Baseball Is No Fun, It's No Longer A Game

For the better part of the 20th century, African American baseball players played under unequal opportunity. On one side of the field, European descendants were given a license to play this children's game for money and national fame. While on the other side of the field, African slave descendants were also given a license to play - as long as they didn't encroach upon the leagues of the Caucasians. What was left over for African American player in terms of riches was meager at best. Though the fortune wasn't there, the love and fame within the African American communities made the players of the Negro Baseball League legends.

Baseball has always been America's national pastime. In the early and all the way into the mid 50's, baseball was America and America was baseball. The only thing lacking in the great game was the absence of African American players and the presence of an all white sport. America still wasn't friendly or accepted the African American race and many still held great prejudice towards them. All this would change when the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branch Rickey decided he was going to sign a Negro player. Jackie Robinson was that player and Jackie Robinson changed the game, America, and history. By looking specifically at his childhood adversity, college life and the hardships he encountered by becoming the first black player in

     "Over the decades, African American teams played 445-recorded games against white teams, winning sixty-one percent of them." (Conrads, pg.8) The Negro Leagues were an alternative baseball group for African American baseball player that were denied the right to play with the white baseball payers in the Major League Baseball Association. In 1920, the first African American League was formed, and that paved the way for numerous African American innovation and movements. Fences, and Jackie Robinson: The Biography, raises consciousness about the baseball players that have been overlooked, and the struggle they had to endure simply because of their color.

When the topic of baseball comes up in a conversation, what do you think of? The field, a bat, the ball, or amazing plays, crucial games, and game winning performances. What about American history? Does World War II come to mind; most likely not. According to an article called “Food for Thought: Baseball and American History,” John P. Rossi quotes Jacques Barzun saying, “Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.” Negro League Baseball can be used to shed light on the historical experience of African American’s in the United States.

Thesis: Major League Baseball was founded in 1869 and up until April 15, 1947 an African American had never played in the major leagues before and that man was named Jackie Robinson. On that day he did not open the door for other African American athletes. He just maybe turned the knob a little bit which also lead to a new attitude people had towards African Americans no one had ever seen before.

When asked to describe a baseball the first word generally voiced is white, and before April 15, 1947 that is exactly what the game of baseball was, white. “There is no law against Negroes playing with white teams, or whites with colored clubs, but neither has invited the other for the obvious reason they prefer to draw their talent from their own ranks” (‘42’). These were the feelings of people living in 1947, that blacks and whites were not meant to play baseball together. Then, why decades earlier, had there been an African American in the league? In 1887, an African American Pitcher, George Stovey, was expected to pitch a game with Chicago, however, the first baseman, Cap Anson, would not play as long as Stovey was on the field. Other

The year is 1936, in Pasadena, California. A single mother works many odd jobs just to put food on the table for her five children. These children, all black, face discrimination every day. They, along with their minority friends, are rarely included in activities. The youngest of them, however, appears to have a great gift for sport. He is a shortstop for the baseball team, quarterback for the football team, and guard on the basketball team, and he excelled in all three. On August 28th, 1945, now a former college athlete and veteran, he had a meeting with Branch Rickey. That day, Jackie Robinson signed a contract to be the first black player in Major League Baseball. Of course, many black people have excelled in many areas. Though racism has always been a part of society, many black people have been able to make great accomplishments and are now celebrated for what they do.

Jules Tygiel, a sports historian and author once said, “Upon Robinson’s husky, inexperienced shoulders rested the fate of desegregation in baseball”(Tygiel 4). Jackie Robinson was not just the first black man to play in the MLB. Jackie Robinson opened up the door for all black baseball players, and athletes of all different sports. America needed a black man to show them that it was okay for blacks and whites to be together, to play baseball together. Jackie did exactly that. Although Jackie loved the professional baseball, professional baseball did not always love him. Jackie and the MLB did not always go well. Many teams didn’t like a negro sharing a field with them, in fact, the St. Louis Cardinals even went on strike for a short time(“Jackie Robinson”). Jackie’s presence made some teams forfeit games. However, the Dodgers did not care, they were just trying to win baseball games. Jackie knew when he came into the league it was going to be a struggle. He knew it was going to be hard, not only to help the Dodgers win games, but to stay level headed and not let off-field distractions affect his game. Jackie was once quoted saying “I think I am the right man for the test. There is no possible chance that I will flunk it or quit before the end for any other reason other than that I am not a good enough ballplayer.”(“Jackie Robinson”) It was going to take a special man to break the color barrier, and Jackie knew

