Robinson was a baseball trailblazer
Crowding the plate, fearsome and fearless, Frank Robinson hammered his way into the Hall of Fame.
His legacy, however, was cemented on a day in 1975 when he simply stood in the dugout at old Cleveland Municipal Stadium as the first black manager in the history of Major League Baseball.
Robinson, the only player to earn the MVP award in both leagues and a Triple Crown winner, died Robinson Thursday at 83. He had been in hospice care at his home in the Bel Air section of Los Angeles. MLB said he was with family and friends at the time of death.
“Frank Robinson’s resume in our game is without parallel, a trailblazer in every sense, whose impact spanned generations,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.
Robinson hit 586 home runs — he was fourth on the career list behind only Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays when he retired, and he now ranks 10th. An MVP with Cincinnati and
Baltimore, he led the Orioles to their first World Series championship in 1966.
“Frank Robinson and I were more than baseball buddies. We were friends,” Aaron posted on Twitter. “Frank was a hard-nosed baseball player who did things on the field that people said could never be done. Baseball will miss a tremendous human being.”
Robinson was an intense and often intimidating presence, leaning over the plate from his right-handed stance, daring pitchers to hit him (which they did, 198 times), then retaliating with long drives as he pounded “pitchers with fine impartiality,” as baseball writer Roger Kahn once wrote.
As a player, Robinson insisted that teammates match his own will to win. As a manager, he had little patience with lack of hustle.
An All-star outfielder in 12 seasons and a first-ballot selection to Cooperstown in 1982, Robinson also was a Rookie of the Year, a Gold Glove outfielder and hit .300 or better in nine different seasons.
But his place in the sport’s history extended far beyond the batter’s box and basepaths.
Robinson fulfilled his quest to become the first African-american manager in the big leagues when he was hired by the Cleveland Indians.
“I don’t think I was hired because I was black,” Robinson said. “I hope not. I think I’ve been hired because of my ability.”
His impact was immediate and memorable.
The Indians opened at home that year — on April 8, 1975, 28 years after Jackie Robinson (no relation) broke baseball’s color barrier by taking the field with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
“Every time I put on this uniform, I think of Jackie Robinson,” Frank Robinson said as he began in his new role.
When Robinson lined up with his team in front of the Indians’ dugout before the opener, the crowd of 56,204 delivered a resounding ovation.
“One hundred thousand fans could not have been louder,” he recalled in his memoir. “It was the biggest ovation I ever received, and it almost brought tears to my eyes. After all the years of waiting to become a bigleague manager — ignored because so many team owners felt that fans would not accept a black manager — I was on the job and people were loudly pleased.”
Robinson, still active as a player, batted himself second as the designated hitter. The cheering continued throughout the day — in the first inning, Robinson homered off Doc Medich as Cleveland beat the New York Yankees 5-3.
Robinson managed for all or parts of 16 seasons, with Cleveland (1975-77), San Francisco (1981-84), Baltimore (1988-91), Montreal (2002-04) and their successor franchise, Washington (2005-06). He never managed a pennant winner and went 1,065-1,176 overall. He was, however, named American League manager of the year in 1989.
More than half of the major-league teams have had black managers since his debut.
Robinson later spent several years working as an executive for MLB. He advocated for more minorities throughout baseball and worked with former commissioner Bud Selig to develop the Selig Rule, directing teams to interview at least one minority candidate before hiring a new manager.
Robinson was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in 2005.
Born Aug. 21, 1935, in Beaumont, Texas, Robinson attended Mcclymonds High School in Oakland, California, and was a basketball teammate of future NBA great Bill Russell.
Robinson signed with the Reds organization in 1953 and made his major-league debut as Cincinnati’s left fielder three years later, starting out in an era in which Mays, Aaron, Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams were the big hitters. He tied the first-year record with 38 home runs for Cincinnati in 1956, scored a league-high 122 times and was voted National League Rookie of the Year.
Robinson was the 1961 NL MVP after batting .323 with 37 homers and 124 RBI for the pennant-winning Reds, and he reached career highs in runs (134) and RBI (136) in 1962.
“He had a huge influence on me when I first came up in ’63,” all-time hits leader Pete Rose said. “Frank was a really aggressive, hard-nosed player, and it rubbed off on everybody. Frank was the one who took me under his wings, so to speak. … Frank consistently talked to me about playing the game the right way.”
Robinson was an All-star in 1965, but Reds owner Bill Dewitt decided he was an old-ish 30 and that it was time to move him. That December, Robinson was the centerpiece in what would ultimately be one of the most lopsided trades in baseball history, going to Baltimore for pitchers Milt Pappas and Jack Baldschun and outfielder Dick Simpson.
Robinson was the unanimous AL MVP and a Triple Crown winner for the Orioles in 1966, hitting 49 home runs, driving in 122 runs and batting .316. All told, Robinson was an Allstar in five of his six seasons with Baltimore, reaching the World Series four times and winning two titles (a fourgame sweep of the Dodgers in 1966 and a win over Rose and the Reds in 1970). The cap on his Cooperstown plaque carries an Orioles logo.
By contrast, Pappas went 30-29 over two-plus seasons with the Reds, Baldschun won one game in 51 appearances over two years with Cincinnati and Simpson hit five home runs as a part-time outfielder for the Reds during two mediocre seasons.
Robinson finished his 21-season career with a .294 average and 1,812 RBI. He played in five World Series and homered in each of them.
Robinson was traded to the Dodgers before the 1972 season. He played for the California Angels in 1973 and was dealt to Cleveland late in the 1974 season. The Reds, Orioles and Indians have retired his No. 20 and honored him with statues at their stadiums.
Survivors include his wife, Barbara, and daughter Nichelle. There was no immediate word on funeral arrangements.