# Frank Robinson, 83 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [February 7, 2019, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135 "2019-02-07T20:33:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/1 "2019-02-07T20:33:47Z")
Frank Robinson, NL Rookie of the Year 1956, NL and AL MVP ('61 and '66, respectively), Triple Crown winner (1966), 14-time All-Star, 2 time World Series champion, AL Manager of the year (1989), Gold Glove winner (1958), among other achievements and honors, has died. He was 83. > **[Baseball Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, MLB's first black manager, dies at 83](https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/baseball-hall-of-famer-frank-robinson-mlbs-first-black-manager-dies-at-83/)** > > Robinson was also a pioneering manager and remains the only player to win MVP in both leagues ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/2 "2019-02-07T20:42:40Z")
is he in the hall yet? wow one of the last legends from the golden age of baseball … ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/3 "2019-02-07T20:47:20Z")
Frank Robinson, the Hall of Fame outfielder and manager for the Reds, Orioles, Indians, Angels, Dodgers, Giants, and Expos/Nationals, has died of bone cancer at the age of 83. You can read about it [here](https://www.mlb.com/news/frank-robinson-dies/c-303656538). Robinson was NL Rookie of the Year in 1956. He is the only player to win the MVP award in both the National and American Leagues. He first won it with the Reds in 1961. That team traded him to the Orioles prior to the 1966 season for Milt Pappas, Jack Baldschun and Dick Simpson, one of the worst trades ever. That year, Robinson won the triple crown, his second MVP award, and was MVP of the World Series. Robinson became the first black manager in MLB history in 1975 for the Cleveland Indians. He was still a player at the time. Later, after he retired as a player, he managed the Giants, Orioles, and Expos/Nationals. For some reason, Robinson’s name doesn’t come up very often in discussions of the all-time greats. Maybe it’s because he played at the same time as guys like Mays and Aaron. I think Robinson is an upper-echelon Hall-of-Famer, and is at least as important for breaking the color barrier for managers as he is for his on-field accomplishments. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/4 "2019-02-07T20:47:58Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > is he in the hall yet? wow one of the last legends from the golden age of baseball … I would seriously be doubting the legitimacy of the MLB HOF if he wasn’t. 1982, first ballot, with 89.2% of the vote. . ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/5 "2019-02-07T20:48:34Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > is he in the hall yet? Hell, yes. He and Hank Aaron were both elected in 1982, both of them in their first year of eligibility. [https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/inside-pitch/hank-aaron-frank-robinson-elected-1982](https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/inside-pitch/hank-aaron-frank-robinson-elected-1982) ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2019, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/6 "2019-02-07T20:53:33Z")
thought so but wasn’t sure … ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/7 "2019-02-08T00:26:50Z")
Duplicate Frank Robinson thread. [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=870350](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=870350) ---
**Author:** ![betterlifethroughchemistry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/betterlifethroughchemistry/32/3094_2.png) [@betterlifethroughchemistry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betterlifethroughchemistry)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/8 "2019-02-08T01:37:22Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I would seriously be doubting the legitimacy of the MLB HOF if he wasn’t. > > 1982, first ballot, with 89.2% of the vote. > . Gotta wonder what the other 10.8% were thinking… Grew up in Charm City, one of my earliest memories was the 1966 World Series, I was 4, my father was out running around the neighborhood cheering, I distinctly remember some guys in a convertible with big plastic orange horns driving slowly down the street blowing the horns… I actually met him twice, once in the owner’s box at OPACY… RIP, Frank…[Great story here](https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/bs-sp-robinson-homer-0508-20160505-story.html)… ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/9 "2019-02-08T02:06:12Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I would seriously be doubting the legitimacy of the MLB HOF if he wasn’t. > > 1982, first ballot, with 89.2% of the vote. > . > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Hell, yes. He and Hank Aaron were both elected in 1982, both of them in their first year of eligibility. > > [https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/inside-pitch/hank-aaron-frank-robinson-elected-1982](https://baseballhall.org/discover-more/stories/inside-pitch/hank-aaron-frank-robinson-elected-1982) I don’t understand how both of those guys didn’t get unanimous votes. It took until this year for that to happen? After well over a century of baseball? ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/10 "2019-02-08T02:17:19Z")
> [@betterlifethroughchemistry](#): > > Gotta wonder what the other 10.8% were thinking… > [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > I don’t understand how both of those guys didn’t get unanimous votes. I’m thinking either Frank rubbed some of the writers the wrong way (he was certainly capable of that), or, racism. By just the numbers he’s as much a no-brainer HOFer as anyone. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/11 "2019-02-08T02:45:37Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > I don’t understand how both of those guys didn’t get unanimous votes. It took until this year for that to happen? After well over a century of baseball? There were a handful of old-timey sportswriters who didn’t think anyone deserved to get into the HOF on the first ballot. Racism might have played a part, but Joe DiMaggio, Al Kaline, Mickey Mantle, and Sandy Koufax all got into the HOF with a lower percentage of the vote than Robinson. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/12 "2019-02-08T02:48:17Z")
There used to be sportswriters who wouldn’t vote for a player in his first year of HOF eligibility no matter how good he was. I always thought of it as a stupid display of power. This year Mariano Rivera was selected by 100% of the voters in his first year of eligibility. With this precedent, I hope we will no longer see guys like Mays, Aaron, and Robinson get less than 100% just because some small group of people think they should have to wait an extra year. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/13 "2019-02-08T04:23:33Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > There used to be sportswriters who wouldn’t vote for a player in his first year of HOF eligibility no matter how good he was. I always thought of it as a stupid display of power. This year Mariano Rivera was selected by 100% of the voters in his first year of eligibility. With this precedent, I hope we will no longer see guys like Mays, Aaron, and Robinson get less than 100% just because some small group of people think they should have to wait an extra year. Hear, hear! That’s a stupid AS FUCK unwritten baseball rule…as so many of them are. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/14 "2019-02-08T04:26:47Z")
I was at the old Cleveland Stadium when Frank Robinson debuted as Player-Manager of the Indians. I was with a bunch of guys from College and we were a bit late and our seats were in the upper deck. We were running up the ramp to our seats when we heard the crack of a bat and the cheering of the crowd. I made it just in time to see the ball disappear over the fence, Frank Robinson had homered at his first at-bat as player-manager. You could look it up. Goodbye Frank…ya done good. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/15 "2019-02-08T04:34:53Z")
I grew up when Robinson was a manager but gradually learned about what a great player he was over the years. Sad day for the game. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/16 "2019-02-08T05:45:42Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > There were a handful of old-timey sportswriters who didn’t think anyone deserved to get into the HOF on the first ballot. Racism might have played a part, but Joe DiMaggio, Al Kaline, Mickey Mantle, and Sandy Koufax all got into the HOF with a lower percentage of the vote than Robinson. Exactly. It’s always been a ridiculous thing, and clearly a cranky-old-man power trip on the part of a subset of the BBWAA voters. I mean, Babe F\*\*\*ing Ruth only got 95.1% of the vote when he was elected (in the initial group). :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/17 "2019-02-08T07:31:29Z")
[The AP has a collection of quotes from people who knew him](https://apnews.com/bbf2bb0a6c104ba6a1eda951a7e6ec68); every single one calls him a friend. He was one of a handful of players who can lay legitimate claim to the title of Greatest of All-Time, he was a fine manager and executive, but people remember him most for being their friend. That totally fucking rocks. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/18 "2019-02-08T07:59:20Z")
My favorite Frank Robinson quote: > [@](#): > > Close don’t count in baseball. Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/19 "2019-02-08T15:44:25Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I’m thinking either Frank rubbed some of the writers the wrong way (he was certainly capable of that), or, racism. By just the numbers he’s as much a no-brainer HOFer as anyone. Lets not get carried away. He was great but he isn’t at the same level as Ruth, Ted Williams or Gehrig. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2019, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135/20 "2019-02-08T16:20:29Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Lets not get carried away. He was great but he isn’t at the same level as Ruth, Ted Williams or Gehrig. [:dubious:](https://apnews.com/bbf2bb0a6c104ba6a1eda951a7e6ec68) > [@Former Baltimore Orioles teammate and Hall of Fame third baseman Brooks Robinson](#): > > As a player, I put Frank in a class with Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and Mickey Mantle. He was the best player I ever played with. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/frank-robinson-83/829135.md?page=2)