Black Integration In Baseball

“Whoever would understand the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball, the rules and realities of the game”, this quote is written by Jacques Barzun in his book God’s Country and Mine in 1954. In 1901, the Major League Baseball (MLB) was founded. Between 1901-1960 the MLB hold 16 franchises and all of it located in the Northeast of the United States. Most of the team at the time have a Minor team. Together the Major and the minor were known as organized baseball. In the early 20th century, baseball had become America’s national sport (until the rise of football in 50s). Back then every boy and girls will learned the game as the matter of the course. As the popularity of the game continue to rise, the major baseball star were as

Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies feature at least one black future Hall of Famer. The black integration in baseball finally paid off in the 1960s, as black like Flood, Lou Brock, and Bob Gibson became the core of the Cardinals. Between 1949-1962, African Americans won 11 of 12 NL Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, while no black wins the American League (AL) MVP until Yankees catcher Elston Howard in 1963. The integration of black help electrified the NL’s playing style. However, most AL team were lack of integration since the New Yankees ruled. In other words, there’s no reason to integrated black athletes. As in for the AL powerhouse, New York Yankees, in 1951 the franchise signed Mickey Mantle; a much more talented ball player than most of the black player. So the franchise don’t necessary need a black ball player. The complete integration of baseball took longer than expected, but just like major civil-right cases, Brown V. Board of Education, the major event takes baby steps. Robinson played an outstanding 10 seasons with the Dodgers, at 1956 Robinson retired from baseball. In his ten-year tenure, the black Dodgers’ wins: 6 NL titles, 5 MVP awards, 4 Rookie of the Year awards, and winning the World Series in 1955 against the mighty