Williams succeeded Robinson as Gramblings coach. He spent two years as a part-time player and pinch hitter with the Yankees, slugging 16 home runs in just 173 at-bats in 1955. Robinson maintained a high profile at Grambling when few blacks reached his level. His parents divorced when Eddie was about 12, and he and his mother moved in with family members. ), He carried that bat up to home plate, Mr. Robinson recalled. BASTROP, Texas Former White Sox first baseman Eddie Robinson, the oldest living former major league player whose more than six decades in professional baseball included being general manager for two teams, has died. Im from Paris, Texas, population 20,000, Mr. Robinson recalled to the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1998, and I remember thinking, Man, weve got four times as many people watching me play baseball. The noise was kind of a constant roar.. The only AL team of that period he didnt play for was Boston. Money's death was caused by complications from stage 4 esophageal cancer. Its changed so much. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Grambling Assembly Center next to Robinson Stadium, followed by burial at Memorial Gardens in Grambling. Robinson played in the Indians 1948 infield with Joe Gordon at second base and Lou Boudreau, their manager, at shortstop. Its an all-the-time thing.. Robinson was the last surviving player from the 1948 World Series champion Cleveland Indians. He had three consecutive 100-RBI seasons, with at least 22 homers in each of them, for the White Sox in 1951-1952 and the A's in 1953. Get the day's top news with our Today's Headlines newsletter, sent every weekday morning. Lucchesi spent several days in the hospital, and Randle was promptly traded. It was the coolest thing.. Robinson railed against prejudice but refused to allow racism to keep him from his destiny. He remembered being in the dugout at Yankee Stadium in 1948 when Babe Ruths No. Robinson shared the diamond field with some of the sport's greats throughout his career as a player, including Babe Ruth, Micky Mantle, Yogi Berra, Satchel Paige, Ted Williams, and Joe DiMaggio. Champagne was still dripping from the ceiling in the dining car, when we went in the next morning for breakfast, Mr. Robinson recalled almost 70 years later. Ex-Rangers GM Eddie Robinson still has time to share his love of the game. I dont know if I would be where I am today if there had been no Eddie Robinson. Eddie Robinson, the oldest living former major league player whose more than six decades in professional baseball included being general manager for two teams, has died at his Texas ranch outside Austin. Robinson simply feels that hes done what he had to do., Robinson concluded that interview by saying: When I first started coaching, my state dictated to me where I had to go, when I played and who I played. He was a great ambassador for baseball to the end. The rock icon died in October at the age of 65. Web--Son of John and Berthinia (sp?) Robinson is survived by his second wife, Bette, and his four sons, Robby, Marc, Paul and Drew. Box 550, Grambling, LA 71245. His name is Willie Davis. He also played for the Washington Senators (1949-50), Chicago White Sox (1950-52), Philadelphia Athletics (1953), New York Yankees (1954-56), Detroit Tigers (1957) and Baltimore (1957). The others were Willie Brown, Buck Buchanan and Willie Davis. His survivors include his second wife, Bette (Farlow) Robinson; their sons Marc, Paul and Drew; and his son Robby from his marriage to his first wife, Elayne Elder, which ended in divorce. Winning is not a sometimes thing, he said. Mr. Robinsons first marriage, to Elayne Elder, ended in divorce. Grieve said that shortly before the pandemic hit, he set up a lunch for Robinson with Rangers Hall of Famer Michael Young and Dr. Bobby Brown, the former president of the American League, to talk baseball. Coached the football team at Grambling State University for an impressive 57 years. During spring training of his first year on the job, manager Frank Lucchesi benched infielder Lenny Randle in favor of another player. 