The Seattle Mariners will have a special day on April 16, 2022, vs. the Houston Astros.
“42 x 24. We’re honoring the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier and the 25th anniversary of Ken Griffey Jr. donning #42 for the first time with this special bobblehead,” the official Twitter account of T-Mobile Park, the home of the Mariners, tweeted on Wednesday, with a picture of the bobblehead.
42 x 24
We’re honoring the 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier and the 25th anniversary of Ken Griffey Jr. donning #42
for the first time with this special bobblehead 👇— T-Mobile Park (@TMobilePark) March 30, 2022
The bobblehead will be available for the first 20,000 fans in attendance.
As you probably know, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in MLB on April 15, 1947, and it wasn’t easy at all: he had to live and play in a society filled with racism, and was humiliated day after day.
Jackie Robinson Was A True Hero
But he was too strong and too determined to quit, and his will to succeed paved the way for an entire generation of Black players to enter MLB and show their talents.
He was a real pioneer.
Ken Griffey Jr., while he was playing for the Cincinnati Reds in 2007, was the first to wear 42 in honor of Robinson.
Griffey, known for his number 24, had to talk with Robinson’s family and Commissioner Bud Selig.
The idea was a success, and Selig decided, two years later, to have Jackie Robinson Day on April 15 each year, and players would wear number 42 that day.
Robinson, in the fourties and fifties, and Griffey, in the nineties and 2000s, were among the most influential ballplayers of their respective times.
They were strong personalities, willing to change the game, and it was cool to see Griffey honoring Robinson the way he did.
Fans in attendance will enjoy a cool piece of merchandise that day, with Griffey wearing Jackie’s number on his back.
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