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luckymann · 07-12-2020, 09:14 AM

It is almost unfathomable to think of the game of baseball today without integration. No Mookie Betts, no Barry Bonds, no Dwight Gooden. And it is one of the real tragedies of the history of this great game that we got to see so little of players such as Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige, and nothing at all of the multitude of other great black players who never graced the diamond at the big league level.

It took the Pirates more than a decade after Jackie Robinson broke the colour line to have their first black player, and that player was 2B Curt Roberts. Branch Rickey, who signed Jackie to the Dodgers, was GM at Pittsburgh by then, and bowed to pressure from the local black community to finally integrate the Pirates.

The old adage “good glove, no bat” described Curt to a tee, and his lack of hitting proficiency meant that his stay in the bigs was a short one. After a couple of seasons in the Pirates farm system, Curt got his call-up. His rookie year of 1954 was his best and only full season, with him playing in 134 games for a .232 / .309 / .302 slash, with one HR and 36 RBI. He certainly started off with a bang, tripling in his first MLB at-bat off Robin Roberts. After a couple of poor years where he had less than 100 plate appearances combined, he lost his spot at second to future HOFer Bill Mazeroski and was traded to the Kansas City Royals before the 1956 season, but never appeared in the bigs again. He spent time in the International League with the Columbus Jets, and became one of just a handful of players in the IL to hit 4 dingers in a game. He was later traded to the Yankees and spent the remainder of his career with various minor league teams, as well as a stint in Nicaragua.

Roberts, who attended the same high school in West Oakland as Frank Robinson, Vada Pinson and Curt Flood (as well as NBA superstar Bill Russell), died aged just 40 when a drunk driver hit him while he was changing a flat tyre.

In a nice bit of serendipity, Curt is a member of the 1901 Pirates in the Footnote League. As at June 6, 1901, his batting slash is eerily mirroring his IRL one at .231 / .312 / .308, although he has only had 13 AB so far. I’ll track his progress and report back every now and then.

Thanks to Brad K for pointing out Curt’s inclusion in the FL.

BASEBALL REFERENCE PAGE

07-12-2020, 09:14 AM	#36
luckymann Hall Of Famer Join Date: Nov 2019 Posts: 14,388	Spotlight Player #2 - Curt Roberts It is almost unfathomable to think of the game of baseball today without integration. No Mookie Betts, no Barry Bonds, no Dwight Gooden. And it is one of the real tragedies of the history of this great game that we got to see so little of players such as Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige, and nothing at all of the multitude of other great black players who never graced the diamond at the big league level. It took the Pirates more than a decade after Jackie Robinson broke the colour line to have their first black player, and that player was 2B Curt Roberts. Branch Rickey, who signed Jackie to the Dodgers, was GM at Pittsburgh by then, and bowed to pressure from the local black community to finally integrate the Pirates. The old adage “good glove, no bat” described Curt to a tee, and his lack of hitting proficiency meant that his stay in the bigs was a short one. After a couple of seasons in the Pirates farm system, Curt got his call-up. His rookie year of 1954 was his best and only full season, with him playing in 134 games for a .232 / .309 / .302 slash, with one HR and 36 RBI. He certainly started off with a bang, tripling in his first MLB at-bat off Robin Roberts. After a couple of poor years where he had less than 100 plate appearances combined, he lost his spot at second to future HOFer Bill Mazeroski and was traded to the Kansas City Royals before the 1956 season, but never appeared in the bigs again. He spent time in the International League with the Columbus Jets, and became one of just a handful of players in the IL to hit 4 dingers in a game. He was later traded to the Yankees and spent the remainder of his career with various minor league teams, as well as a stint in Nicaragua. Roberts, who attended the same high school in West Oakland as Frank Robinson, Vada Pinson and Curt Flood (as well as NBA superstar Bill Russell), died aged just 40 when a drunk driver hit him while he was changing a flat tyre. In a nice bit of serendipity, Curt is a member of the 1901 Pirates in the Footnote League. As at June 6, 1901, his batting slash is eerily mirroring his IRL one at .231 / .312 / .308, although he has only had 13 AB so far. I’ll track his progress and report back every now and then. *Thanks to Brad K for pointing out Curt’s inclusion in the FL.* BASEBALL REFERENCE PAGE Attached Images Last edited by luckymann; 11-26-2020 at 11:10 PM.