Lesson 49 - What If Baseball Broke The Color Barrier In 1924
Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color line when he started at first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. When the Dodgers signed Robinson, they heralded the end of racial segregation in professional baseball that had relegated black players to the Negro leagues since the 1880s......but what if Branch Rickey signed "Cool Papa" Bell to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1924? How would this signing change the game...the nation? Do other teams start to sign players like Satchel Paige later Josh Gibson? Listen today as Mark A. Johnston and Jeff Paulson of Two Strike Noise podcast along with Thee Doctor and PUG will explore this what if in history.
About Two Strike Noise podcast:
Do you love baseball stories and history? That's what we're all about. Two Strike Noise is a weekly broadcast that is ALL about baseball. We do some fun segments and tell you all about a couple of baseball subjects,from ancient times to recent history. All with our own bit of strange humor and commentary.
Hosts Jeff Paulson and I discuss subjects from The House of David to Albert Bele's "Batgate" to the history of uniform numbers.
Mark A Johnston, started in baseball as a bat boy for the AAA Tacoma Tigers in the late 1980's before outgrowing his uniform and moving upstairs into production. From their he got his call to the big leagues and the Seattle Mariners where he has been working in their control room for more than 2 decades. He has been known to fill in on the stadium organ in a pinch and is considered the class clown of the control room. Jeff started his career in sports production before being offered the opportunity to sit behind home plate for the Atlanta Braves and basically watch baseball and then later hockey and basketball. That job took him around the country working for various teams including the Mariners where he and Mark first met. He now resides in northern California working remotely for teams across the country in between attending games at baseball's last dive bar, the Oakland Coliseum home of his beloved Oakland A's.
Find out more about History's What If Podcast