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The first black player in either of the major baseball leagues was Jackie Robinson. He broke what has become traditionally known as "the color barrier" in 1947, two years after he was signed by Branch Rickey, president of the infamous Brooklyn (now Los Angeles) Dodgers. Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born in a town called Cairo, Georgia, on January 31, 1919. He then grew up on the West Coast in Pasadena, California and it was there, in high school that Jackie Robinson began to exhibit great athletic skill in such sports track, basketball, football, and particularly baseball which he further demonstrated at Pasadena Junior College. Continuing his education, Robinson also continued to excel in sports while studying at the University of California at Los Angeles. (Olsen, 1974) Unfortunately, Jackie Robinson's athletic endeavors came to a screeching halt when he left school in 1941 and was drafted the following year for Army service during World War II. Fortunately, his athletic activity resumed after Robinson received a medical discharge in 1945 and spent a year playing baseball with the Kansas City Monarchs of what was then called the Negro National League. His outstanding playing ability brought him to the attention of Rickey, who hand-picked him as the man most likely to succeed in overcoming the racism prevalent in the sport of baseball. Jackie Robinson played the1946 season with the Montreal Royals, a Brooklyn Dodgers farm club, and led the International League in hitting with a .349 average.
Approximate Word count = 961
Approximate Pages = 3.8
(250 words per page double spaced)
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