In the racially separated culture of 1919 America, one man stood up to break the color barrier in professional baseball. His name was Jack Roosevelt “Jackie” Robinson (Scott). As the first black man drafted to play Major League Baseball he faced frequent personal attacks, game boycotts and even death threats (Scott). But Jackie handled himself with true dignity, never quit and let his talent speak for itself winning several prestigious awards throughout his career (Scott). Jackie lead a race revolution forever changing the game of professional baseball in America and leaving a lasting legacy (History).

In 1947 Major League baseball was 98.3 percent white and 0.9 percent African American (Baseball Demographics). Professional baseball was certainly a “white man’s game” yet, there was Jackie Robinson, making his mark on the world in professional baseball. In 1981 these numbers peaked with 18.7 percent of African Americans playing baseball. Robinson had opened the door to many men of color and encouraged them to take a step in with him.

Baseball today is for everyone, diverse and different since 1947. Baseball is a Major League sport loved by all, but before this state, it was segregated. For example, African Americans were not allowed to play in the Major Leagues until 1947. Racism was huge in 1947, but Jackie broke the color barrier and changed baseball forever. African Americans were free, but were they really?

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on others”(Robinson). This is the standpoint Jackie Robinson had on life being a black person during his time period. He was a strong and courageous man despite the hardships that were set in his lifetime. He was faced with poverty, low income, and racial threats, but was granted with the gift of being a great athlete. Jackie Robinson being the first black MLB player had a great affect on American history because he helped boost morale, pushed toward civil rights, and integrated blacks into white sports.

Similar to Jack Johnsons’ experiences with race and discrimination in the early 20th century, African American Baseball players faced these hardships too. In The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings, directed by John Badham, we see that African Americans could play baseball if they were in their own league: The Negro American League and the Negro National League. They had their own stadiums with solely African American spectators. However, even in these segregated teams, there was still problems that occurred. Although the abolishment of slavery already occurred, threats of being set back to work in plantations and doing hard labor were still prevalent. This indicates that the African American baseball players had to work even harder and stay in their prime for as long as possible to keep their jobs, regardless of who they were working for. If they were to play against teams made of Caucasians, the audience members composed of more Caucasians made negative statements when the African American team would get a home run, a layer on first, strike out their team, or anything that made the white team look bad. The way they avoided this was, instead, they acted like fools. They would play silly tricks, wear costumes, etcetera to be able to make the audience laugh and still win the game. This coincides with the thinking mentioned above with Jack Johnson; African Americans cannot be superior, and they

The Negro Leagues, baseball leagues for merely black players, allowed urban communities to “pass down the tradition of ‘their’ game 25.” As the Negro leagues ended, baseball’s popularity diminished because it no longer acted as a unique and individualized aspect of African-American culture. The Negro Leagues and the black baseball movement inspired hope as a part of the larger civil rights movement of the 20th century and the black community utilized baseball “as a means of collective identity and civic pride 26.” African- American’s racial advances in baseball signaled the long term success of the larger civil rights movement of the 20th century. As a result, baseball became essential in identifying the progress and identity of African-American culture. Baseball lost its social prevalence after the African-American civil rights movement due to the emergence of other

They said the times have changed since Jackie Robinson first stepped foot on the diamond, but in reality it only remained the same. Discrimination plays a big part in America that we as a society have to face on a daily. At some point in our lives we have to muster up enough courage to face the burdensome challenges that comes with discrimination. Unfortunate baseball, which was the first thing I ever loved besides my mother, placed me in some situations that no child should have to face. Every day there was a different obstacle after another. These challenges came from those in the neighborhood casting me out, coaches and even parents. Whatever the case may be baseball came with a price that seemed at times to be more then I can bare.