Читать реферат по английскому: "Blacks In Baseball Essay Research Paper Jackie" Страница 1

(Назад) (Cкачать работу)

Blacks In Baseball Essay, Research Paper

Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson was one of the best players that proffesional baseball has ever

seen and greatly helped major league baseball accept African American players that otherwise

would not have palyed.

Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia (Hill 1). Jackie’s

grandfather was a slave and his father a sharecropper (1). His mom and dad got a divorce when

Jackie was just a baby (1). He, his mother and four siblings moved after his parents got a divorce

(1). His mother took all the children and moved to Pasedena, California (1).

Not long after the family moved to Pasedena, Jackie’s mother enrolled him into Pasedena Junior

College (”Robinson, Jackie”). He went on to University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) (1).

Jackie was a standout in school sports at UCLA, he played football, baseball, basketball, and track

(1). He later left college in the middle of his junior year to join the Army in 1941 (1). Four years

after entering the Army Jackie was discharged because of a confrentation with another officer when

he would not give up his seat on a military bus (1). He was discharged as a first Lieutenant (1).

After leaving the Army Jackie wanted to play baseball, his favorite sport. He tried out for many

teams and was drafted by the Kansas City Monarchs Negro League Team (Hill 1). The Negro

League schedule was very tuff. The team was always on the road playing games. Jackie did not like

the life style of being on the Monarchs (”Robinson, Jackie”). He and his teammates would have to

withstand the racial tensions everywhere they went (Ward, Burns 285) . While Jackie was playing in

the Negro Leagues, Branch Rickey, the Los Angeles Dodgers manager was secretly sending out

scouts to look at Jackie and other players in the Negro leagues that stood out above the rest fo their

baseball talent (Hill 1). Rickey made the excuse to the scouts that he wanted to put together an all

black baseball team called the “Brown Dodgers” (2). He was really looking for the right black

player that would break the color barrier in professional baseball (1). Rickey looked at all his

options and he chose Jackie Robinson of the Kansas City Monarchs (1). He chose Jackie because

of his skills in baseball and his courage (1).

Branch and Jackie met on August 28, 1945 to discuss his signing to the LA Dodgers (1). The

meeting was very important because rickey wanted to make sure Robinson would not retaliate

against the racist comments that he will be facing if he was moved up to the LA Dodgers (2).

Rickey sent Robinson to the semi-professional team the Dodgers had, the Montreal Royals

(”Robinson, Jackie”). While Robinson was with the Royals, he was he was an athletic standout with

a lot of talent for playing professional baseball (Hill 1). He enjoyed playing on the Montreal Royals

because race was not really an issue in Canada and he was very popular all over the country

(”Robinson, Jackie”). He led the Royals to the minor league championship (Rydell 86).

The next season Robinson got moved up to the Los Angeles Dodgers professional team late in

spring training, only five days before the Dodgers first game (86). This gave the critics not much time

to react to the new player in the league (86). On April 15, 1947 Jackie became the first black

player to play major league baseball in the United States (87). Robinson’s moving to the team

caused national outrage between coaches, teams, and fans (87). His new teammates signed a

petition to get him off the team just because he was black (Ward, Burns 283). The general

managers and head coaches of the Dodgers including Branch Rickey and Pee Wee Reese kept him

on the team and encouraged him to stay and ignore the racial slurs and name calling (Ward, Burns

283). Other teams tried to boycott, but it did not work (Rydell 86). Robinsons first games were the

hardest (86). He had many death threats made against him (”Robinson, Jackie”). The hotels that

Robinson went to with the team would not serve him because blacks were not allowed (”Robinson,

Jackie”). Even though he would not get served at restaurants and hotels, he always kept his

composier and never lost his temper (Ward, Burns 283). Robinson was always called names but he

just ignored them and took a non-violent approach to the situation (”Robinson, Jackie).

After many games Robinson started winning the respect of his fellow teammates, other teams, and

fans by not fighting back (Rydell 86). Not only was Robinson the only black player in the major

leagues, but he was also one of the best. Stadiums filled with record numbers of fans came to watch

him play baseball (Hill 2). By the end of his first year, he was a major league superstar (1).

Robinson led the majors in stolen bases and was second in scored runs (1). He was voted Rookie

of the Year for the 1948 season (2).

Robinson had a very successful baseball career. He proved all of his critics wrong, they said Rickey

only wanted him because he was black and not how well he could play baseball (Rydell 87). He

proved his critics wrong the very first game he played with the LA Dodgers(87). He had four hits,

including one homerun and two stolen bases (87). After his spectacular first game Robinson started

getting death threats, but ignored them and he kept on playing (Hill 1).

After leading a successful career in baseball Robinson retired from the game in

Похожие работы