On a cool September afternoon in the late 1940s, he stepped up to the plate. The thunderous sounds of boos filled the entire stadium as the lone black player stood tall in the batter's box. Fans, of both teams, belted beer bottles and boxes of cracker jacks onto the field. A chant of “hit the nigger” echoed throughout the ballpark. The catcher made his signal, and the pitcher stared down the batter with an evil eye. He wound up, and released the pitch. It exploded out of the pitcher’s arm, and raced towards the plate. The ball rammed into the side of the batter, as he was beamed with a 95 mph fastball. The crowd cheered with excitement. This is what life was like for Jackie Robinson, the first African American athlete in Major League Baseball
