Long (Billy Dee Williams) is fed up with how his Negro League team owner treats him, so he forms his own lineup, recruiting big-hitting Leon Carter (James Earl Jones) and Charlie Snow (Richard Pryor), who dreams of playing in the majors. Boycotted by black teams, Long's outfit play minor league white teams, earning more attention as entertainers than as players. However, their success wins them a chance to play again in the Negro League, this time as equals.