3 on the back, and walked onto the field from the Indians dugout on June 13, 1948. His devotion to his job was legendary. ormer Trail Blazers big man Cliff Robinson died Saturday at the age of 53. After Robinsons 324th victory, which broke Paul (Bear) Bryants record, Robinson apologized to his players for his frequent absences in the preceding weeks. Later that season, Mr. Robinson fired Lucchesi as manager because of the teams lackluster performance, hiring the pugnacious Eddie Stanky as his replacement. At this years Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony, he was honoured by Slash, Metallicas Kirk Hammett and Rage Against The Machines Tom Morello. That championship was part of the first basemans 13 big league seasons, during which he played for seven of the eight American League teams that were active during his career and was a four-time All-Star. He believed the success of Grambling players, on and off the field, served to advance the cause of civil rights. He just never gave up. Be the smartest Rangers fan. I couldnt have learned from a better coach than Robinson., -- Willie Brown, Raiders assistant coach and former NFL and Grambling star. Robinson played at McKinley High School and later was a star quarterback for now-defunct Leland College in Baker, La. He was a power-hitting All-Star in a career of more than 60 seasons as a player, executive, coach and scout. F. The 6-foot-10 big man played at UConn from 1985-89, where he helped the Huskies win the 1988 NIT. For Eddie Robinson, it was truly a life well lived.. His passions outside of covering baseball are his wife, Gina, his two step kids, two crazy dogs & barbecue. Eddie Robinson in his home in Grambling, La., in July 2004. After a brief major league call-up in 1942, he spent part of his three-year naval service during World War II playing baseball. In his later years, Mr. Robinson was a regular and welcome visitor at Rangers home games, and his unique ability to analyze and discuss the game, past and present, was truly amazing. His nearly six-decade tenure at Grambling spanned dramatic social change. The document also cited pneumonia, a blood disorder called myelodysplastic He was at one time teammates with Mickey Mantle and later was Aarons GM during the chase for home run No. His autobiography "My Father, My Son," written with William Robinson Duffy was published in 1958. According to his autobiography, "My Father, My Son," bad publicity resulting from a bad check cost him a role in "Bride of the Gorilla.". Edward G. Robinson Jr. died only 1 year after the death of his father. In 1945 when football resumed, Robinson faced a problem when the father of his top two players pulled his sons off the squad because he needed them to pick cotton. He published an autobiography on his 65 years in the game in 2011 entitled Lucky Me with SMU law professor Paul Rogers. "The Texas Rangers are incredibly saddened with the passing of the legendary Eddie Robinson, who spent nearly 70 years in professional baseball as an All-Star player and respected executive," the team said in a statement. His players would travel to games dressed in suits and ties. He represented the White Sox as an All-Star in the 1951 and 1952 seasons. For the players, it was a game. The fame of such Grambling alumni, and others in the N.F.L. He dated singer Patti Page in the 1950s before marrying Bette Farlow in 1955. His name is Willie Davis. Robinson made his big league debut with Cleveland at age 21 in 1942, then served in the military during World War II before returning to the Indians from 1946-48. Robinson had been in declining health since learning he had Alzheimers He also played for the Washington Senators (1949-50), the White Sox (1950-52), Philadelphia Athletics (1953), New York Yankees (1954-56), Detroit Tigers (1957) and Baltimore (1957). We had great harmony.. Collie Nicholson, a former Grambling sports information director, once said, We promoted Grambling like a circus. The plan succeeded and by 1974 football was making $400,000 a year for the college. He was the American Leagues starting first baseman in the 1949 and 1952 all-star games and drove in Yankee superstar DiMaggio with a hit in the 1949 game. During a brief hospitalization for fatigue in October 1997, Robinson had a videocassette recorder and game tapes brought to his hospital bed so he could prepare for the next game. In 1983, Grambling opened the $7.5 million, 23,000-seat Eddie Robinson Stadium. He was witness to some of the games most historic moments, from handing Babe Ruth the bat he leaned on for his last ever appearance at Yankee Stadium to being the Atlanta Braves general manager during Henry Aarons pursuit of Ruths home run record. His last year in baseball was as a scout for theBoston Red Soxin 2004. Email us at exclusive@the-sun.com or call 212 416 4552. Eddie Robinson, a power-hitting All-Star first baseman who played for the 1948 Cleveland Indians World Series champions and the Yankees 1955 pennant-winners in a baseball career spanning more than 60 seasons as a player, executive, coach and scout, died