ROBINSON A TRAILBLAZER
Player/manager dies at 83
Crowding the plate, fearsome and fearless, Frank Robinson hammered his way into the Hall of Fame.
His legacy, however, was cemented that day in 1975 when he simply stood in the dugout at old Cleveland Stadium — the first black manager in Major League Baseball.
Robinson, the only player to earn the MVP award in both leagues and a Triple Crown winner, as well as the final manager for the Montreal Expos, died Thursday at 83. He had been in failing health and in hospice care at his home in Los Angeles.
“Frank Robinson’s resumé in our game is without parallel, a trailblazer in every sense, whose impact spanned generations,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.
Robinson hit 586 home runs — he was fourth on the career list when he retired and 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. Frank was a hardnosed baseball player who did things on the field that people said could never be done,” famed slugger Hank Aaron posted on Twitter.
“Baseball will miss a tremendous human being.”
An all-star outfielder in 12 seasons and a first-ballot selection to Cooperstown, Robinson also was a Rookie of the Year, a Gold Glove outfielder and a bruising runner.
Robinson fulfilled his quest to become the first African-American manager in the big leagues when he was hired by the Cleveland Indians.
Robinson’s main aim wasn’t to become Major League Baseball’s first black manager, it was to become a manager, he told the Montreal Gazette in 2002.
“Whether it was first, second, fourth, I didn’t care. But I did note there were none (before me).”
The Indians opened at home that year and Robinson, still active, batted himself second as the designated hitter. In the first inning, he homered off Doc Medich and the crowd went crazy, cheering the whole April afternoon as Cleveland beat the Yankees.
The Reds, Orioles and Indians have retired his No. 20 and honoured him with statues at their stadiums.
Robinson later managed San Francisco, Baltimore, Montreal and Washington.
He was hired to manage the Expos in 2002, after the team was taken over by the league.
He said he planned to manage for one year, but stayed on through the team’s relocation to Washington after the 2004 season. His contract with the Nationals wasn’t renewed after the 2006 season.
The Nationals put him in their Ring of Honor.
Tough and demanding, he went 1,065-1,176 overall as a big league manager.
More than half the major league teams have had black managers since his debut with Cleveland.
Robinson later spent several years working as an executive for MLB, and for a time oversaw the annual Civil Rights Game.
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 George W. Bush in 2005.
Born Aug. 31, 1935, in Beaumont, Texas, Robinson attended McClymonds High School in Oakland, Calif., and was a basketball teammate of future NBA great Bill Russell.
“We all know we lost one of the Greats,” Russell tweeted.
Over 21 seasons, he finished with 1,812 RBIs and hit .294 — he played in the World Series five times, and homered in each of them.
Robinson was the only player to hit a ball completely out of old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore and once connected for grand slams in consecutive innings of a game. But he didn’t just slug away, as evidenced by a .389 on-base average boosted by 1,420 walks against 1,532 strikeouts. He had 204 steals.
Robinson broke in with a bang as a 20-year-old big leaguer. He tied the first-year record with 38 home runs for Cincinnati in 1956, scored a league-high 122 times, and was voted NL Rookie of the Year.
In December 1965, Robinson was the centrepiece 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 became an instant hit with the Orioles in 1966 as the unanimous AL MVP and a Triple Crown winner.
All told, Robinson was an all-star in five of his six seasons with Baltimore, reaching the World Series four times and batting .300 with 179 home runs.
The cap on his Cooperstown plaque carries an O’s logo.
Robinson’s managerial debut came 28 years after Jackie Robinson broke the MLB colour barrier as a player.
Survivors include his wife, Barbara, and daughter Nichelle.