Jackie Robinson Day
Today’s lineup:
Soriano, LF
Theriot, SS
Lee, 1B
Ramirez, 3B
Fukudome, RF
DeRosa, 2B
Soto, C
Pie, CF
Dempster, RHP
Right-hander Aaron Harang starts on the hill for the Reds. And leading off for the visitors? Former Cubs prospect Corey Patterson.
Honoring a baseball great
Today, April 15, marks the second Jackie Robinson Day. Following a tradition started last year, players around the league will be wearing the MLB-retired No. 42.
The Cubs’ Derrek Lee, Daryle Ward, and coaches Gerald Perry and Lester Strode will be honoring Robinson. For the Reds, Ken Griffey and Dusty Baker will sport the special jerseys.
Did anyone else see that Grady Sizemore honored Jackie too? To me…now that’s class! I think it’s pretty obvious why the other African-American players would honor Jackie, but for a white player to pay homage as well is a great testiment Grady’s classy-ness.
It is a great gesture that ballplayers like Grady Sizemore recognize the importance and legacy of Jackie Robinson. Some entire teams even honored Jackie Robinson: Oakland, Tampa Bay, Texas, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Washington, the Mets and the Dodgers. There were 330 players and on-field staff sporting No. 42 in all.