Michael Tillery.com

Respect for Frank

Oct 2nd, 2006
by Michael Tillery

The scowl that opposing pitchers still see in their sleep. Sliding hard and breaking up double plays no matter what the game situation. Crowding the plate and challenging pitchers, with forearms flexed, before slamming one of his 586 homers. The misunderstood civil consciousness and a deep concern for prosperity that he still speaks of today. The intimidating power and the sheer passion for the game. The occasional smile only after his team won his two World Series. Frank Robinson was a beast. He played the game right. He was a McClymonds high school of Oakland, California basketball teammate of NBA 11 time champion and Hall of Fame member Bill Russell. Imagine the fire on that team! Their own coach was probably scared. They both amazingly went on to become the initial Black permanent head coaches in their respective sports. Legacy. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. His number is retired by both the Reds and the Orioles. He came out of nowhere in 1956 to take the Reds left field job. He broke Wally Bergner's rookie record of 38 homers and won Rookie of the year.

In a 1959 game against the Braves, he slid hard into Eddie Mathews at third base, and touched off one of the most memorable brawls in Major League history. It was also the first between Black and White stars. He was booed and cussed before responding later with a grand slam. He then went off on a serious tear that climaxed in hitting 3 homers against the Phillies in a late August game. He finished the year with 36 homers, 125 rbi's, 106 runs scored and batted .311. Don't make him mad. When pitchers came inside, they paid dearly with mammoth and hurler neck breaking home runs. Phillies manager Gene Mauch used to fine his pitchers for trying to brush him back. He carried a gun in self defense as he received constant death threats because of his hard core play and his stance on civil rights. He was arrested because he brandished the gun on a short order cook who refused to serve him because he was Black.

Baseball was different back then. There was none of the pretty boy antics that are so prevalent in the game today. In the hood, because of players like Robinson, baseball was played like basketball and football is played now—with serious unforgiving attitude. Imagine the little kid that peered through the backstop waiting for hours just to get struck out. The older kids kept chiding him but he kept playing because he wanted to make an impact on the neighborhood. He just had to hit that curve ball that made him look foolish every other time he came up to the plate. The tall skinny kid whose hat was so low that you couldn't see his eyes had some sick stuff. The cocky little left hander thought to himself, “I wanna hit this ball as far as Frank hit 'em.” Crack! “Wow! Nice shot Reggie Jax,” the pitcher commented—smiling as Reggie touched third. You can still see the swagger as the future “Mr. October” rounded the bases.

Yes, Frank inspired a lot of ball players with his great all around play. He was a career .294 hitter, hit 586 homers, drove in 1812 runs and had 2943 hits in 2808 games. His 586 homers at the time of his retirement were fourth all time behind Aaron, Ruth and Mays. He has since been passed by Bonds and Sosa and stands sixth—with Griffey Jr. laying in waiting with 563—tied for tenth with the aforementioned Reggie Jackson. Frank is the only player to win MVP in both leagues (Cincinnati in 1961, Baltimore in 1966). He hit two grand slams in one game—with the same players on base n 1970. Prior to the 1966 season, he was part of one of the most scrutinized trades in the game's history when he was exchanged amongst others for Baltimore Orioles ace, Milt Pappas. Cincinnati Reds owner, Bill DeWitt called Robinson an “old thirty” to justify trading one of the best players in the game. Frank showed and proved him wrong. He accomplished the most difficult season long feat in sports in hitting for the triple crown (.316, 49 home runs and 122 rbi's), won MVP—regular season and post season—in helping Baltimore to the World Series championship. Cincinnati wouldn't win a world championship until the Big Red Machine came on the scene. Pappas was never the same pitching in Cincinnati. He just couldn't handle the public scrutiny of a trade that would harm DeWitt's legacy.

After reoccurring injuries tarnished his career statistically, Frank made it clear that he wanted to manage. He was already managing in winter ball and wanted to become the first Black manager in the majors. In 1975 the Cleveland Indians were well out of contention and signed Robinson as a player manager. Gaylord Perry, a South Carolina native, quickly had problems with Robinson and questioned his managerial skills. Perry's brother Jim was the second best pitcher on the team. Robinson responded in typical Frank like fashion, hitting a game winning Opening Day homer to give Gaylord the victory. He traded both the Perrys soon afterward.

The Indians began to uncharacteristically win games and Robinson soon phased himself out of the lineup. Cleveland finished 81-78—their first winning season since 1968 and only their third .500+ record since 1959. He was fired when the Indians started slowly in 1977.
He then coached teams that lacked talent in Angels and Giants. In 1986 he returned to the Orioles as a coach. In early 1988 Cal Ripken Sr. was fired after six straight losses to open the season and replaced by Robinson. The losses extended to 21 before the Orioles finally won. Even in this time of incredible defeat, Robinson kept his team loose with old school press conference comments. He turned the team around in 1989, finishing second to eventual World Series champion Toronto—losing to the Blue Jays in the season's final series. Robinson is awarded Manager of the Year. Toronto was managed by Cito Gaston.
It was the first time that two Black managers faced each other in a major league game.
He spent years as the Director of Discipline in MLB and came down hard on players who broke the rules.

Major League baseball asked Robinson to manage the Washington Nationals when the team was moved from Montreal, formerly known as the Expos. They didn't have much talent besides Alfonso Soriano and Livan Hernandez before he recently was traded. He brought a fresh approach of leadership even though some of his players were unaware that he even played in the Majors. He was a loyal manager to those who played the game with passion and broke down in tears earlier this year when he had to take out third string catcher Matt LeCroy in the middle of an inning. There is an unwritten rule that managers take out players only between innings, but LeCroy allowed seven stolen bases over seven innings.
Washington let Robinson know that his contract was not going to be renewed on September 30th. Robinson wanted to know before the end of the season and the organization responded with class to give the fans an opportunity to give Frank his just due. Robinson was one of the last ones left. His old school approach hopefully has instilled a certain character amongst the egotistical players of today. He wasn't the best manager. He won over one thousand and lost just as much. He had a penchant for playing golf all day while managing his respective teams at night and caught a lot of flack because of it. He was known to not walk sluggers intentionally as evidenced last year when Barry Bonds went on a mini tear while playing the Nationals in the heat of a pennant race.

Baseball would be foolish to let someone of his stature fade away from the game. He affected the game so much by just walking through the club house as a manager and as a player.
He fought so much for all players, but especially Black players who didn't get their fair shake. The league is losing an African American identity and surely Robinson has to be concerned.
He was most definitely one of the best players all time. I would put him in the top five even if he didn't have his almost incomparable statistics because of his love for the game and the passion he gave that still permeates through it occasionally. God Bless you Frank. You did us all a favor by just being yourself.