When Jackie Robinson stepped onto the diamond at Ebbets Field on April 15, 1947, it was the beginning of a year that would test not only his personal courage, but the mettle of a nation.
While much of Robinson's life has become folklore, the inside story of his pivotal first year on the Brooklyn Dodgers is less well known.
Before he'd even swung a bat in Brooklyn, the media was comparing Robinson to Frederick Douglass, George Washington Carver and Joe Louis. By integrating baseball, Robinson had the weight of a nation on his shoulders, and he knew it.
In his new book, Opening Day: Jackie Robinson's First Season, author Jonathan Eig delves into the personal and professional battles that Robinson fought during his rookie season. Eig tells Liane Hansen about the man who would lead the Dodgers in their dramatic race for the 1947 pennant.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.