Who is Jackie Robinson - Bio of the Man Who Changed Sports

Jackie attended high school at John Muir Technical High School. He was a four-sport athlete and excelled in every one. He was the running back on the football team, the point guard on the basketball team, the shortstop on the baseball team and he ran track on the track team. After graduation Jackie enrolled at Pasadena Junior College where he kept up his athletic excellence. On May 8, 1938 Jackie set a junior college broad jump record at a track meet in the morning, then he led his baseball team to victory at the Southern California Junior College Championship game. This course created a lot of attention for Jackie. The University of California at Los Angeles offered him an athletic scholarship, which he accepted. At UCLA he rewrote record books the next two years, including becoming the first four-letter man in the school's history. In basketball he led his conference twice in scoring. In football he was an All-American running back, averaging nearly 12 yards a carry and in track he won the national long jump championship. Baseball was his weakest sport. He was a great fielder and base runner, but he batted under .200.

Branch Rickey, started Jackie Robinson's career. Rickey was looking for someone who could help his team win and face tremendous pressures of being the first of his race to play organized baseball. For his plan to succeed, everything had to be perfect. He came up with six essential points to be considered. "Number one; the man he finally chose has to be right off the field. Number two; he had to be right on the field. If he turned out to be a lemon, our efforts would fail for that reason alone. Number Three; the reaction of his own race had to be right. Number four; the reaction of the press and the public had to be right. Number five; we had to have a place to put him. Number six, the reaction of his fellow players had to be right." Scout Clyde Sukeforth was sent to scout Robinson. He met all requirements but he was not the best black player of his time. They met on August 28, 1945. Branch gave Jackie examples of insults he might hear and Jackie asked, "Mr. Rickey do you want a ball player who's afraid to fight back?" Branch replied, "I want a player with the guts not to fight back." Jackie understood and he signed a contract for $600 a month with a $3,500 signing bonus. Jackie also couldn't tell anyone of the deal with the exception of Rachel and his mother. Rachel and Jackie got married February 10, 1946 in a ceremony performed by his friend, the Reverend Karl Downs.

Jackie did not have a good spring training. When the Montreal Royals went north so did Jackie. On opening day in the International League, he went 4 for 5 and then hit safely in 10 of the team's first 12 games. Jackie led the team to the top of the standings. He was also a target for opposing pitchers. He got hit a lot that season but his team was 19 ½ games into first at the end of the season. They won the championship that year and Jackie had earned the respect from his teammates and manager. He was ready for a shot in the majors. Before the 1947 season, players on the Dodgers were afraid Rickey would promote Jackie to the majors, so they signed an anti-Robinson petition. Dodger's manager, Leo Durocher was furious about the petition and Branch Rickey made it clear where he stood on the matter. The "offended" players were given a chance to quit the team if they couldn't accept a black player on the team. No one quit and eventually everyone accepted Jackie onto the team. Jackie played first base his first year because the Dodgers already had a great second baseman in Eddie Stanley. Jackie made his debut on April 15, 1947 against the Boston Braves. He started at first base and wore number 42. He went 0 for 3 but the Dodgers won the game 5 to 3. Jackie got his first big league hit and home run during the second game against the New York Giants at Polo Grounds. Players cursed at him and cleated him during the season, but Jackie took it like a man. During one game, teammate, Pee Wee Reese put his arm around Jackie and it signified friendship and support. Jackie and his teammates got along well. Other teams threatened to strike so they wouldn't have to play with a black but no one did because they would all be suspended by the league office for doing so. Jackie won "Rookie of the Year" that year. It was the first award of its kind. Jackie's team went to the World Series but lost to the New York Yankees. Jackie's career went on and he went to six World Series but only won one. He also was voted to six All Star teams. His best season was in 1944. Jackie retired from baseball in 1957 after the Dodgers had traded him to the New York Giants. Jackie Robinson was elected to the Hall of Fame on January 23, 1962. He died tragically of a heart attack on October 24, 1972.

At UCLA, Jackie met Rachel Isum, a young nursing student. They began dating and soon fell in love. With marriage in sight, Jackie left school in his senior year. He took a job with the National Youth Administration and played semi-pro football with a barnstorming team, The Los Angeles Bulldogs. However, his plans were put on hold when on December 7, 1941 the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The U.S. was drawn to World War II. Jackie was drafted into the army in the spring of 1942. Army units were segregated according to race and there was a large amount of prejudice just like in American society. Jackie was in many racial confrontations but the way he handled them showed great character and a strong control of his emotions. Jackie even forced himself into a school in the army with the help of heavyweight boxer, Joe Louis. The doors were opened to blacks for the first time. Jackie wasn't allowed to play football or baseball in the army because they didn't want to play with a black. The most serious incident was after he was transferred to Camp Hood in Texas. He was returning to base when a bus driver ordered him to ride in the back of the bus. Jackie refused because segregated buses were against federal ruling on army bases. The military police were called in and Robinson found himself facing a court-martial.

"Baseball is like a poker game. Nobody wants to quit when he's losing; nobody wants you to quit when you're ahead."

"How you played in yesterday's game is all that counts."

"I guess you'd call me an independent since I've never identified myself with one party or another in politics. I always decide my vote by taking as careful a look as I can at the actual candidates and issues themselves, no matter what the party label."

"Life is not a spectator sport. If you're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life."

"Pop flies, in a sense, are just a diversion for a second baseman. Grounders are his stock trade."

"I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me... all I ask is that you respect me as a human being."

"It kills me to lose. If I'm a troublemaker, and I don't think that my temper makes me one, then it's because I can't stand losing. That's the way I am about winning, all I ever wanted to do was finish first."

"The right of every American to first-class citizenship is the most important issue of our time."

"I way I figured it, I was even with baseball and baseball with me. The game had done much for me, and I had done much for it."

"There's not an American in this country free until every one of us is free."

"But if Mr. Rickey hadn't signed me, I wouldn't have played another year in the black league. It was too difficult. The travel was brutal. Financially, there was no reward. It took everything you make to live off."

"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives."

"But as I write these words now I cannot stand and sing the National Anthem. I have learned that I remain a black in a white world."

"Above anything else, I hate to lose."

"There was never a man in the game who could put mind and muscle together quicker than Jackie Robinson."
...Branch Rickey, ex-General Manager Brooklyn Dodgers

"Jackie, we've got no army. There's virtually nobody on our side. No owner, no umpires, very few newspapermen. And I'm afraid that many fans may be hostile. We'll be in a tough position. We can win only if we can convince the world that I am doing this because you're a great ballplayer, and a fine gentleman."
...Rickey

"He was the greatest competitor I have ever seen."
...Duke Snider, teammate

1: He broke the color barrier in baseball
2: He was tough enough to withstand all criticism thrown his way
3 He was a fantastic athlete and Baseball Player