Jackie Robinson’s first September in Major League Baseball was rife with the drama commensurate with being the modern era’s first Black player in a highly segregated society. In Robinson’s rookie season, the Brooklyn Dodgers were engaged in a heated battle for the National League pennant while Robinson was in the eye of a storm, establishing his place, not only in baseball history but within the socio-cultural history of a nation struggling more and more publicly with issues around civil rights and race relations.
September 11, 1947
Robinson hits his 10th home run of the season in the Brooklyn Dodgers 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. Starting pitcher Ralph Branca, earns his 20th win of the season as the first place Dodgers take a six-game lead over the second place Cardinals in the National League.
September 17, 1947
Robinson connects for his 11th home run of the season, going 2-3 with two RBIs and is named MLB’s first ever “Rookie of the Year” by the Baseball Writers Association of America and The Sporting News with two weeks remaining in the season. Pictured: On November 11, 1947, Robinson is presented the J. Louis Comisky Memorial Award (Rookie of the Year Award) by the chairman of the Chicago chapter of the Baseball Writers Association during their annual dinner.
September 22, 1947
A color illustration of Jackie Robinson’s face by artist Ernest Hamlin Baker graces the cover of Time magazine, which featured Robinson.
September 23, 1947
Prominent Black entertainer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson joins forces with the New York Amsterdam News to celebrate Jackie Robinson’s barrier breaking accomplishments in a pre-game ceremony at Ebbets Field. Robinson is presented with gifts including a Tiffany gold watch, a light gray Cadillac, and even a fur coat for Rachel Robinson, secured with funds raised from individuals and businesses across the United States through the reach of the News. A post-game event in Harlem that evening topped off this first “Jackie Robinson Day.” Robinson’s mother, Mallie, makes her first airplane flight to be present for the occasion.
