Jackie Robinson Day 2015
April 15th, 2015: Jon Niese on the mound and Chase Utley at bat as the Mets host the Phillies at Citi Field on Jackie Robinson Day. New York won it 6-1, as every player donned the number 42 worn with such grace and greatness by the man who made baseball truly America's game.
Do you have a Jackie Robinson connection? Were you lucky enough to see him play in person or on TV? Do you recall his season as ABC's analyst on Saturday Afternoon Baseball? Ever attend an event where he spoke? Click the comment button below to share what Jackie means to you, as a sports figure, as an activist, as an American hero.
Comments
What really struck me is that Jackie looked 20 years older than Feller. That didn't change- he was so young when he died, at 53, nine days after throwing out the first pitch at the 1972 World Series.
I began as a kid learning about who he was. Was a he a Hall of Famer? Was he that good?
Oh yes.... He changed the game. As not only a pathfinder but as a truly great player.
How good? He had hardly played professionally when he debuted. And electrified the every crowd. Just imagine if he had begun his career at 18. He was a Natural. Yet he also studied the nuances of the game and honed his skills, in ways that had never been seen.
He was a legend from the first moment he took the field.
Bill James made it clear years later just how good Jackie was.
Film shows what a remarkable talent he was. Yet, it doesn't capture the intangibles.
What is so evident now is that Jackie had heart.
And soul.