- News>
- Others
Hall of famer Doby dies, aged 79
New York, June 18: Baseball hall of famer Larry Doby, the first black player in the American league, died yesterday after a long illness.
New York, June 18: Baseball hall of famer Larry Doby, the
first black player in the American league, died yesterday after a
long illness.
Larry Doby Jr said his 79-year-old father died at his home in Montclair, New Jersey. Doby joined the Cleveland Indians of the American League on July 5, 1947, 11 weeks after Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers became the first black player in the national league. The seven times all-star outfielder spent 13 seasons in the AL, most of them with the Indians. He helped Cleveland win its last world series title in 1948. Doby ended his playing career in 1959 with the detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox. He then became only the second black man to manage a major league team, following Frank Robinson, when he was hired by the White Sox in 1978.
He was voted into the hall of fame by its veterans committee in 1998.
A sensitive man, Doby faced a difficult battle for acceptance after breaking the AL's color barrier. He had to eat in separate restaurants and sleep in separate hotels from his team mates and was often the target of racial slurs in his early years.
Doby hit at least 20 home runs in eight straight years. He led the AL in homers in 1952 and 1954, hitting 32 both years, and led the league in 1954 with 126 rbi.
He was born in Camden, South Carolina, the son of a semi-pro baseball player who died when he was just eight. Doby and his wife Helyn, who died of cancer in 2001, had five children.
Doby also had coaching and front-office jobs with the White Sox, Indians and Montreal Expos after retiring. He ended his baseball career by working in the commissioner's office in New York.
Bureau Report
Larry Doby Jr said his 79-year-old father died at his home in Montclair, New Jersey. Doby joined the Cleveland Indians of the American League on July 5, 1947, 11 weeks after Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers became the first black player in the national league. The seven times all-star outfielder spent 13 seasons in the AL, most of them with the Indians. He helped Cleveland win its last world series title in 1948. Doby ended his playing career in 1959 with the detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox. He then became only the second black man to manage a major league team, following Frank Robinson, when he was hired by the White Sox in 1978.
He was voted into the hall of fame by its veterans committee in 1998.
A sensitive man, Doby faced a difficult battle for acceptance after breaking the AL's color barrier. He had to eat in separate restaurants and sleep in separate hotels from his team mates and was often the target of racial slurs in his early years.
Doby hit at least 20 home runs in eight straight years. He led the AL in homers in 1952 and 1954, hitting 32 both years, and led the league in 1954 with 126 rbi.
He was born in Camden, South Carolina, the son of a semi-pro baseball player who died when he was just eight. Doby and his wife Helyn, who died of cancer in 2001, had five children.
Doby also had coaching and front-office jobs with the White Sox, Indians and Montreal Expos after retiring. He ended his baseball career by working in the commissioner's office in New York.
Bureau Report