Jackie Robinson Legends in Sports By Matt Christopher Book report by Quinn Martin

Childhood Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia on January 31,1919. His parents Jerry and Mallie Robinson raised Jackie and 4 other children. Jerry was a sharecropper who worked on a plantation for a white man named James Sasser. Mallie raised the five children after Jerry Robinson left when Jackie was six months old. He told her that he was going to Texas to visit his brother and find a job. Instead he went to Florida and took another man’s wife and never came back.

Younger Life In 1920 Jackie and his siblings moved with their mother moved to Los Angeles where she got a job as a maid. In 1923 his mother saved enough money to buy a small house in Pasadena, however they were not welcomed by their neighbors. Some of them started rumors that the children were vandalizing people’s houses. Others started a petition to make them move. Therefore Jackie and the Robinsons had a challenging young life.

Teenage Years Jackie and all the other Robinson children excelled at football, basketball and baseball. After Jackie started to play sports on the streets the kids realized he was the fastest and most athletic kid on the block. When he was old enough he and his brother Mack joined a group of kids called “The Pepper Street Gang.” They challenged other LA gangs to sports games such as football, basketball and other sports. In High School Jackie was the star running back on the football team but since he was black he didn’t get treated kindly. On the baseball field he was the starting shortstop and had a outstanding .417 average. On the basketball court Jackie was a star immediately. He led the team in points per game, but since he was African American he was a target again.

College Life Jackie first went to Pasadena Junior College and UCLA. At the end of Junior College in Pasadena Jackie was one of the best players in the country. Colleges wanted him for their team so badly they started making illegal offers such as giving him money, and cars and other things. His brother Frank helped him break down what colleges he could go to. Using his advice from Frank he decided to pick the scholarship from UCLA which was conveniently nearby. Sadly Frank didn’t see Jackie perform at UCLA as he died in a motorcycle crash in 1939. When he finally got to UCLA in the fall of 1939 he was once again he felt out of place he was one of the only African Americans in his school. PICTURE? Jackie Robinson during track at UCLA.

Vocabulary Vandalizing - deliberately destroy or damage (public or private property.) Part of speech: verb. Intimidate - frighten or overawe (someone) esp. in order to make them do what one wants. Part of speech: verb. Segregation - the action or state of setting someone or something apart from other people or things being set apart. Part of speech: noun. Insubordinate - deflate of authority, disobedient to orders. Part of speech: adjective. Flourish - grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way, esp. as the result of a particularly favorable event. Part of speech: verb.

Early Career After Jackie finished college, he got invited to play football in a semi-pro league. His team was called the Los Angeles Bulldogs of the Pacific Coast Professional Football League. Jackie accepted their offer of $100 per game which earned him a job. That winter Jackie joined a semi pro basketball team called the Los Angeles Red Devils even though he wanted a coaching job. Unfortunately there were no open jobs for African American men. After the season ended Jackie entered the draft for the army as “a sole supporter of his mother.” After the Army he was offered to join the Negro Baseball League. He joined the Kansas City Monarchs in 1945.

Highlight Moments Jackie Robinson is known as being the first African American in Major League Baseball on April 15, 1947. This happened when Branch Rickey the General Manager for the Brooklyn Dodgers signed Jackie on August 28, 1945. One of his most memorable moments was stealing home base against the Phillies in 1950. This was not Jackie Robinson stealing home in a game against the Philadelphia Phillies in 1950.

Career Stats Jackie Robinson played his entire career with the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947 to 1956. In 1947 he played his first MLB season. He played in 151 games out of 162, hit 12 homeruns, and drove in 48 RBIs plus he won rookie of the year. The next season he put up 12 homeruns again and 85 RBIs. In 1949 he put up an outstanding .342 average and stole 37 bases! In 1951 Jackie had yet another outstanding average at.338 and bombed his career best 19 homeruns. The following year he bombed 19 longballs again also had a surprising 106 walks. In I954 Jackie’s games per year were going down he only played in 124. Then the following season played in only 105 games, and his worst average in his career went down to .256! But his team went on to win the World Series.

Post-Career Jackie was a father to three children: David, Sharon, Jackie Jr. His career ended when he retired from baseball at the end of the 1956 season. After he retired he was soon diagnosed with diabetes. Robinson had many health issues such as including heart attacks and near blindness from diabetes. Jackie Robinson died of a heart attack on October 24, 1972.

Conclusion Throughout his life, Jackie Robinson overcame many challenges such as his father leaving his family and the racial barrier. Not only was he an amazing player but always stood up for himself and other people without causing trouble. Jackie Robinson was a great role model! That was my PowerPoint presentation. I hope you liked it. 