When is Larry Doby Day?

Watching Major League Baseball April 15, 2009, you never would have known Larry Doby existed. April 15 is Jackie Robinson day. It isn't Larry Doby day, Roy Campanella day, Roberto Clemente day or Josh Gibson day. It's Jackie Robinson day.

Every April 15, Major League players and coaches all wear No. 42 in honor of Robinson. The problem is that in celebrating Jackie Robinson day, a battery of trailblazers get left in the former-Dodger's dust.

The Cleveland Indians sent Larry Doby to bat July 5, 1947, less than four months after Robinson debuted. It was the first time a black player took the field in an American League game. Doby stepped to the plate 6301 more times in his next 12 seasons as a Major Leaguer. He was elected to the all-star team seven times, won a World Series in 1948 and led the league in home runs twice.

Doby also served in the U.S. Military, spending two years in the Navy.

But, like Buzz Aldrin's moon landing, nobody seems to care who was second. Major League Baseball seems to think Jackie Robinson was the only black player who was called "nigger" or received death threats. The truth is, Larry Doby was spit on when he slid into second base. He was forced to sleep in a separate hotel from his teammates. And just like Robinson, he didn't fight back, he just played baseball.


Those who have visited baseball's Hall of Fame can view racist and life-threatening fan letters to Hank Aaron from when Aaron was approaching Babe Ruth's home run record.


Before debuting in 1954 with the Atlanta Braves, Aaron played in the Negro Leagues to get noticed. He spent '52 and '53 with the Braves minor league club the Jacksonville Tars. In Florida, Jim Crow laws still existed, forcing Aaron to be segregated from his teammates and make his own food and lodging arrangements.



Aaron's father once said, "When Henry came up, I heard fans yell, 'Hit that nigger. Hit that nigger.' Henry hit the ball up against the clock. The next time he came up, they said 'Walk him, walk him."

Jackie Robinson day in Major League Baseball doesn't just ignore Doby, Aaron and other early black big-leaguers like three-time MVP Roy Campanella, it ignores the other races that make up MLB. A 2005 report by the University of Central Florida said 8.5 percent of MLB players are black, 28.7 percent are Latino and 2.5 percent are Asian.

Why isn't No. 21 retired? Roberto Clemente was the first Latin player elected into the Hall of Fame. He is a two-time World Series champion, 12-time Gold-Glove right fielder and member of the 3,000 hit club. And more importantly, Clemente was an incredible human being.

The Pirates star was killed in a plane accident while en route to deliver aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. In a recent interview, Clemente's son perfectly described his father's impact. "My father was the 87th Latino to be in the major leagues, but he was the first one to be able to speak up and become an activist, not only in baseball, but in society."

Here's another suggestion: How about a day to comemorate the players who were never given the chance to play Major League Baseball. A Josh Gibson day. Every player could wear a Negro League jersey.

With the emergence of Asian players, maybe MLB should have a Masanori Murakami day. Murakami was the first Japanese player. The left hander struck out 100 Major League batters between 1964-65.

MLB could have 162 "days" to celebrate all the players who have shaped baseball. What I'd really like to see next April 15 is players wearing the jersey name and number of the player who influenced them most. Before the game, there could be a ceremony where each player explains to the crowd why they chose their jersey-for-a-day.

This way, Jackie would get mentioned -Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano was named after Jackie and wears No. 24 because he can't wear 42. And at the same time, appropriate tribute could be given to those like Doby and Clemente.