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Elston
Howard was the first black Yankee. He overcame a great deal
of verbal abuse and prejudice to become one of the all time
Yankee greats. He was born in St. Louis on February 23rd,
1929. At Vashon High School in St. Louis, he was a star
baseball, basketball, track, and football player. In 1948,
at the age of 19, after graduating from high school, he
joined the Kansas City Monarchs in the Negro Leagues. Howard
became a Yankee when the civil rights movement was just
beginning in this country in the early 50's. Although the
Brooklyn Dodgers had broken the color barrier in baseball in
1947 by signing Jackie Robinson, most other Major League
ball clubs were slow to accept the idea of having black
players on their teams. The Yankees were no exception. By
1952, pickets appeared in front of Yankee Stadium
criticizing the discriminatory practices of the Yankee
organization. The general manager of the Yankees, George
Weiss, to postpone the inevitable as long as possible, did
what a number of other clubs did. He signed a handful of
black players to minor league contracts. Tokenism was having
blacks playing in the farm system. In the early 1950's, the
Yankees signed Artie Wilson, Ruben Gomez, Vic Power, Frank
Barnes, and Elston Howard. Then, whenever Weiss was
criticized for being a racist, he would reply, "The Yankees
will bring up a Negro as soon as one that fits the high
Yankee Standards is found." Barnes, Wilson, and Gomez were
all traded to other organizations. And in December, 1953,
Vic Power was traded to the Philadelphia Athletics. Many
people thought he was traded because his excellent record
made him eligible to become a Yankee. And the Yankee
organization still did not want a black player on the team.
Ellie Howard fit George Weiss's requirements perfectly. In 1955, Howard became a Yankee. Howard's manager on the field, Casey Stengel, was not accustomed to blacks playing in the Major Leagues. Although he was not prejudiced against Howard as a player or a person, his general attitude toward blacks came through loud and clear in the things he said and the vocabulary he used, such as calling Howard "Eightball" to his face, a not so subtle reference to the jet back color of that ball in pool. However, Stengel's admiration for talent overcame all racial barriers. After seeing how valuable Howard was to the Yankees, Stengel became an admirer. He included Howard on every all star team beginning in 1957, and he always praised Howard for his all around ability and his strong desire to play. Unlike Jackie Robinson, Howard was fortunate that his teammates accepted him immediately and wholeheartedly. In an interview with Peter Golenbock, author of Dynasty, Howard said, "Everybody tried to make everything pleasant for this black guy who was the first one with us. I remember Bill Skowron and his wife came to pick me up at the train station, which I'll never forget, and Phil Rizzuto, goddamn, he was great! I'll never forget him. I give Phil the most credit out of anyone. He would call me up during the day and take me out to various places, go to the movies, meet people around the league. I would call him the Great White Father. He was the type of man I respected and I give him a lot of credit. Also Hank Bauer… The whole ball club was great. I remember one day, the first year I was there, I hit a triple that won a ballgame. My biggest ballgame. I won the ballgame for the Yankees in the bottom of the 9th, and I was outside doing an interview. I came into the locker room, and they had towels lined up from the door to my locker. Joe Collins, Mickey Mantle. They lined the towels up. It was like a red carpet. Laid out for me. I was surprised. And when they did that, I figured I was accepted just like everyone else." Ellie Howard
was a very valuable man on the Yankees whether catching,
playing first base, or playing the outfield. He played on
ten pennant-winning teams in a 13-year stretch, earning four
championship rings. As a catcher he ranked with the great
ones, on the same level as Yogi Berra and Roy Campanella. By
1960, Howard was the starting catcher and Berra was more
often in the field. Howard was an exceptional defensive
catcher; his .993 career fielding average is one of the
highest ever, and he pioneered the use of a hinged catcher's
mitt that led to the modern one-handed catching techniques.
He was also highly regarded as a handler of pitchers. He was
named to the American League All-Star team nine consecutive
years. Howard was also a strong hitter, three times topping
.300, with a high of .348 in 1961. In 1963, he led the
Yankees to their fourth straight pennant in a year when
Maris and Mantle were often out with injuries. In fact, in
1963, Howard was voted the MVP in the American League. He
was the first black baseball player to win this award in the
American League.
Howard's teammates took personally the insults directed at him. During one home game, Hank Bauer crawled on top of the dugout at Yankee Stadium to confront a fan who was shouting racial insults at Howard, a rookie at the time. Bauer, glaring, peered into the stands to see if he could identify the heckler. He searched a long while, hoping the man would incriminate himself by making another remark. Fortunately for the guy, he didn't. After the game, a reporter, watching all this, asked Bauer about the incident. Bauer just shrugged his shoulders and said, "Ellie's my friend." Through all the insults and abuse, Elston Howard remained silent. He was not a person who enjoyed making waves. His primary goal was to play for the Yankees, even if his lack of action or reaction might cause him to be labeled an "Uncle Tom." Howard, a conservative man on a conservative team, sought to become a Yankee, and he succeeded his way, playing on the team from 1955 to 1967, and keeping most of his ordeal private. Along the way he earned the MVP award and after he retired as a player, he was named the first black Yankee coach. He said, "You know, I never would have gone through what Jackie Robinson went through. I don't think I could have taken it. I give Jackie a great deal of credit for opening the way up for me." Just as
Jackie Robinson opened the door for other blacks in Major
League Baseball, Elston Howard opened the door for other
blacks who wanted to become Yankees. Although he may not
have been subjected to the same amount of abuse as Jackie
Robinson, he still suffered through a great deal of verbal
attacks and discriminatory practices at hotels, restaurants,
etc. Through it all, Elston Howard remained dignified,
courteous, and professional. He was a gentleman and he was
the ultimate Yankee. And he did it his way. |
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