In 1947, a 28-year-old baseball player named Jackie Robinson broke the Major League’s color barrier when he signed a contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers. That historical document and others will be on display at two Miami Marlins games this week.
Robinson’s four-page contract with the Dodgers has been authenticated and valued at $36-million. His signature on that piece of paper effectively integrated major league baseball and indirectly sparked the country’s movement against segregation.
Robinson’s starting salary was $5000. He won the league’s first-ever Rookie of the Year award and led the Dodgers to the World Series, where they lost to the Yankees in seven games. A few years later, Robinson became the Dodgers’ highest paid player with a $35-thousand salary.
Robinson’s original signed Major League contract - and his 1945 Minor League contract with the Montreal Royals - can be viewed at the Tuesday night (7:10pm)and Wednesday afternoon (12:10pm) games between the Marlins and the San Francisco Giants.
The documents are touring the country as part of a Freedom Tour launched by Collectors Cafe, a social network and auction house.