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Trailblazers: Jackie Robinson: Breaking Barriers in Baseball
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About Trailblazers: Jackie Robinson: Breaking Barriers In
Product Description Bring history home and meet some of the world's greatest game changers! get inspired by the true story of the player who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball. This biography series is for kids who loved Who Was? and are ready for the next level. When Jackie Robinson stepped up to the plate for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947, everything changed. He was the first black man to play in a major-league baseball game in the twentieth century! His brave act opened the door for more black players to achieve their own big-league dreams. But how did Jackie break baseball's color barrier? Whether excelling at every sport he tried as a youngster or standing up for his civil rights as a soldier in the US Army, Jackie always focused on his goals. Find out how this boy who loved baseball became one of history's greatest trailblazers! Trailblazers is a biography series that celebrates the lives of amazing pioneers, past and present, from all over the world. Get inspired by more Trailblazers: Neil Armstrong, Jackie Robinson, Jane Goodall, Harriet Tubman, Albert Einstein, Beyoncé, and Simone Biles. What kind of trail will you blaze? Review “The “Trailblazers” series is the next step up from the “Who Is?” titles, in terms of the length and the depth of information.” — School Library Journal About the Author Kurtis Scaletta is the author of Mudville, a Booklist Top 10 Sports Book for Youth; Mamba Point, which The New York Times Book Review called "entertaining and touching"; and The Tanglewood Terror, a Kids' Indie Next List Selection and winner of the Minnesota Readers' Choice Award. He lives in Minneapolis with his wife and son. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. One of the most important plays in baseball history was a ground ball to third base. It was April 15, 1947: opening day at Ebbets Field, home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. A rookie named Jackie Robinson came to the plate and bounced the ball to the left side of the infield. The Boston Braves third baseman fielded the ball and threw it to first as Jackie reached the base. The fans thought Jackie had gotten to the base before the ball, but the umpire signaled an out. “We was robbed!” Dodgers fans bellowed from the stands. Jackie turned to glare at the umpire. For a moment it looked as if he were going to argue the call. Instead, he retreated to the dugout. It didn’t make much of a difference in the game, but it was the first time a black player had swung a bat in Major League Baseball in almost sixty years. A Gentleman’s Agreement Jackie Robinson was not the first black player in the major leagues. There were a few in the very early days of baseball. WILLIAM EDWARD WHITE First Base MOSES FLEETWOOD WALKER Catcher GEORGE WASHINGTON STOVEY Pitcher Those were the wild and woolly early days of baseball. New teams came along every year, and other teams folded. Teams changed names and cities so often, it was hard to keep up! Entire leagues could rise to major-league status and then fall back to the minors a few years later. The rules were always changing. It took six or seven balls for a walk, instead of four, and foul balls didn’t count as strikes. There was never an official rule against black players in organized baseball, but in 1887, team owners came to what was called a “gentleman’s agreement.” They decided no major- or minor-league team would sign another black player. So, before the baseball establishment had even agreed on how many balls made up a walk, it had decided the game was for white players only. Over the next sixty years, baseball grew as the national pastime. Ty Cobb of the Detroit Tigers and later Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees were the country’s biggest heroes. Baseball stadiums became the beating hearts of most major American cities. And baseball became a big business! Larger stadiums were built so more fans could come to watch the excitement. Everywhere you went y
