Hall of Famer Frank Robinson Passes Away at 83

Frank Robinson, one of the greatest players in the history of baseball, passed away today at the age of 83. Robinson died in Los Angeles after a battle with bone cancer.

Robinson played all three outfield positions and first base for 5 different teams in his 21-year MLB career. At the time of his retirement as a player after the 1976 season, his 586 career home runs were the 4th most in baseball history, behind only fellow Hall of Famers Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth and Willie Mays. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum along with Aaron in 1982. Robinson was a star for both the Cincinnati Reds and Baltimore Orioles and remains the only player in baseball history to win the Most Valuable Player Award in both leagues.

In 1966, his first year with the Orioles, Robinson won the A.L. Triple crown and a World Series title, the first of two rings he would earn in Baltimore. He was selected to 14 All-Star teams in 12 seasons during his career (from 1959-62, there were two All-Star Games per season).

The right-handed hitting Robinson was one of the most feared hitters in baseball and also one who would happily take a bruise for his team. He stood close to the plate and was hit by 198 pitches in his career, the 9th most in history. He was an aggressive and hard-nosed base-runner who often took a football approach to collisions at 2nd base or at the plate. His aggressive style of play earned him the nickname “the black Ty Cobb” early in his career.

“When he’s running nobody has to tell him what to do. He’s watching to see how the ball was hit, who’ll get it, how fast the outfielder is, how good his arm is. He makes up his own mind whether to try for the extra base. The coaches never give him signals. He’s on his own. Much of that is good baseball thinking, but a lot of it is instinct. Robbie’s instinct is better than our advice.”

— Reggie Otero, Cincinnati Reds coach (in Sports Illustrated, June 17, 1963)

Robinson is the second member of the 500 home run club to pass away in the last few months. First baseman Willie McCovey, a longtime star for the San Francisco Giants and others, passed away last October at the age of 80.

An Underappreciated Superstar

Playing in an era with Aaron, Mays, Mickey Mantle and Roberto Clemente, Frank Robinson was a superstar who Bob Costas today on MLB Network called “underrated” or “under-celebrated” because of the greater fame of his peers. Costas also compared Robinson to Bob Gibson, old school players who wouldn’t “embrace” a teammate until you “passed a test.” Players like Robinson and Gibson did not suffer fools.

While he was still playing, Robinson became baseball’s first African-American manager, with the Cleveland Indians in 1975. It was the first of his four managerial jobs, the others being in San Francisco, Baltimore and Montreal/Washington.

In between his third and fourth stints in the dugout, Robinson was MLB’s Vice-President of On-Field Operations from 1999-2002. It was during these years that I met him. I was the Coordinating Producer for ESPN’s Up Close show and he was a guest in his role as MLB VP. He was about 65 years old at the time. What I distinctly remember about the encounter was that Robinson had an aura about him. Today, while watching MLB Network, I’ve heard the phrase “baseball royalty” used to describe him. That describes perfectly the feeling I had when I was in his presence.

After his final year managerial tour with the Washington Nationals (in 2006), Robinson served in multiple other capacities in MLB’s front office. While with the Nationals, in 2005, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush. This was when Frank Robinson became “American royalty” and one of baseball’s greatest ambassadors.

Cooperstown Cred: Frank Robinson (OF)

• Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982 (1st year on the ballot, 89.2% of the vote)
• Cincinnati Reds (1956-65), Baltimore Orioles (1966-71), Los Angeles Dodgers (1972), California Angels (1973-74), Cleveland Indians (1974-76)
• Career: .294 BA, .389 OBP, .537 SLG, 586 HR, 1,812 RBI, 2,943 Hits
• Career: 154 adjusted OPS+, 107.3 WAR (Wins Above Replacement)
• 1956 N.L. Rookie of the Year: .290 BA, 38 HR, 83 RBI, 122 Runs
• 1961 N.L. MVP: .323 BA, 37 HR, 124 RBI, 22 SB
• 1966 A.L. MVP & Triple Crown Winner: .316 BA, 49 HR, 122 RBI, 122 Runs, 198 OPS+
• Led league in Slugging and OPS in 4 different seasons
• 12 different seasons as an All-Star
• Won Gold Glove in 1958

(cover photo: Sports Legends)

Career Highlights

Frank Robinson was born on August 31, 1935 in Beaumont, Texas, one of his mother’s 10 children. Frank is not related to Jackie Robinson but the two are often talked about together and have a couple of similarities in their early years. Frank’s parents divorced when he was an infant. Jackie’s parents also split in his infancy. Just as Jackie’s mother moved her family to California (Pasadena, specifically), Frank’s mother moved her family to California. In the case of Frank, his siblings and their mother, the move was to northern California, in Alameda and then West Oakland.

