By Jeff Little
Baseball is still referred to as "America's Pastime", but
today, that isn't entirely true. Though still popular, interest in the
sport continues to decline.
Most baseball purists would agree that when comparing all the
eras in which baseball has existed, the 1950's were the years in which
it reached its peak. The 50's had more avid fans, media coverage and
knowledgeable followers than ever before. And there were lots of
reasons for this…most of them players.
Long before the current trend of paying players more than the
gross national product of many small countries, participants in the
sport were paid well, but not obscenely well. And they earned every
penny of it with their poise and talent; becoming national heroes
instead of just more names in scandal sheets and faces on
gossip-oriented television.
Players of the 50's were far from saints, but their exploits
off the field were usually overshadowed by their incredible
athleticism and winning personalities. Many became so famous that even
non-fans of today know their names.
Jackie Robinson is a name that everyone knows (or should). Jack
Roosevelt Robinson became the first African American to play Major
League Baseball in modern times on April 15, 1947, starting for the
Brooklyn Dodgers. By the end of his career, Robinson had played in 6
World Series (1947, 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956), forever
changing the world as we know it.
Jackie Robinson helped make it possible for countless members
of minorities in countless fields of endeavor to take a huge step
toward equality. By enduring not only verbal abuse, but actual death
threats on a regular basis, he proved himself to be more than a truly
great baseball player. He proved himself to be a truly great man.
Retiring in 1957, Jackie Robinson was only one of the many
greats who left the game in the 50's. Some of the most incredible
careers in baseball came to an end between 1950 and 1960.
Among the 1950's retirees, one of the most famous players to
hang-up his cleats was "Joltin'" Joe DiMaggio, who ended a 16-year
career with the New York Yankees in 1951. But before he left, DiMaggio
compiled an amazing record which included a 56-game hitting streak.
Years after his retirement, DiMaggio would retain fame for
non-baseball activities such as his 1954 marriage to Marilyn Monroe
and a lengthy stint as spokesman for "Mr. Coffee". Where could the
Yankees possibly find a player who would ever be as beloved as Joe
DiMaggio?
Hailing from Spavinaw, Oklahoma, Mickey Mantle became heir
apparent to the DiMaggio throne when he began his Major League career
with the New York Yankees in 1951. The following year, Mantle replaced
the amazing DiMaggio in center field.
Mantle has come to be called "the greatest player who ever
lived" by many. He became renowned for his brilliant fielding and
incredible power hitting while making his name one of the most
well-known in the history of the sport before retiring in 1969.
Today, there are many great players, but by most estimation
they pale in comparison to the legends of the 1950's, when baseball
really was "America's Pastime".
Go
to Rewind the Fifties Home
