This year, Major League Baseball will celebrate the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson?s debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Playing first base on April 15, 1947 in a game with the Boston Braves at Ebbets Field, Robinson went 0 for 4, breaking the color line that had existed in the majors since the 19th century in the process.
He got his first hit the next day. The Dodgers, by the way, won both games. Ten years ago, baseball celebrated the 50th anniversary of Robinson?s debut with tributes in every ballpark. Every team retired Robinson?s No. 42. (Only players who were already wearing 42 were allowed to keep it for the rest of their careers; today, only the Yankees? Mariano Rivera enjoys that privilege.) Every team also wore a special sleeve patch to commemorate the anniversary.
I remember two things about the celebrations in 1997. One, it was surprising to see how few contemporary black players knew much about Robinson (if you don?t know anything, at least keep it to yourself). And two, almost no one mentioned Larry Doby.
You see, while Robinson was baseball?s biggest story at the outset of the 1947 season, only National League fans had the opportunity to see him play.
On July 5 of that year, Doby made his debut as a pinch-hitter with the Cleveland Indians in a 6-5 loss to the White Sox in Chicago, thus becoming the American League?s first black player. Doby had it no easier than Robinson, but he never quite earned the same iconic status.
Robinson was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962. Doby finally made it in 1998. While Robinson?s major league numbers may look a little better than Doby?s ? a .311 career average compared to Doby?s .283 ? Dobyplayed in one more All-Star Game than Robinson, and both players were effective with men on base.
There exists many photographs of Doby in an Orioles uniform. At the 1957 winter meetings, the Orioles traded Tito Francona, Ray Moore and Billy Goodman to the White Sox for Doby, Jack Harshman and two others. Doby reported to spring training in Scottsdale, Ariz., and when March turned into April, he was swapped back to his original team ? the Indians ? for Gene Woodling, Dick Williams and Bud Daley ? both Woodling and Williams were making their second stops in Charm City.
A year later, Doby was once again traded for Francona, this time to the Tigers. Detroit sold him to the White Sox in 1959, but he was released in June, ending his big-league career.
Doby, in addition to being the first black player in the AL (a runner-up pioneer, so to speak), was also baseball?s second black manager. In 1978, he replaced his former Indians? teammate and fellow Hall of Famer Bob Lemon as manager of the White Sox.
He skippered the Pale Hose through 87 games, but never enjoyed it and retired from baseball following that season.
Robinson deserves every tribute tossed his way. His autobiography, published in 1972, was titled “I Never Had it Made.”
Neither did Larry Doby.
Phil Wood has covered baseball in the Washington/Baltimore market for more than 30 years. You can reach him at [email protected].