Robinson was a three sport star in high school. Besides baseball, Frank played football and basketball, where he was a teammate with future basketball Hall of Famer Bill Russell at McClymonds High School in Oakland.

Although Jackie was, of course, the trail blazer, Frank signed with the Cincinnati Redlegs at the age of 17 in 1953, just six years after Jackie’s ground-breaking debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Frank spent three years in the minor leagues, experiencing a great deal of racism along the way, before making the Redlegs’ big league team in 1956 (the team would change it’s nickname back to the “Reds” in 1959).

Cincinnati Reds (1956-1965)

At 20 years of age, Frank Robinson was an instant star in Cincinnati, winning the Rookie of the Year Award. As a rookie, he led the N.L. with 122 runs scored and also 20 times hit by a pitch. Robinson, the best player on the team, helped the Redlegs to 91 wins, just two games shy of the N.L. Pennant. Cincinnati had seen 11 consecutive losing teams prior to Frank’s arrival.The

Playing mostly left field or first base, Robinson was a consistent presence in the lineup in each of his first five seasons and then slightly upped his game in 1961. After finishing in the top 10 of the MVP voting in three of his first five campaigns, Robinson won the award in ’61. Splitting his time between left and right field, Robinson and fellow outfielder Vada Pinson (Frank’s high school teammate as well) led the Reds to their first pennant since 1940.

A notable and famous moment in 1961: the Reds were in Los Angeles. Don Drysdale ignored an intentional walk order from manager Walter Alston. After knocking down Robinson twice, he hit him with a pitch. Drysdale was removed and Robinson got his revenge on Drysdale’s teammates by hitting a two-run homer and three-run double in his next two at bats.

The Reds won the pennant by 4 games over the Dodgers but fell in 5 games to the New York Yankees in the World Series.

Statistically, Robinson was even better in 1962: he hit a career-best .342 with a career-best .421 on-base%. He also established career highs in hits (208), doubles (51) and runs scored (134). For the third straight season, he led the N.L. in slugging percentage and OPS (a statistic people didn’t recognize at the time). Using another stat that did not yet exist, Robinson’s 8.7 WAR was also the highest of his career. The Reds won 98 games in ’62 but that was only good enough for third in the league that year, behind the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants. Robinson finished fourth in the MVP balloting in ’62 and would do so again in ’64, when the Reds won 92 games and finished just one game shy of the pennant-winning St. Louis Cardinals.

In 1965 at the age of 29, Robinson had another excellent season (.296 BA, 33 HR, 113 RBI) as the Reds 89 games, good enough for fourth in the N.L. The ’65 Reds featured an emerging star in third-year second baseman Pete Rose, the still-productive Pinson and two 20-game winners (Jim Maloney and Sammy Ellis). Still, team owner Bill DeWitt decided to break up this pack of stars, feeling that Robinson was a a fading talent increasingly hobbled by leg injuries.” As a result, the “too old at 30” Robinson was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for three players, most notably All-Star starting pitcher Milt Pappas. This would be one of the worst trades in MLB history.

“My mind went blank when the trade was announced… But when I thought about it, I changed my thinking. … I did not feel I had anything to prove, yet I wanted to prove to Bill DeWitt that I was not done at age 30.”

— Frank Robinson (in The Baltimore Orioles: Four Decades of Magic from 33rd Street to Camden Yards by Ted Patterson)

Baltimore Orioles (1966-1971)

When Frank Robinson joined the Orioles, he joined a team ready for prime time. Under manager Hank Bauer, the O’s had won 97 games in 1964 and 94 in ’65, finishing third in the A.L. each season. On a team that already had three future Hall of Famers (third baseman Brooks Robinson, shortstop Luis Aparicio and pitcher Jim Palmer), Robinson instantly became their greatest star. He won his second MVP trophy in ’66 while leading the O’s to 97 wins and the A.L. pennant.

As we noted earlier, Robinson’s debut season in Baltimore was a Triple Crown campaign; he led the league in hitting (.316), home runs (a career-high 49) and RBI (122). In addition, Robinson’s .410 OBP and .637 were the best in the A.L. His adjusted OPS+ (208) was also a career best and the highest in all of baseball.

The Orioles right fielder backed up his MVP campaign with another MVP trophy in the Fall Classic. He hit 2 home runs with a 1.232 OPS in the Orioles’ 4-game sweep over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series. The two home runs, fittingly, were off Drysdale.

