Jackie Robinson is not simply being featured because of his outstanding career in Major League Baseball but because of his influence in the civil rights movement. He was the first black player in Major League Baseball, joining the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. He was also the first black sports announcer for ABC in 1965.
He had an outstanding baseball career with a batting average of .311, 1,518 hits, 137 home runs, 734 runs batted in and 197 stolen bases with six World Series appearances, six consecutive All-Star Games and a World Series win in 1955. He had a nice family with his wife Rachel Robinson and their three children.
He was born today, 94 years ago on January 31, 1919 in Cairo, Georgia and died at the age of 53 on October 24, 1972 in Stamford, Connecticut.