Jackie Robinson (1919 to 1972) was the first African American player in the major leagues in the 20th century. He played his first game for the Brooklyn Dodgers on 15 April 1947, breaking baseball’s colour line. He won the 1949 National League MVP award, joined the Hall of Fame in 1962 and campaigned for civil rights. His number, 42, is retired by every major-league team.
Jackie Robinson quick facts
- Jackie Robinson played his first major-league game on 15 April 1947.
- He earned varsity letters in four sports at UCLA.
- He won the first Rookie of the Year award in 1947.
- He was the National League MVP in 1949.
- Number 42 is retired by every major-league team.
Who was Jackie Robinson?
Jackie Robinson was an American baseball player who changed sports history. On 15 April 1947, he played his first game for the Brooklyn Dodgers. The National Baseball Hall of Fame says he became the first African American player in the major leagues in the 20th century.
For decades before that, Black players had been kept out of the major leagues, and many played in the Negro Leagues instead. The Hall of Fame says Robinson’s first game opened the way for Black players across professional sports.
Robinson was also a brave campaigner for civil rights. He spent his life pushing for fair treatment of African Americans, on and off the field.
| Jackie Robinson at a glance | |
|---|---|
| Born | 31 January 1919, Cairo, Georgia |
| Died | 24 October 1972, Stamford, Connecticut |
| First major-league game | 15 April 1947, Brooklyn Dodgers |
| Team | Brooklyn Dodgers, 1947 to 1956 |
| Top award | National League Most Valuable Player, 1949 |
| Hall of Fame | elected 1962 |
| Number | 42, now retired by every team |
Early life
Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on 31 January 1919 in Cairo, Georgia. He was the youngest of five children. The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) says his mother, Mallie, raised the family on her own after his father left.
In 1920, the family moved across the country to Pasadena, California. Jackie went to Muir Technical High School and then Pasadena Junior College.
Sport ran in the family. SABR says Jackie’s older brother Mack came second, behind Jesse Owens, in the 200-metre race at the 1936 Olympics.
A star at UCLA
Jackie went on to the University of California, Los Angeles, known as UCLA. SABR and the Jackie Robinson Foundation say he was the first student there to earn varsity letters in four sports: football, basketball, track and baseball.
At UCLA, he met Rachel Isum, who would later become his wife. The Jackie Robinson Foundation says she was a first-year student and he was a senior. But he left before graduating, SABR says, because his family needed money.
Taking a stand in the army
In 1942, during World War II, Jackie was drafted into the US Army and sent to Fort Riley, Kansas. SABR says he was at first kept out of officer training. The boxing champion Joe Louis helped get that changed.
On 6 July 1944, at an army camp in Texas, a bus driver told Jackie to move to the back of a segregated bus. He refused.
SABR says he was court-martialled, which means he was put on trial by the army. He was found not guilty, and later left the army with an honourable discharge.
Another American, Rosa Parks, later became famous for refusing to give up her seat on a bus. Read her story in our Rosa Parks facts.
From the Negro Leagues to Montreal
In 1945, Jackie played shortstop for the Kansas City Monarchs, a team in the Negro American League.
That year, Branch Rickey of the Brooklyn Dodgers chose Jackie to break into the major leagues. On 23 October 1945, SABR says, Rickey signed him to the Montreal Royals, the Dodgers’ top minor-league team.
Jackie married Rachel Isum on 10 February 1946. They went on to have three children: Jackie Jr., Sharon and David.
In his one season with Montreal, in 1946, Jackie was brilliant. The Hall of Fame says he batted .349 and stole 40 bases.
Breaking the colour line
On 15 April 1947, Jackie Robinson took the field at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn for his first major-league game. The unwritten rule that had kept Black players out of the major leagues, known as the colour line, was broken.
It took great courage. Clyde Sukeforth, who managed the Dodgers for a short time that season, described him like this: “He was tough, he was intelligent and he was proud.”
Jackie played brilliantly under the pressure. SABR and the Hall of Fame say that in 1947 he batted .297, stole 29 bases and won the first Rookie of the Year award.
A baseball star
Jackie played 10 seasons for the Brooklyn Dodgers, from 1947 to 1956. He was fast, clever and exciting to watch.
His best year was 1949. The Hall of Fame says he was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player that year, batting .342, with 37 stolen bases and 124 runs batted in. The Jackie Robinson Foundation says he won the award with 264 out of a possible 336 points in the vote.
Jackie helped the Dodgers win six National League pennants and the 1955 World Series. In Game 1 of that World Series, against the New York Yankees, he stole home. That is a daring play in which a runner dashes from third base to home plate while the pitcher is throwing.
| Career totals (Hall of Fame figures) | |
|---|---|
| Games | 1,416 |
| Hits | 1,563 |
| Runs | 972 |
| Home runs | 141 |
| Runs batted in | 761 |
| Stolen bases | 200 |
| Batting average | .313 |
Different organisations count his career slightly differently. The Jackie Robinson Foundation, for example, gives a .311 batting average and 137 home runs. The figures in the table are the Hall of Fame’s.
