Jackie Robinson Rough Finished

Evan Mora

5/8/11

3/4

Jackie Robinson

            "I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me... All I ask is that you respect me as a human being." says Jackie Robinson, the first African American baseball star. (http://www.baseball-almanac.com/quotes) Jack Roosevelt “Jackie” Robinson was born on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia and was 28 years old when he broke the color barrier for African American professional baseball players and made his professional debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers as a second baseman. He was married to Rachel Robinson and had three children, David, Sharon, and Jackie Robinson Jr. He died on October 24, 1972 at the young age of 53 in Stamford, Connecticut, but had a huge impact on baseball in the U.S. today. Jackie Robinson’s early life in the 20’s and 30’s gave him a unique perspective in the world of baseball as an African American.

            “Jackie was born in trying circumstances because his father left the family soon after his birth. The situation was exacerbated by the fact that his family was the only black household on the block and it was the age of racial discrimination. In order to get away from all this the Robinson family moved to California and Jackie joined UCLA.” (http://www.buzzle.com/) written by Anish Chandy, an active author and reader of historical citations. Near the end of his junior college enrollment, his closest brother Frank died in a motorcycle accident, which motivated him to move to UCLA and be closer to his family. Once he transferred to UCLA, he became the first athlete in school history to win letters in four varsity sports in a year: baseball, football, baseball, and track. “Belying his future career, baseball was Robinson's "worst sport" at UCLA; he hit .097 in his only season, although in his first game he went 4-for-4 and twice stole home.” (http://spotlight.ucla.edu) said Dave Greenwald, a contributing writer for the California Progress Report. Robinson left college just shy of graduation and took a job with the National Youth Administration (NYA) in California. After the NYA was ceased by the government, he traveled a little bit to play football for semi-professional teams, but was interrupted by the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was drafted to serve in WWII, which ended his potential football career. After serving in the Army for about 2 years with segregation problems, he desired to get an education, and continued to play sports. He was offered a deal with a Negro League to get paid about $400 a month, which was a major jump for him. This experience got him motivated to play in the minor leagues with various teams. He moved up to AAA minors to continue his career. After playing in the minor leagues for only one year, he was called up to the major leagues just six days before opening day. He made his Major League Debut on April 15, 1947 for the Brooklyn Dodgers as the first black professional baseball player. Although he failed to get a base hit, they still managed a 5-3 win, which was the start to Jackie Robinson’s career.

            After his professional debut, Robinson continued to play with the Dodgers, which caused racial tension to arise. Segregation aroused the team but the manager stepped up for Robinson in a time of need. “I do not care if the guy is yellow or black, or if he has stripes like a … zebra. I'm the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What's more, I say he can make us all rich. And if any of you cannot use the money, I will see that you are all traded." says Leo Durocher, the manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers at the time. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Robinson) This created peace amongst the team, but not necessarily on the fields. Opposing teams started deliberate rough play because of the color of his skin. The St. Louis Cardinals were one of the main teams threatening Robinson if he played. After one of his games he had a seven-inch gash in his leg. The league made it noticeable that if any threatening acts were made by players, they would be suspended, but it didn’t stop them. “On April 22, 1947, during a game between the Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies, Phillies players called Robinson a "nigger" from their dugout and yelled that he should "go back to the cotton fields"”. written by Pat Williams, author of How to Be like Jackie Robinson, an inspirational book on life legacies of being black. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Robinson) He did get some encourageable inspiration from about seven other professional players at the time. The most popular of them is a teammate of his, Pee Wee Reese of the Brooklyn Dodgers. In rough times, he put his arm around Robinson in response of racial slurs from the crowd. This pose became a statue put in KeySpan Park on November 1, 2005 made by William Behrends. He finished the season with 12 home-runs, league-leading 29 steals, .427 slugging percentage, and 125 runs scored. Robinson definitely proved the fans wrong by beating them on the field and winning the Rookie of the Year award. He ended up winning the World Series Championship in 1955 with one of the best games of his career. After playing 10 seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers, he retired from baseball, which changed people’s opinions about blacks.

            “”A legend and a symbol in his own time,” and that he “challenged the dark skies of intolerance and frustration.”” says Martin Luther King Jr., a prominent leader in the African American Rights Movement. (www.boston.com/news/globe) Jackie Robinson brought and end to about 60 years of segregation in professional baseball, known as the color-line. After World War II, other forces were also pushing for more rights for blacks because of his service. These significant changes brought a stronger fight for equality into the nation. “Robinson's "efforts were a monumental step in the civil-rights revolution in America ... [His] accomplishments allowed black and white Americans to be more respectful and open to one another and more appreciative of everyone's abilities."”

According to Doris Kearns Goodwin, an award winning biographer and historian. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Robinson) In 1962, he was elected to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as the first black player inducted into the Cooperstown Museum. On June 4, 1972, the Dodgers retired his number, 42, which was the first time ever in four major league sports, that a number was retired. The MLB has also named April 15, Jackie Robinson Day, where every baseball player wears the numbered jersey of 42 in his honor. Robinson's last public appearance was on October 1972, at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, when he threw out the first pitch in the 1972 World Series. Nine days later, rescuers were unable to revive him from what would be the fatal heart attack that struck when he was 53-years old. Today, his legacy has impacted the whole baseball world for African American players, and helped bring world peace for black’s segregation.

            "You can hate a man for many reasons. Color is not one of them." says Pee Wee Reese, a teammate of Robinson’s on the Brooklyn Dodgers. (mlb.mlb.com/news/article) Jackie’s experiences as the first African American baseball player changed the world we used to know that was very much segregated. It all started on January 31, 1919, when he was born and continued for 53 years until he died. His 10 professional baseball seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers broke the color barrier and influenced world peace among blacks and whites. Jackie Robinson’s legacy lives on as he is remembered as “ the man who broke the color-barrier.”