He then attended a try out with the Kansas City Monarchs, a baseball team in the Negro Leagues, and quickly signed a contract to play second base. Then in 1945, his dream came true. The Brooklyn Dodgers offered him a contract to play baseball. Jackie Robinson was going to play second base for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
On April 15, 1947, the Brooklyn Dodgers started Jackie Robinson at second base, making him the first African American ever to play professional baseball. Over night, Jackie became a national figure, unfortunately most of this fame was due to the color of his skin. Some whites were outraged, others were glad, and African Americans hoped for his success. He started receiving hundreds of letters of hate mail, yet Robinson pretended like it did not exist. Instead, he went out day after day trying to quiet his critics with his blazing speed, and hard nose play. In 1947 won the first ever Rookie of the Year Award. At the end of his rookie season, he was one of the most respected men of any color in America. In fact, in a national pole, he was ranked ahead of President Truman, General Eisenhower, General MacArthur, Bob Hope, and Bing Crosby, ( Rampersad, 180). .
Jackie Robinson used his success and fame to be one of the most vocal members in the fight for African American rights. He became an active member and a spokesperson for the NAACP, (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). They awarded Robinson their Annual Merit Award in 1947 for being, "the first man to pick up a baseball bat and knock prejudice .
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out of the ballpark," ( 191). Then in 1949, he won the Most Valuable Player Award. Support of him began to build, but no one supported Robinson more than his teammate, ally, and best friend Pee Wee Reese. He was quickly becoming more than just a baseball player. He was becoming a national hero. .
On January 7, 1957, Jackie Robinson quietly walked into the Ebbets Field locker room, gathered his things, and said goodbye to the game that was his life.
