Yeah, Jake Powell was insane. And the Yankees' record on integration was not good.
The whole AL was especially terrible. As long as it took the Yanks to integrate, they still had the very first Black, AL MVP (Ellie Howard, 1963), and the very first, all-Black AL battery to pitch in the World Series (Al Downing and Howard, also 1963).
Shamefully, many of today’s “americans ” are just as racist as their forbears.
I had never heard this tale before, thanks for sharing though I wish it was not true. I think the Yankee’s racist background is well understood, at least by those of our generation. Unsure how younger fans feel, the few I’ve discussed it with didn’t seem to feel it was of relevance to them.
From WaPo article comments: " The Jackie Robinson biopic “42” depicts Chapman as the race-baiting manager of the Philadelphia Phillies viciously taunting Robinson in his rookie season
That's because Chapman was the race-baiting manager of the Phillies who taunted Robinson during his rookie season. That's like saying "Midway" depicts Admiral Nimitz as the head of the American fleet. "
And remember that it wasn't just the Yankees or baseball that was that way back then. It was throughout the country.
The hypocrisy was endless. At one point, the owners voted 15-1 against integrating...mostly because Negro League teams played in their empty stadiums when the teams were on the road, and made them some excellent rental money.
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ReplyDeleteYeah, Jake Powell was insane. And the Yankees' record on integration was not good.
ReplyDeleteThe whole AL was especially terrible. As long as it took the Yanks to integrate, they still had the very first Black, AL MVP (Ellie Howard, 1963), and the very first, all-Black AL battery to pitch in the World Series (Al Downing and Howard, also 1963).
Shamefully, many of today’s “americans ” are just as racist as their forbears.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard this tale before, thanks for sharing though I wish it was not true. I think the Yankee’s racist background is well understood, at least by those of our generation. Unsure how younger fans feel, the few I’ve discussed it with didn’t seem to feel it was of relevance to them.
If you are dealing with a paywall...here's another article about this piece of work...
ReplyDeletehttps://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/10496417/jake-powell-bigot-unwittingly-sparked-change
The guy they traded to GET Powell was Ben Chapman...who as Phillies manager was so horrendously opposed to Jackie Robinson when he came in.
ReplyDeleteIn Yankees Stadium, Chapman was known to turn to the right field stands and curse the fans out with various anti-Semitic slurs.
Oy!
Ranger that's for the link. What a shithed.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFrom WaPo article comments:
ReplyDelete"
The Jackie Robinson biopic “42” depicts Chapman as the race-baiting manager of the Philadelphia Phillies viciously taunting Robinson in his rookie season
That's because Chapman was the race-baiting manager of the Phillies who taunted Robinson during his rookie season. That's like saying "Midway" depicts Admiral Nimitz as the head of the American fleet.
"
And remember that it wasn't just the Yankees or baseball that was that way back then. It was throughout the country.
The hypocrisy was endless. At one point, the owners voted 15-1 against integrating...mostly because Negro League teams played in their empty stadiums when the teams were on the road, and made them some excellent rental money.
ReplyDeleteAmerica is and was racist. No surprise the Yankees have been also.
ReplyDelete