Jackie Robinson

When I was young, we didn't have a TV.  I discovered baseball on the radio, listening to Bob Murphy and Gary Thorne call the 1985 Mets season.  Baseball on the radio was pure magic.  The Mets were a team on the rise with an exciting mix of veterans, young stars, and role players, and Murphy and Thorne called each pitch like it was a World Series game 7. 

Listening to the games as a ten year old, I had no concept of the players' race or ethnicity.  The only differentiation between players was how they played the game.  Playing in the backyard with my brother, I was Dwight Gooden when I was pitching and Keith Hernandez when I was hitting.  Sometimes I'd bring in Roger McDowell in relief if my brother got a few hits off Doc.  I knew Hernandez was a lefty hitter and I was a righty, but that was the only difference between me and Keith, Doc, or McDowell. 

Now I know that the '85 Mets team and baseball as a whole wouldn't have been the same without men like Jackie Robinson.  Even at a live game or on TV today, I think most fans see a team the way that it came across on the radio to me as a kid.  What color are the players?  Depends if they are wearing their home or road uniforms.  What group do they belong to?  The Mets if that's what it says on their uniform. 

Maybe ESPN and MLB are going overboard with some of their Jackie Robinson 60th anniversary coverage, but compare that to what we see on MTV, BET, and VH1; recently heard on Imus; or observed in the Duke case.  The entertainment world - music and TV especially - could use a few Jackie Robinsons.  Look no further than baseball for an example.  Or, better yet, listen to a game on the radio the next time you're out barbecuing on a warm summer night.