Nation celebrates Jackie Robinson's 75th anniversary of joining MLB

O.J. Spivey TRIBUNE CORRESPONDENT
Apr 15, 2022
Apr 15, 2022
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Jackie Robinson poses at Ebbets Field in the Brooklyn borough of New York in 1947, the same year he broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier. —AP Photo/John Rooney

JOHN ROONEY

Rachel Robinson, left, widow of Jackie Robinson, and daughter Sharon pose with a plaque honoring Jackie on Jackie Robinson Day before a baseball game between the New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers in New York on April 15, 2018.

—AP Photo/Kathy Willens

Kathy Willens

Members of the Philadelphia Phillies stand during the playing of the national anthem before the start of a game with the Houston Astros that was honoring Jackie Robinson on April 23, 2007, in Philadelphia. Robinson’s jersey number was 42. —AP Photo/Tom Mihalek

Tom Mihalek

This logo with Jackie Robinson’s likeness and signature is part of the celebration of the 75th anniversary of him breaking Major League Baseball’s color barrier. —Courtesy of MLB via AP

HONS

Jackie Robinson not only changed the landscape of our national pastime of baseball, he transformed our nation. His impact remains ever so prevalent even three-quarters of a century later.

Major League Baseball has celebrated Robinson integrating of the game on April 15, 1947 for several years now but a special commemoration is store this season.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier and every MLB club will participate in various activities throughout the week to mark the occasion.

“Our family is thrilled to see the many wonderful tributes to Jack’s historic moment 75 years ago,” Rachel Robinson told MLB.com. She was married to Jackie for 26 years and is founder of the Jackie Robinson Foundation. Rachel Robinson will be celebrating her 100th birthday in July.

“We will continue to honor his memory and legacy through our work with the Jackie Robinson Foundation. We are proud to have Major League Baseball and so many others as supporters of the young men and women we impact each year,” Rachel Robinson said.

Jackie Robinson, a four-sport athlete in high school and in college at UCLA, played for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947 to 1956 and endured racism on and off the field. He became the first African-American player elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.

Robinson’s number 42 jersey was retired in 1972, the same year he passed away but it wasn’t until 1997 which marked the 50th anniversary of Robinson stepping on a big league field that his number was retired by every MLB team as a tribute.

In 2009, the league suggested on every April 15, that players would voluntarily wear number 42 during the games on or closest to that date. For this year, the number will be stitched in Dodger Blue for each club, regardless of color scheme.

The Phillies will be on the road in Miami on April 15. Consequently, they will hold a Jackie Robinson salute on Saturday, April 23 during their next home stand at Citizens Bank Park in South Philadelphia.

MLB has released a new and exclusively produced video on mlb.com to commemorate Robinson’s achievements entitled ”PLAY, RUN, WIN, RISE.” The video is narrated by actor and singer Leslie Odom Jr., a Philadelphia native who grew up in the East Oak Lane section. The video appeared in all big league ballparks on Jackie Robinson Day and run on all MLB media platforms.

Recently, Temple University’s Claire Smith Center for Sports Media held their first Jackie Robinson Symposium, hosted by Smith, a Hall of Fame sportswriter.

Panelists included Doug Glanville (former Phillies outfielder and Penn alum) Sean Gibson (great-grandson of Negro Leagues legend Josh Gibson), Bob Kendrick (president of the Negro League Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri), Branch Rickey III (grandson of Branch Rickey who signed Robinson to the Dodgers organization in 1945), Larry Doby Jr. (son of Larry Doby, the first Black player in the American League) and keynote speaker Dusty Baker (current manager of the Houston Astros).

Even on the popular video game, “MLB The Show” users saw all player numbers changed to 42 to reflect real-life on-field contests.

A call to action initiative, named “42 Innings for 42”, also encouraged the youth baseball and softball communities around the country to play a total of 42 innings during the weekend of April 15-17 and share content of the games with the hashtag #Jackie42.

A 75th anniversary logo that includes Robinson’s signature and an illustration of his likeness has also been unveiled.

Although Robinson grew up in Southern California, he was born in Cairo, Georgia. In January, a historical marker was dedicated to replace one that was damaged by gunfire in 2021.