Lawrence Eugene Doby was born on December 13, 1923 in Camden, South Carolina. He spent the first 14 years of his life in Camden before moving to Paterson, NJ to be reunited with his mother, who moved there four short years earlier. Doby soon attended Paterson Eastside High School, excelling in baseball, basketball, football and track.
His football team was invited to play in Florida one year after winning the state championship, but promoters would not allow Doby – the only African American member of the team – to participate. As a sign of camaraderie, his Eastside teammates voted to cancel the trip to Florida.
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Ready for the Big Leagues
Doby furthered his athletic prowess playing with professional athletes, joining black semi-pro baseball team the Smart Sets during one summer vacation, and then briefly becoming an unpaid substitute player for a professional basketball team known as the Harlem Renaissance. Doby then decided to take a basketball scholarship to Long Island University (LIU) after completing his high school career.
However, during the Summer before Doby officially enrolled in LIU, he took an offer to play with Negro National League baseball team the Newark Eagles for the remainder of their 1942 season, which caused Doby to attend Virginia Union University and jump-started his professional baseball calling.
Duty Calls
An otherwise promising baseball career came to a brief halt for a couple of years during World War II, as Doby was enlisted in the United States Navy; however, once the war was over and Doby was back on the field, he worked tirelessly; as a result, he gained a spot on a Major League Baseball (MLB) roster, citing Jackie Robinson as his inspiration. On July 5, 1947, Larry Doby made his MLB debut with the Cleveland Indians. This made him the second black baseball player to sign with a major league team; as well as the first to sign with an American League team.
Larry Doby played an outstanding thirteen seasons in the MLB, signing with three different teams throughout his career. He finished with a solid .283 career batting average. He joined fellow star players in the National Baseball Hall of Fame on March 3, 1998; to which he responded, “This is just a tremendous feeling. It’s kind of like a bale of cotton has been on your shoulders, and now it’s off.”
Following in the footsteps of Jackie Robinson, Larry Doby opened up a window of opportunity for African American athletes; he inspired many to one day play for their favorite professional baseball teams.
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Hero (Top) Feature Image: © Gsashburn / Wikimedia Commons
Additional Photo Courtesy: Cleveland.com