on Monday at his ranch in Bastrop, Tex., near Austin. Eddie Robinson, the record-setting coach who turned Grambling State University into a nationally recognized football power, ushered more than 200 players into the National Football League and largely realized his vision of transforming the Louisiana school into the Notre Dame of historically black colleges, has died. Off the field, he was soft-spoken, slump-shouldered and liked to quote works of literature. Became a father at age 20 when his 1st [later ex] wife Frances Chisholm gave birth to their daughter He had the kind of talent that maybe comes around once a century.. Eddie Robinson, a power-hitting All-Star first baseman who played for the 1948 Cleveland Indians World Series champions and the Yankees 1955 pennant-winners in a baseball career spanning more than 60 seasons as a player, executive, coach and scout, died on Monday at his ranch in Bastrop, Tex., near Austin. He retired as a player after the 1957 season with 172 home runs and a career batting average of .268. He used to come through the halls early in the morning with a cowbell, waking us up for class and for church., -- Everson Walls, former Gambling and NFL cornerback, The coaching profession has lost one of its true legends. Robinson served as the Rangers general manager from 1976-1982. On the field, Robinson was fiercely competitive, and he fielded teams that routinely pounded opponents with simple plays, meticulous preparation and overwhelming talent. The musician died on October 6, 2020, at the age of 65, following a As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Following his death in 1972, Robinson was awarded both the Congressional Gold Medal But Im thinking about Eddie Robinson the man, not in today-time, but in the day and what he meant to me and to so many people., Robinson was affectionately known as Coach Rob and liked to boast that his proudest accomplishments were having one job and one wife.. 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Robinson hit .268 with 172 homers and 723 RBIs in 1,315 career games. He was active in the players union for years and, long after becoming a front-office executive for various teams, was instrumental in improving pensions and other benefits for retired players. --His wife may be Daisy Walston Robinson who is also buried in this cemetery. He stood for all the right things.. Robinson had been in declining health since learning he had Alzheimers disease in 2004. For me, it was walls falling down.. Ive seen a lot, he once said. We will be forever grateful for the more than 200 young men he developed at Grambling who starred in the NFL and those who later coached the next generation of NFL players., Wow, this guy was bigger than life itself. Teams traveled by train and developed a close sense of camaraderie: When he was with Cleveland in 1948, he was even part of a barbershop quartet. 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He published a memoir, Lucky Me: My Sixty-five Years in Baseball, written with C. Paul Rogers III, in 2011. Im from Paris, Texas, population 20,000, Robinson told The Plain-Dealer of Cleveland 50 years later. Robinson is survived by his second wife, Bette, and his four sons, Robby, Marc, Paul and Drew. Nat Fein of The Herald Tribune in New York won a Pulitzer Prize for his rear view photograph depicting Ruth in Yankee pinstripes leaning on the bat, which belonged to Feller. The Associated Press is an independent, not-for-profit news cooperative headquartered in New York City. 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In 1985, after an interview with Robinson at Grambling, William C. Rhoden wrote in The New York Times: Some have said his victories mean less than Bryants because he achieved them against a lower grade of competition. For details, go to www.robinsonmuseum.com. The record came on a Saturday night in Dallas, Oct. 5, 1985, when the 36,652 spectators in the Cotton Bowl saw Grambling defeat Prairie View, 27-7. Robinson recorded his 324th career win when his team defeated Prairie View A&M; on Oct. 5, 1985. On the train ride back to Cleveland, the players celebrated. More than 200 of Robinsons players went on to play in the National Football League. This article was published more than1 year ago. Eddie Robinson, the oldest living former major league baseball player, who spent 65 years in the sport as a player, scout and executive and was the last surviving member of the 1948 World Series champion Cleveland Indians, died Oct. 4 at his ranch in Bastrop, Tex. 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