“Today is a very sad day because I lost not only my teammate, but also a very dear friend. I loved Frank and got to know him so much better after we both retired… As a player, I put Frank in a class with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and Mickey Mantle. He was the best player I ever played with. When he came here in 1966, he put us over the top.”

— Statement from Brooks Robinson (Frank’s teammate from 1966-71)

 

In 1967, Robinson’s hard-nosed style resulted in a collision that he feels stunted his career. While trying to break up a double play, Robinson banged his head against the knee of Chicago’s Al Weis. Robinson suffered a concussion and prolonged double vision. The injury limited Robinson to a career-low 129 games; other injuries kept him to 130 games in 1968. Although ’68 represented the worst season of his career to date, the 32-year old still was productive, posting a 162 OPS+ even with then-career lows of 15 HR and 52 RBI.

Robinson had a comeback season in 1969; he hit 32 HR with 100 RBI and a slash line of .308/.415/.540. For this he earned a 174 OPS+ and 7.5 WAR by modern metrics and finished third in the MVP vote. Under 2nd year Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver, the Orioles won a franchise best 109 games but fell in 5 games in the World Series to the Miracle New York Mets.

Robinson’s productivity dipped slightly in 1970 (25 HR, 78 RBI) but he still posted a 160 OPS+, helping the O’s to another 108 regular season wins. This time, Baltimore was on the winning end of a 5-game Fall Classic, defeating the Reds. In the series, Robinson belted 2 HR to go with 4 RBI against his former team.

The 1971 Orioles won a mere 101 games en route to a third consecutive A.L. East title. Robinson, still productive at 35, hit 28 taters to go with 99 RBI and a robust 162 OPS+.

During the season, Robinson was the MVP of the All-Star Game (thanks to a go-ahead, two-run HR off Dock Ellis) and, in September, became the 11th player in baseball history to reach the 500 home run mark. The O’s managed to sweep another 101-win team (the Oakland A’s) in the ALCS but fell in the World Series in 7 games to the Pittsburgh Pirates. In his final postseason appearance, Frank Robinson hit another 2 home runs (both of the solo variety) to go with a .877 OPS.

Besides being Baltimore’s best player during his six years with the O’s, Frank Robinson was also a team leader. He earned the nickname “Judge” because he presided over the team’s Kangaroo Court, the first of its kind in baseball. As the judge and jury of the court, Robinson administered nominal fines to his teammates for various transgressions.

Los Angeles Dodgers (1972) and California Angels (1973-74)

On a team with many stars, the 1971 Baltimore Orioles had a high payroll for the day, with Frank Robinson’s $130,000 being the highest. In part for that reason as well as the fact that he was now 36 years old, Robinson was traded for the second time in his career, this time to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 6-player deal that included Doyle Alexander being sent to the O’s. For trivia nuts, this was the first of 7 times Alexander would be traded, the last time in 1987 for another future Hall of Famer, John Smoltz. 

Anyway, the Orioles did not regret trading Robinson in the same way that the Reds would regret it in the 1960’s. In one season with the Dodgers, he hit just .251 with 19 home runs and 59 RBI.

After the 1972 season, Robinson was traded again, this time just a bit south to Anaheim to the California Angels. The 37-year old took advantage of the new designated hitter rule by having a bit of a renaissance campaign. Robinson hit .266 with 30 HR and 97 RBI; modern metrics credit him with a robust 151 OPS+ and 4.8 WAR. MVP voters noticed enough to put him in 15th place in the balloting.

Cleveland Indians Years (1974-77)

Frank Robinson made his 14th and final All-Star squad in 1974 and remained a productive hitter for the Angels. The team, however, was way out of contention. In September, Robinson was traded for the fifth time of his career, this time to the Cleveland Indians.

On October 3rd, 1974, the Indians announced that Robinson would be a player-manager for the team in 1975. Thus, 28 years after Jackie Robinson broke the color line for players, Frank Robinson broke that line by becoming the first African-American skipper.

On April 8, 1975, with Rachel Robinson (Jackie’s widow) in attendance, Robinson made his debut as a big league manager. He penciled his own name into the #2 hole in the lineup as the team’s DH. As the second batter in the bottom of the 1st inning against the New York Yankees, Robinson hit a home run off Doc Medich, pacing his team to a 5-3 victory.

Robinson didn’t call his own name a lot in his two years as the team’s player-manager. He played in only 85 games between 1975 and ’76, starting just 52 of them. Robinson only hit .232 but still knew how to work a free pass. He had a .366 OBP in 228 plate appearances which, along with a .454 SLG, produced a useful 136 OPS+.

