ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 16, 1997 TAG: 9704160068
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
Larry Doby is happy to see the attention the Jackie Robinson anniversary is getting.
One former ballplayer knows better than anyone else what playing in Jackie Robinson's spikes was like.
That man is Larry Doby.
Three months after Robinson broke the color barrier by playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the National League, Doby became the first black American Leaguer with the Cleveland Indians.
The day was July 5, 1947.
``It doesn't seem like it's been 50 years,'' Doby said.
``I'm looking forward to this year - being a part of the historic celebration,'' Doby said.
Friends and admirers are troubled by the lesser role he is being relegated to play to the idolized Robinson.
``I think he's been overlooked'' is how former teammate Lou Brissie put it.
``Larry, in my mind, deserves whatever honor that baseball can give him. He earned it,'' said Brissie.
Major League Baseball will salute Doby at this year's All-Star Game in Cleveland.
Yet much of America's focus is on the golden anniversary of Robinson's achievement. Museums are sponsoring exhibits. A street in New York was renamed in his honor. In his documentary tribute to baseball, filmmaker Ken Burns mentioned Doby's contributions in passing.
Every professional ballplayer wears a patch on his uniform marking the anniversary. ``Jackie Robinson Breaking Barriers'' it says.
National news organizations are trying to recognize Doby's contributions by doing stories about him. Most note how at 72, he is a vigorous man still working, graciously willing to reminisce about his experiences.
For Mike Veeck, a family friend whose late father Bill gave Doby his chance to play for Cleveland 50 years ago, that attention is not enough.
``This isn't meant to belittle Jackie Robinson, but I marvel at our ability to honor people who can't talk about it anymore,'' said Veeck, one of the new owners of the Charleston (S.C.) River Dogs. Robinson died in 1972.
``I'm bemused that Larry Doby sits in what I view as relative obscurity because he came along (11) weeks later.''
If the slights others see bother Doby, he tries to hide it.
``All this attention being directed at Mr. Robinson means a lot to me as an individual, and as a member of a group,'' Doby said. ``You see so much good that has come about since we did it.''
Doby grew up in Camden, S.C.'s Lyttleton Street neighborhood. Like most blacks of his generation, he lived in a segregated world.
He remembers playing a version of street baseball with white youngsters. ``I never knew anything about tensions between blacks and whites'' as a child, he said.
Doby moved to Paterson, N.J., in his teens to finish high school. He briefly studied at Long Island University on scholarship while also playing Negro Leagues baseball.
After serving in the Navy during World War II, he rejoined the Newark (N.J.) Eagles. Fifty years ago this week, the Eagles were in Florida, awaiting word on Robinson's fate.
``We were all pulling for him. It gave us hope,'' said Doby, a star in his own right.
Bill Veeck came calling a short time later and by midsummer, he was a Cleveland Indian. Doby went on to a Hall-of-Fame career as a power-hitting outfielder.
Over the past half-century, historians and sociologists chronicled the abuse and racism directed at Robinson. Doby knows those tribulations well.
``Think about it. It would have been nice to have changed things in 11 weeks. But it didn't happen,'' Doby said.
When introduced to his new teammates, some refused to shake Doby's hand. His first day as an Indian, others were reluctant to play catch with him.
It hurt. But Doby harbors little public bitterness toward individuals.
``Progress has been made,'' Doby said. ``You see so many minorities involved in baseball in so many capacities.''
LENGTH: Medium: 84 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS. Cleveland outfielder Larry Doby wasby CNBthe first black to play in the American League, three months after
Jackie Robinson's debut.