Jack Roosevelt Robinson broke baseball's color barrier in 1947 when he became the first African-American man to play Major League Baseball in over 50 years. His name has been synonymous with civil rights, sometimes overshadowing his many accomplishments on the baseball field. Born in 1919, Robinson's single mother raised him and his four siblings on her own, and they were the only black family in their small Georgia neighborhood.
Early Years
Robinson was not only a baseball player. He played and excelled at three other sports in high school and college: football, basketball and track. He was the first athlete to win letters in all four varsity sports at UCLA, but he left college shortly afterward because he was unable to pay for tuition.
The Negro Leagues
After two years in the United States Army, Robinson moved on to earn a living with the Negro Baseball Leagues. Major League Baseball didn't seem to be an option at the time, as the league had not admitted an African-American player since 1889. He played one season in the Negro Leagues with the Kansas City Monarchs in 1945, but it wasn't long before the vice president of the Brooklyn Dodgers came calling.
Breaking the Color Barrier
During his single season with the Monarchs, Branch Rickey of the Dodgers approached Robinson. Rickey felt strongly that baseball had to be desegregated, and he believed that Robinson was the man who could make it happen. Rickey lured Robinson to the Dodger's all-white farm team, the Montreal Royals, in 1946. In one season there, Robinson led the league with a .349 batting average. Rickey promptly moved him up to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Then, on April 15, 1947, Robinson became the first black player to step on a Major League Baseball field since 1889.
The Dodger Years
Robinson continued to play for the Dodgers through the 1956 baseball season. In the beginning, racial tensions ran high. One of the sport's most memorable moments came when his team captain, Pee Wee Reese, slung his arm over Robinson's shoulders in a show of solidarity before booing fans. In his first season, Robinson hit 12 home runs and led the league with 29 stolen bases. The Dodgers won the National League pennant behind his efforts. He led the league in stolen bases again the next year and was named the National League's Most Valuable Player. Over the course of his career with the Dodgers Robinson stole home plate 19 times, a league record. He led his team to a World Series win over the New York Yankees in 1955. The Dodgers traded him to the New York Giants two years later, and Robinson soon retired after the move. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
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