{"product_id":"before-brooklyn-the-unsung-heroes-who-helped-break-baseballs-color-barrier","title":"Before Brooklyn: The Unsung Heroes Who Helped Break Baseballs Color Barrier","description":"In the April of 1945, exactly two years before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in major league baseball, liberal Boston City Councilman Izzy Muchnick persuaded the Red Sox to try out three black players in return for a favorable vote to allow the team to play on Sundays. The Red Sox got the councilman’s much-needed vote, but the tryout was a sham; the three players would get no closer to the major leagues. It was a lost battle in a war that was ultimately won by Robinson in 1947. This book tells the story of the little-known heroes who fought segregation in baseball, from communist newspaper reporters to the Pullman car porters who saw to it that black newspapers espousing integration in professional sports reached the homes of blacks throughout the country. It also reminds us that the first black player in professional baseball was not Jackie Robinson but Moses Fleetwood Walker in 1884, and that for a time integrated teams were not that unusual. And then, as segregation throughout the country hardened, the exclusion of blacks in baseball quietly became the norm, and the battle for integration began anew.\u003cbr\u003eASIN: 1493051210\u003cbr\u003eVSKU: 31UTLL002O7Y_ns\u003cbr\u003eCondition: Good\u003cbr\u003eAuthor\/Artist:Reinstein Author of Before Brooklyn: The Unsung Heroes Who Helped Break Baseball’s Co, Ted\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNote:\u003c\/b\u003e Any images shown are stock photographs and product may differ from what is shown.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition Notes\u003c\/b\u003e: Former library book with the usual stamps, stickers and labels. The item shows wear from consistent use, but it remains in good condition and works perfectly. All pages and cover are intact  including the dust cover, if applicable . Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May NOT include discs, access code or other supplemental materials.  \u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Blue Vase Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43305674539069,"sku":"31UTLL002O7Y_ns","price":10.07,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0589\/4225\/9261\/files\/1493051210-0.jpg?v=1782768005","url":"https:\/\/www.bluevasebooks.com\/products\/before-brooklyn-the-unsung-heroes-who-helped-break-baseballs-color-barrier","provider":"Blue Vase Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}