Jackie retired from baseball in 1957. In 1962, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his very first year on the ballot.
Fighting for civil rights
After baseball, Jackie became a business leader. In 1957, he became vice-president for personnel at the Chock full o’Nuts coffee company. The Jackie Robinson Foundation says he was the first African American vice-president of a major US company.
He was an active member of the NAACP, a civil rights organisation. He also wrote to US presidents, pressing them to act on civil rights. The National Archives says he wrote to President Eisenhower in 1958, to President Kennedy in 1961 and 1963, and to President Johnson in 1965 and 1967. It keeps these letters and telegrams and shares them with students in its lessons on civil rights.
On 28 August 1963, Jackie took part in the March on Washington. The National Archives holds a photograph of him there.
In 1964, he helped found the Freedom National Bank in Harlem, New York, and later he chaired it. In 1970, he started a construction company.
The National Archives says Rachel Robinson wanted her husband remembered as a civil rights leader, not only as a baseball player.
Rachel Robinson and the Foundation
Jackie Robinson died on 24 October 1972 in Stamford, Connecticut, aged just 53. The Jackie Robinson Foundation says he had been ill with diabetes for a long time, and SABR says he died of a heart attack.
The next year, in 1973, Rachel Robinson started the Jackie Robinson Foundation. It gives college scholarships and mentoring to students, and it has supported more than 1,700 of them.
Honours
Jackie Robinson received some of the highest honours in the United States. The Foundation says he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2005.
The Hall of Fame shares one of his best-known sayings: “A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”
Number 42
Jackie wore number 42. MLB says the Dodgers retired his number in 1972, so no Dodger would wear it again.
On 15 April 1997, 50 years after his first game, baseball went further. The Hall of Fame says Commissioner Bud Selig retired number 42 for every major-league team, at a ceremony at Shea Stadium in New York, before a game between the Dodgers and the New York Mets.
Players already wearing 42 were allowed to keep it. The last was Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees, who retired after the 2013 season.
Since 2004, MLB has marked 15 April every year as Jackie Robinson Day. Since 2009, every player, coach and umpire on the field has worn number 42 on that day.
Why Jackie Robinson matters
Jackie Robinson showed enormous courage. He broke through a barrier that had kept talented players out of the major leagues because of the colour of their skin.
He then used his fame to push for fair treatment for all Americans. His story shows how one person’s courage can open doors for many others. Learn about more trailblazers in our Black History Month facts.
Was he really the first?
Jackie Robinson is often called the first Black player in major-league baseball. The Hall of Fame is more careful. It says he was the first African American major-league player of the 20th century.
That is because a small number of Black players had played in the major leagues back in the 1800s. By the time Jackie was growing up, though, Black players were kept out, and teams such as the Kansas City Monarchs played in the Negro Leagues instead.
Three things people get wrong
He was not the first Black major-league player ever. The Hall of Fame says he was the first of the 20th century.
Number 42 is not always hidden away. On Jackie Robinson Day, every player wears it.
He was not only a baseball player. He was also a business leader, a banker and a civil rights campaigner.
Did you know? On Jackie Robinson Day, 15 April, every player, coach and umpire on the field wears number 42.
Try it
Write a short letter, like Jackie Robinson did to presidents, about one thing you think should be fairer in your school or town.
Knowledge check
When did Jackie Robinson play his first major-league game?
Show answer
15 April 1947, for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Which number did he wear?
Show answer
Number 42.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Jackie Robinson famous?
In 1947 he became the first African American player in the major leagues in the 20th century, opening the way for Black players across professional sports.
What team did Jackie Robinson play for?
He played 10 seasons for the Brooklyn Dodgers, from 1947 to 1956, after playing for the Kansas City Monarchs and the Montreal Royals.
What awards did Jackie Robinson win?
He won the first Rookie of the Year award in 1947, the National League MVP in 1949, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal.
What is Jackie Robinson Day?
Every 15 April since 2004, MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson Day. Since 2009, everyone on the field wears number 42.
What did Jackie Robinson do after baseball?
He became a business leader and banker, joined the NAACP and wrote to presidents pressing for civil rights.
When did Jackie Robinson die?
Jackie Robinson died of a heart attack on 24 October 1972 in Stamford, Connecticut, aged 53. He had been ill with diabetes for a long time.
Sources
- National Baseball Hall of Fame: Jackie Robinson — career statistics, awards, the 1962 election and his quote
- National Baseball Hall of Fame: number 42 retired throughout baseball — the 1997 ceremony, Mariano Rivera and the Sukeforth quote
- Society for American Baseball Research: Jackie Robinson — family, UCLA, the army, the Monarchs, Montreal and the Dodgers
- US National Archives: Jackie Robinson — his letters and telegrams to presidents and the March on Washington
- Jackie Robinson Foundation: Jackie Robinson — business career, honours and other statistics; the Foundation’s history page was also used
- MLB: Jackie Robinson Day — number 42 and Jackie Robinson Day
