Reggie Jackson Recalls ‘The Racism When I Played Here’ During MLB’s Celebration of Black Baseball History
On Thursday night, Major League Baseball made news when the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals played the first game at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama.
This field is important because it was home to the Negro League’s Birmingham Black Barons and where Willie Mays started his career. The event became even more special when Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson talked about his painful memories of playing in Alabama during the 1960s.
Reggie Jackson’s return to Rickwood Field was very emotional.
He talked about the racism he faced when he played for the Birmingham A’s, a minor league team, in 1967. His stories showed the difficult and dangerous conditions that Black players had to endure back then.
“Coming back here is not easy,” Jackson said, with a heavy heart. “The racism when I played here, the difficulty of going through different places where we traveled. Fortunately, I had a manager and I had players on the team that helped me get through it. But I wouldn’t wish it on anybody.”
He shared how he was often not allowed to eat at restaurants or stay at hotels because he was Black. He was frequently called racial slurs.
He remembered how his manager, Johnny McNamara, and his teammates like Rollie Fingers, Dave Duncan, and Joe and Sharon Rudi supported him. They would refuse to eat or stay at places that did not accept Jackson. Sometimes, Jackson slept on the Rudis’ couch to stay safe.
One frightening incident involved the Ku Klux Klan threatening to burn down the apartment complex where he was staying if he didn’t leave.
“Had it not been for my white friends, had it not been for a white manager, and Rudi, Fingers, and Duncan, and Lee Meyers, I would never have made it,” he said.
“I was too physically violent. I was ready to physically fight some – I would have got killed here because I would have beat someone’s ass, and you would have saw me in an oak tree somewhere.”
These stories show the racial tensions of the time. Jackson’s experiences are tied to the civil rights struggles, like the Birmingham church bombing in 1963 that killed four young Black girls. This event and others show the dangerous environment that Black players had to survive.
He played 114 games for the Birmingham A’s before moving up to the Kansas City Athletics. He became a baseball legend with the Oakland A’s and New York Yankees, earning the nickname Mr. October for his World Series performances.
He was a 14-time All-Star and a five-time World Series champion. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot.
Yet, Jackson’s painful memories remain. “I would never want to do it again,” he said, showing how hard it was to overcome such adversity.
As MLB honored Black history with the game at Rickwood Field, Jackson’s story reminded everyone of the progress made and the struggles endured. It highlighted the importance of remembering the past and working for a future of equality and justice.
Adding to the event’s significance, President Joe Biden tweeted, “Reggie Jackson’s powerful words remind us of the painful history we must never forget. As we honor the legacy of Black athletes, we must continue to strive for a future where equality and justice prevail in every corner of America.”