Dhs Us History Ii

April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson makes MLB debut Background: Major League Baseball had been segregated since the late 1800s, even though many teams played in cities that were generally regarded as progressive like New York, Philadelphia, and Boston. Some of the most talented players in the history of the game like Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson were relegated to the Negro League, which was extremely popular among the African American community but was generally ignored by the majority of white baseball fans. In 1945 Branch Rickey, general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers changed the status quo by signing Jackie Robinson, a Negro League star, to a minor league deal. Robinson was a gifted athlete, lettering in four sports at UCLA: football, basketball, baseball, and track. After a year with the Montreal Royals (where he led the minor leagues in batting average), the shortstop was slated to make his debut at Ebbets Field against the Boston Braves on Opening Day, April 15, 1947. The Rookie Season: Robinson m