Doby, Larry, 1923-2003

<p>Lawrence Eugene Doby (December 13, 1923 – June 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who was the second black player to break baseball's color barrier and the first black player in the American League. A native of Camden, South Carolina and three-sport all-state athlete while in high school in Paterson, New Jersey, Doby accepted a basketball scholarship from Long Island University. At 17 years of age, he began his professional baseball career with the Newark Eagles as the team's second baseman. Doby joined the United States Navy during World War II. His military service complete, Doby returned to baseball in 1946, and along with teammate Monte Irvin, helped the Eagles win the Negro League World Series.</p>

<p>In July 1947—three months after Jackie Robinson made history with the Brooklyn Dodgers—Doby broke the MLB color barrier in the American League when he signed a contract to play with Bill Veeck's Cleveland Indians. Doby was the first player to go directly to the majors from the Negro leagues. A seven-time All-Star center fielder, Doby and teammate Satchel Paige were the first African-American players to win a World Series championship when the Indians took the crown in 1948. He helped the Indians win a Major League Baseball record 111 games and the AL pennant in 1954, finished second in the AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award voting and was the AL's RBI leader and home run champion. He went on to play for the Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, and Chunichi Dragons before his retirement as a player in 1962.</p>

<p>Doby later served as the second black manager in the majors with the Chicago White Sox, and in 1995 was appointed to a position in the AL's executive office. He also served as a director with the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 by the Hall's Veterans Committee and died in 2003 at the age of 79.</p>

<p>Perhaps no one is more remembered for being second than Larry Doby.</p>

<p>He was the second African-American to play in the National League or American League – but the first in the AL – in the modern era after Jackie Robinson. He was the second Black manager of an AL or NL club after Frank Robinson.</p>

<p>He may have been second in those two regards, but Larry Doby was so much more.</p>

<p>Doby began his baseball career as a star infielder for the Newark Eagles of the Negro National League and was also the first African-American player to play professional basketball in the ABL, a precursor to the NBA. After taking time out from professional sports to serve in the United States Navy during WWII, Doby returned to the NNL and led the Eagles to the Negro Leagues championship in 1946.</p>

<p>In 1947, only a few months after Jackie Robinson’s major league debut, Cleveland Indians owner Bill Veeck signed Doby, who became the first Black player in the American League. Doby suffered the same indignities as Jackie Robinson, but his struggles did not get the media attention Robinson’s received. Whether it was being forced to stay in separate hotels or eat in separate restaurants on the road, or not being accepted by some of his teammates, Doby persevered.</p>

<p>Teammate Mel Harder recalled: “It may have (bothered Doby), but he never complained to the players; when he joined, naturally it was a tough time. But after he was with us a while, he got along pretty good.”</p>

His first major league manager Lou Boudreau said: “Larry proved to them (the other players) that he was a major leaguer in handling himself in more ways than one – on the field and off the field.”

In 1948, his first full campaign in the AL, Doby became the first African-American to hit a home run in World Series play. In 1952, the slugging center fielder became the first African-American to lead either league in home runs.

During his time in the big leagues, Doby was a seven time All-Star and put together five-100 RBI and eight-20 home run seasons. In 1978, the same man who gave him his shot as a player in the major leagues in 1947, Bill Veeck, hired him to manage his Chicago White Sox.

Upon his passing on June 18, 2003, President George W. Bush said: “Larry Doby was a good and honorable man, and a tremendous athlete and manager. He had a profound influence on the game of baseball.”

Doby was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1998.