The people were so welcoming and saw Jack as a player and as a man. [104] He was not necessarily the best player in the Negro leagues,[105] and black talents Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson were upset when Robinson was selected first. [65] While awaiting results of hospital tests on the ankle he had injured in junior college, Robinson boarded an Army bus with a fellow officer's wife; although the Army had commissioned its own unsegregated bus line, the bus driver ordered Robinson to move to the back of the bus. [243][253] In 1968 he broke with the Republican party and supported Hubert Humphrey against Nixon in that year's presidential election. No black man had played in the major leagues since Moses Fleetwood Walker in 1884, but the Boston Red Sox nevertheless held a tryout at Fenway Park for Robinson and other black players on April 16. [66][67][68] Robinson refused. [277][278][279], According to a poll conducted in 1947, Robinson was the second most popular man in the country, behind Bing Crosby. For other people named Jackie Robinson, see, Robinson with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954, The number 42 worn by Robinson on a plaque at Monument Park (left), and Jackie Robinson Rotunda inside Citi Field (right), MVP, Congressional testimony, and film biography (19481950), Pennant races and outside interests (19511953), World Championship and retirement (19541956). "I do not care if half the league strikes. [142][143][144] The Woodward article made national headlines. [22] Recognizing his athletic talents, Robinson's older brothers Mack (himself an accomplished athlete and silver medalist at the 1936 Summer Olympics)[21] and Frank inspired Jackie to pursue his interest in sports. [195] Robinson, then 36 years old,[196] missed 49 games and did not play in Game 7 of the World Series. Jackie Robinson was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame in 1962. On October 24, 1972, Robinson died of a heart attack at his home on 95 Cascade Road in North Stamford, Connecticut; he was 53 years old. [266] On June 17, 1971, he was killed in an automobile accident at age 24. "[107], Rickey's offer allowed Robinson to leave behind the Monarchs and their grueling bus rides, and he went home to Pasadena. That season, the Dodgers' Don Newcombe became the first black major league pitcher to win twenty games in a year. "[93][95] After obtaining a commitment from Robinson to "turn the other cheek" to racial antagonism, Rickey agreed to sign him to a contract for $600 a month, equal to $9,031 today. [86], During the season, Robinson pursued potential major league interests. [123][124] Robinson made his Royals debut at Daytona Beach's City Island Ballpark on March 17, 1946, in an exhibition game against the team's parent club, the Dodgers. [335], A jersey that Robinson brought home with him after his rookie season ended in 1947 was sold at an auction for $2.05million on November 19, 2017. [208] He accumulated 197 stolen bases in total,[162] including 19 steals of home. [163] His salary that year was the highest any Dodger had been paid to that point: $35,000[172] ($394,198 in 2021 dollars[173]). He was the youngest of five children born to Mallie (McGriff) and Jerry Robinson, after siblings Edgar, Frank, Matthew (nicknamed "Mack"), and Willa Mae. [10][11][12] His middle name was in honor of former President Theodore Roosevelt, who died 25 days before Robinson was born. None of the latter were double steals (in which a player stealing home is assisted by a player stealing another base at the same time). [106], Robinson's promotion met a generally positive, although mixed, reception among newspapers and white major league players. [134] On April 15, Robinson made his major league debut at the relatively advanced age of 28 at Ebbets Field before a crowd of 26,623 spectators, more than 14,000 of whom were black. [66][70], After Robinson's commander in the 761st, Paul L. Bates, refused to authorize the legal action,[71] Robinson was summarily transferred to the 758th Battalionwhere the commander quickly consented to charge Robinson with multiple offenses, including, among other charges, public drunkenness, even though Robinson did not drink. 1. [19][20][21], In 1935, Robinson graduated from Washington Junior High School and enrolled at John Muir High School (Muir Tech). "[153] Regarding Robinson's qualities on the field, Leo Durocher said, "Ya want a guy that comes to play. Robinson thus became the first black player to openly play for a minor league team against a major league team since the de facto baseball color line had been implemented in the 1880s. [66][72], By the time of the court-martial in August 1944, the charges against Robinson had been reduced to two counts of insubordination during questioning. [24][32], That year, Robinson was one of 10 students named to the school's Order of the Mast and Dagger (Omicron Mu Delta), awarded to students performing "outstanding service to the school and whose scholastic and citizenship record is worthy of recognition. [187] He finished the year with 104 runs, a .308 batting average, and 24 stolen bases. [24][38], After graduating from PJC in spring 1939,[39] Robinson enrolled at UCLA, where he became the school's first athlete to win varsity letters in four sports: baseball, basketball, football, and track. [48] In 2002, Molefi Kete Asante included Robinson on his list of 100 Greatest African Americans. