The American League had their Jackie Robinson too, but few ever took notice of one of baseball's greatest players, Lawrence Eugene Doby. He was much bigger the Jackie in size and strength, but Robinson got the media attention. The simple reason Robinson received most of the glory was that Jackie played in a big city. Jackie played in New York for the Dodgers, while Larry played for the Cleveland Indians. At that time in baseball history, Cleveland, Detroit, and St. Louis were considered west.

Doby was born in December 1923, in the middle of winter, in Camden, South Carolina. The family moved to Paterson, New Jersey in 1934; he became an All-State athlete in almost every sport. He played basketball, baseball, and football at Paterson's Eastside High School. He graduated with honors and received praise from most of his teachers.

Doby went to school in the racially integrated northeast, which did not prepare him for the treatment he would receive later in the Navy and his professional baseball career. He went to college in New York's Long Island University, but his heart was into baseball.

World War II interrupted this man's goal to play on the baseball diamond. This would be where his first brush with American racism. He served his country in the segregated Navy. Doby could never understand this and it troubled him all his life. But this experience would train him for Cleveland.

He played for my 2nd favorite Negro League team, The Newark (New Jersey) Eagles; my favorite was the Homestead Grays. He played for the Eagles from 1942-43 and then again in 46-47. Serving his country in the fall of 1943 until 1945. He played center field for the Eagles and was their power hitter most of the time in New Jersey. The Newark Eagles won the League Championship in 1946 right after he returned from war.

After Jackie Robinson went to Brooklyn and seem to be doing well for the Dodgers. The American League Rebel owner Bill Veeck had been scouting the Negro Leagues for some time. Veeck wanted Doby to join his Cleveland Indians.

Thus Brooklyn Dodgers owner Branch Rickey and Bill Veeck broke baseball's unwritten law of not signing anybody of color to the majors.

Doby had it much tougher then Robinson. His own teammates would not shake Larry's hand the first game he played for the Indians. Most of the players turned their back on him and went into the dugout. Even the player-manager Lou Boudreau acted like he was not even in the stadium. Jackie Robinson only had these kinds of problems with opposing teams. Larry Doby's great play in the outfield and at bat would change many of his teammates attitudes, winning two straight pennants helped. Many of his Cleveland teammates would later call him the gentle giant because of his behavior on the baseball field. The American League seemed to drag it feet when it came to having players of color on their teams. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox were the last two holdouts in the majors. The year was 1959. That same year a very young Senator from the state of Mass. John F. Kennedy ran for the White House.

Doby would say many years later that Jackie Robinson got all the attention and the press did not want to repeat the same story with me in the American League. He stated "I could not react to (prejudicial) situations from a physical standpoint. My reaction was just to hit the ball as far as I could."

Doby went go on to be an All-Star six times. He led the American league in home runs twice, and led the American League in Runs Batted In (RBI's) in 1954.

Later in the 1970's he became the second to another Robinson, this one named Frank, who was the first African American manager in baseball, and Frank Robinson was working for the Cleveland Indians. Doby was the second African American managing the Chicago White Sox in 1978. He coached his Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers, and before his sports career ended, he coach the Montreal Expos.

The Veterans Committee elected him to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998. Larry Doby was the first American to ever play in Japan. The Professional Japanese Central League; The Chunichi Dragons in 1962 hired him to play first base. The Cleveland Indians finally retired his famous number 14, July 3, 1994, over forty years after he broke American League baseball's color line.

Lawrence Eugene Doby passed away June 18, 2003 in my home state of New Jersey. We will now always remember Mr. Doby in future Black History Months.

THAT IS THE GRAYLINE