The Indians, perennial doormats in the A.L. East, won 79 games in ’75 and 81 in ’76 under Robinson’s leadership, the team’s best two seasons since 1968.

Robinson retired as a player after the 1976 season and was fired as manager 57 games into the ’77 campaign.

Robinson’s managerial style was extremely hard-nosed and he clashed with some of his players, most notably future Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry who was traded in the summer of ’75 in part because of his feud with Robinson.

“I was the first black manager in baseball and there was incredible pressure. I don’t blame anyone else. I was too tough…I lacked patience. I wanted to win badly and I probably got on guys too much with the wrong tone of voice.”

— Frank Robinson (to SPORT Magazine, reported in the New York Daily News)

Other Managerial Tours

Frank Robinson would manage for parts of 14 additional seasons in the majors but never was graced with a team good enough to make the postseason. He managed the San Francisco Giants from 1981 until late in the ’84 season.

“Frank Robinson was not only a great player, but he was a great manager as well. Frank and Sparky Anderson are the two best managers I had, and I consider it a tremendous honor to have played for the first African-American manager.”

— Statement from Joe Morgan (played for Robinson with Giants 1981-82)

In 1988, he took over a terrible Baltimore Orioles squad. He was at the helm for the final 15 losses of a 21-game losing streak to start the season; replaced Cal Ripken Sr. after the team’s first six losses. The team finished with just 54 wins but rebounded to go 87-75 in 1989, earning Robinson the A.L. Manager of the Year award. The O’s, however, regressed thereafter. He was fired in 1991 after a 13-24 start.

After years in the Orioles’ front office and his VP job with Major League Baseball, Robinson took over the Montreal Expos in 2002. The Expos, doomed for eventual extinction, no longer had local ownership and were run by MLB. Still, in his first year at the helm, Robinson led the team to 83 wins, a 15-game improvement over the 68-win team from ’01.

Robinson skippered the Expos for their final three years in Montreal and remained at the helm of the relocated Washington Nationals in 2005 and ’06. At the end of the ’06 season, the 71-year old Robinson was relieved of his managerial duties.

Frank Robinson’s Legacy

Frank Robinson passed away just 7 days after the 100th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s birth. Their legacies are not the same; Jackie was named the 35th most influential American in the history of the U.S. by The Atlantic magazine. Frank was not in the same echelon as a civil rights pioneer. He was, however, as baseball’s first black manager, a pioneer for his race in that key leadership role. For this, besides his greatness as a player, Robinson will always remain historically significant.

As a player, Robinson was one of the greatest in MLB history. By taking over the managerial reins in Cleveland, he might have kept himself from joining Aaron and Mays as the first three players to reach 600 home runs and 3,000 hits. Robinson fell short of those milestones, finishing his career with 586 taters and 2,943 knocks. He was still hitting well enough in his age 39 and 40 seasons that he could have earned more playing time if he had played for a team that wanted to capitalize on the milestone chases at the gate.

“If I had wanted to go after personal goals, I could have inserted myself into the lineup much more often in Cleveland when I was a player-manager. But, as a manager, I had better sense than that. I knew that I had better ballplayers than Frank Robinson at that time so I played the best that I had.”

— Frank Robinson (at his Hall of Fame speech, August 1, 1982)

Still, as noted earlier, at the time of his retirement, Robinson’s 586 homers were the fourth most in the game’s history, behind only Aaron, Mays and Ruth. At the time of his retirement, Robinson’s 1,812 RBI were 12th best in history. After 1976, only 12 players had more than Robinson’s 1,420 walks drawn. If not for the plate discipline that led to his career .389 OBP, he could have easily been a member of the 3,000 hit club.

In all of baseball history, only 86 players have logged at least 10,000 plate appearances. Robinson’s career OPS+ (adjusted for ballparks and the hitting-friendly eras) was 154, 10th best among all of those 86 players. The only men ahead of Robinson on the list are Ruth, Barry Bonds, Ty Cobb, Stan Musial, Tris Speaker, Frank Thomas, Mays, Aaron and Mel Ott. That’s pretty special company for one of the greatest hitters in the history of baseball.

As for his legacy, Robinson’s uniform #20 is retired in Cincinnati, Baltimore and Cleveland. He is in each club’s Hall of Fame; he’s also in the Washington Nationals’ Ring of Honor.

More Tributes to the Great Frank Robinson: RIP

 

Thanks for reading.

Frank Robinson Links

• SABR Bio (written by Maxwell Cates)
• Frank Robinson Hall of Fame Page
• Frank Robinson’s Hall of Fame Speech (1982)
• ESPN SportsCentury Profile (produced by Lisa Kraus Edwards)