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919, into a family of sharecroppers in Cairo, Georgia. [35][64], An event on July 6, 1944, derailed Robinson's military career. [41] Shortly afterward, Robinson and Isum were formally engaged. He was the youngest of five children born to Mallie (McGriff) and Jerry Robinson, after siblings Edgar, Frank, Matthew (nicknamed "Mack"), and Willa Mae. Jackie was the youngest of five children, four boys and a girl, born to impoverished sharecroppers Jerry and Mallie Robinson. [135] Robinson became the first player since 1884 to openly break the major league baseball color line. He gratefully accepted a plaque honoring the twenty-fifth anniversary of his MLB debut, but also commented, "I'm going to be tremendously more pleased and more proud when I look at that third base coaching line one day and see a black face managing in baseball. [93] For the performance Robinson earned the Most Valuable Player Award for the National League. He was also a member of the tennis team. [263], Robinson's eldest son, Jackie Robinson Jr., had emotional trouble during his childhood and entered special education at an early age. [212] He led the league in fielding among second basemen in 1950 and 1951. "[139], Robinson was also derided by opposing teams. [303][304] On June 25, 2008, MLB installed a new plaque for Robinson at the Baseball Hall of Fame commemorating his off-the-field impact on the game as well as his playing statistics. The local Boys and Girls . Mack Robinson died at age 88 on March 12, 2000. "[151], However, Robinson received significant encouragement from several major league players. Rachel, Sharon and David Robinson are living as of 2015. [23][24], At Muir Tech, Robinson played numerous sports at the varsity level and lettered in four of them: football, basketball, track, and baseball. Jackie Jr. (born in 1946) fought in the army, but got into drugs when he returned. [26] In late January 1937, the Pasadena Star-News newspaper reported that Robinson "for two years has been the outstanding athlete at Muir, starring in football, basketball, track, baseball and tennis. [251] He became one of six national directors for Nelson Rockefeller's unsuccessful campaign to be nominated as the Republican candidate for the election. [264] He enlisted in the Army in search of a disciplined environment, served in the Vietnam War, and was wounded in action on November 19, 1965. [243] He also served as the bank's first chairman of the board. [314], Robinson has also been recognized outside of baseball. He was the youngest of five children, after siblings Edgar, Frank, Matthew (nicknamed "Mack"), and Willa Mae. [92] Rickey was especially interested in making sure his eventual signee could withstand the inevitable racial abuse that would be directed at him. [131] In the fall of 1946, following the baseball season, Robinson returned home to California and briefly played professional basketball for the short-lived Los Angeles Red Devils. His mother, Mallie Robinson, single-handedly raised Jackie and her four other children. [188] Sportswriter Dick Young, whom Robinson had described as a "bigot", said, "If there was one flaw in Jackie, it was the common one. Washington, Strode, and Robinson made up three of the team's four backfield players. Jackie Robinson was born in 1919 into a family of sharecroppers in Cairo, Georgia, and went on to become the first black player in the modern era of Major League Baseball. [47] 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. on May 7, 1938. [293] This affected players such as the Mets' Butch Huskey and Boston's Mo Vaughn. [286], The City of Pasadena has recognized Robinson with a baseball diamond and stadium named Jackie Robinson Field in Brookside Park next to the Rose Bowl,[287] and with the Jackie Robinson Center (a community outreach center providing health services). [40][41], He was one of four black players on the Bruins' 1939 football team; the others were Woody Strode, Kenny Washington, and Ray Bartlett. He died of heart attack at the age of 53, and his funeral was attended by thousands of people. Robinson led the league in sacrifice hits, with 28, and in stolen bases, with 29. [331] A statue of Robinson at Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City, New Jersey, was dedicated in 1998. "[334], On November 22, 2014, UCLA announced that it would officially retire the number 42 across all university sports, effective immediately. [269], Robinson did not outlive his son by very long. In Sanford, Florida, the police chief threatened to cancel games if Robinson and Wright did not cease training activities there; as a result, Robinson was sent back to Daytona Beach. [162] He did, however, record a career-high on-base percentage of .436. [270][272] Tens of thousands of people lined the subsequent procession route to Robinson's interment site at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, where he was buried next to his son Jackie and mother-in-law Zellee Isum. He came from a family of sharecroppers who lived in Cairo, Georgia. [66][69] When Robinson later confronted the investigating duty officer about racist questioning by the officer and his assistant, the officer recommended Robinson be court-martialed. [74] While there, Robinson met a former player for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League, who encouraged Robinson to write the Monarchs and ask for a tryout. [148] On April 22, 1947, during a game between the Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies, Phillies players and manager Ben Chapman called Robinson a "nigger" from their dugout and yelled that he should "go back to the cotton fields". [55] Robinson then accepted an offer from his old friend and pastor Rev. "[230] Robinson retired from baseball at age 37 on January 5, 1957. [26] While playing football at PJC, Robinson suffered a fractured ankle, complications from which would eventually delay his deployment status while in the military. Family sources cite financial concerns. [299] The tribute was continued in 2008, when, during games on April 15, all members of the Mets, Cardinals, Washington Nationals, and Tampa Bay Rays wore Robinson's number 42. [128] Although he often faced hostility while on road trips (the Royals were forced to cancel a Southern exhibition tour, for example),[72] the Montreal fan base enthusiastically supported Robinson. [37] Toward the end of his PJC tenure, Frank Robinson (to whom Robinson felt closest among his three brothers) was killed in a motorcycle accident. Jesse Simms, the grandson of Jackie Robinson, is carrying on his family's legacy through Minor League Baseball. 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