Larry Doby who was the first black player in the American League was born on this day in 1923. Larry Doby was 23 when he was signed by the Cleveland Indians out of the Negro League. He became the first black player to go directly from the Negro Leagues to the Major Leagues. Doby would end up as a seven time All-Star and was elected to Baseball’s Hall of Fame in 1998.  He played with the Indians, White Sox and Tigers. He was also in 1978 the second black manager in baseball. He was also the first black player to hit a home run in the World Series and in an All-Star game. I think Larry Doby has always been overlooked. Jackie Robinson deserves all the credit he has gotten over the years but it wasn’t easy for Doby either. For his career Doby hit 253 home runs, 970 RBI’s,  with a .283 lifetime average. His career went from 1947 until 1959. Larry Doby died in 2003 at the age of 79.