MLB Cap Modeling Day #1: Jackie Robinson Day:

[clydepepper]

I decided to start something a bit unusual:

Every few days, I will model a Baseball Cap from my Collection and say a few things about that particular team, why that team is important to me, and anything I can find connecting that team to the particular day of the year and to me personally.

Day #1 is April 15th, which we all have come to know as Jackie Robinson Day, so the Cap of the Day is of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Obviously, everyone knows about Jackie debuting for the Dodgers on this day.

1947 Bond Bread - Jackie Robinson.jpg

Jackie was the fourth future Hall-of-Famer born in my state, Georgia - after Cobb, Terry and Mize. The most recent one, Frank Thomas, played in the same Little League I did and attended the same High School.

Though Jackie moved away from Georgia at an early age (as did Josh Gibson), he was born in the small town of Cairo. The only other Major League born there was Willie Harris, a journeyman player who had a career-day as an Atlanta Brave on July 7, 2007 when he set the All-Time Franchise record with six hits.

- personally, I was born in New York state, where Brooklyn is, and moved to Georgia at an early age...reversing Jackie's move.

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My cousin, Whitlow Wyatt, also from Georgia, was the ace of the 1941 Dodgers Team. He was 22-10 that year and earned the only Dodger victory in that year's Series against Joe D. and the Yankees. Whitlow was the very first Atlanta Braves Pitching Coach. He passed away one week before I made my sole return to New York state - Cooperstown to attend the Hall-of-Fame Induction Weekend in 1999.

1941 WS Photo - Whitlow v. JoeD a.jpg1941 WS Photo - Whitlow v. JoeD Back.jpg

My All-Time Favorite Player is Sandy Koufax who began his career with Brooklyn the year before I was born. The first game I can remember seeing on TV was the opening game of the 1963 World Series...and Topps was nice enough to make a card of that game.

1964 Topps- KOUFAX Strikes Out 15 PSA.DNA.jpg

Sandy's final game, in the 1966 Word Series, turned on three fielding errors by Willie Davis who was born on...wait for it...April 15.

WILLIE DAVIS.jpg

Hub Collins, who is most likely unknown to most readers of this post, was also born on April 15th...and he started his professional Baseball career with the Columbus (Ga) Stars in 1885- our very first pro team.

HUB COLLINS.jpg

and finally, this all comes back to yours truly...ugly as ever, but proud to wear the (Brooklyn) Dodger Blue on this very significant day:

APRIL 15.jpg