Player Appreciation: Jackie Robinson

First, let's take a look at the numbers.
Despite playing just 10 seasons, Robinson accumulated some impressive statistics.
He won the 1949 MVP and National League batting crown. And the man could reach base. Four times he was in the top three in on-base percentage. He twice paced the Senior Circuit in stolen bases.
His season averages were:

R Hits 2B 3B HR RBI SB AVG. OBP. SLG.
95 152 27 5 13 73 74 20 .311 .409 .474
Compare that to these players

Roberto Alomar, who played in a much more offensive era.
R Hits 2B 3B HR RBI SB AVG. OBP. SLG.
89 160 30 5 12 67 28 .300 .377. .443

Ryne Sandberg, who is considered one of the best offensive second sackers
R Hits 2B 3B HR RBI SB AVG. OBP. SLG.
82 149 25 5 18 66 22 .285 .344 .452

So Robinson was a very dominant second baseman during his career.
But it wasn't just his offensive numbers.
While it's hard to find many accounts from the time that praise him for his defense, Bill James did some numbers and ranked him as one of the best defensive players ever. At three different positions: second base, third base and left field.

Which leads us to talk about his intangibles. Robinson was a force because of what he could do on the field that didn't show up in numbers. Even James admits that.
Robinson was willing to play any position the Brooklyn Dodgers needed him to. He batted anywhere in the lineup they asked.
And, between the lines, he brought a grace and ferocity that had not been seen in years.
Who doesn't get an image of Robinson scampering back and forth near the bag, taunting the pitcher? It's almost as if he's saying, "Go ahead, try and pick me off. I'll be at the next base by the time you release the ball."

And yet, Ryne Sandburg averaged more steals per season.

There's a simple explanation for that. Robinson wasn't trying to steal a base. He was taking two. Or three. He was getting into the pitcher's head. And that pitcher was going to make a mistake. And when he did, whoever was hitting behind Robinson would get a fatter pitch.
He gave birth to a chaos opposing pitchers couldn't hope to control.

But of course, the dominant thing about Robinson is that he had the courage and grace to inspire so many people, not to mention knock down the walls of hatred in almost as many hearts.

"Every coach, every manager, every umpire, every batting practice pitcher, every human being one had ever seen in uniform on a major league field was white. Without realizing it, one had become conditioned. The grass was green, the dirt was brown and the ballplayers were white. Suddenly in Ebbets Field, under a white home uniform, two muscled arms extended like black hawsers. Black . Like the arms of a janitor. The new color jolted the consciousness, in a profound and not quite definable period way. Amid twenty snowy mountains, the only moving thing was the eye of a blackboard

Robinson could hit and bunt, and steal and run. He had intimidating skills, and he burned with a dark fire. He wanted passionately to win. He charged at ballgames. He calculated his rivals' weaknesses and measured his own strengths, and knew - as only a very few have ever known - the precise move to make at precisely the moment of maximum effect. His bunts, his steals, and his fake bunts and fake steals humiliated a legion of visiting players. He bore the burden of a pioneer and the weight made him more strong. If one can be certain of anything in baseball, it is that we shall not look upon his like again."