TO CONGRATULATE MR. LARRY DOBY, A NATIVE SOUTH CAROLINIAN, ON THE OCCASION
OF
THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS INTEGRATION OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL'S
AMERICAN LEAGUE.
Whereas, July 5, 1997, will mark the 50th Anniversary of Larry Doby's
baseball debut with the Cleveland Indians, an
event which also served as the integration of the Major League Baseball's
American League; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby is a "native son" of South Carolina, having been born
in Camden on December 13, 1924, and having
resided in Camden until his teen years; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby's accomplishments on the field include being the first
African-American to hit a home run in the World
Series, to play for a World Series champion, and to win a home run
title; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby was also among the first African-Americans to appear
in a Baseball All-Star Game and was selected for
six consecutive All-Star teams; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby hit more than two hundred-fifty home runs and drove
in almost one thousand runs in a productive
thirteen-year career; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby also became the second African-American to manage
a Major League Baseball team, serving as the
manager of the Chicago White Sox for part of the 1978 season; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby has continued to influence the game as an executive,
first working with Major League Baseball Properties
under former baseball commissioner Bart Giamatti and then, beginning
in 1995, as Special Assistant to American League
president Gene Budig; and
Whereas, the Cleveland Indians have retired Mr. Doby's uniform number,
14, and Mr. Doby is a member of the Cleveland
Indians Hall of Fame; and
Whereas, the Cleveland Indians will further recognize Mr. Doby's accomplishments
on the anniversary date of his debut, July 5,
1997, as well as on July 8,1997, at the Major League Baseball All-Star
Game at Cleveland's Jacobs Field; and
Whereas, Mr. Doby was accorded the opportunity to break the American
League "color line" as a player and also to manage a
baseball team by the late Mr. Bill Veeck who is the father of Mr. Mike
Veeck, one of the present owners of the Charleston
River Dogs minor league baseball team; and
Whereas, the Charleston River Dogs have a ceremony planned for May 19,
1997, in which the team will honor Mr. Doby with
the dedication of the picnic area at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park as "Doby's
Deck," an area where people can congregate in unity;
and
Whereas, it is fitting that the General Assembly recognize the accomplishments
of this great native South Carolinian. Now
therefore,
Be it resolved by the Senate, the House of Representatives concurring:
That the members of the General Assembly congratulate Mr. Larry Doby,
a native South Carolinian, on the occasion
of the 50th anniversary of his integration of Major League Baseball's
American League.
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Legislative Printing-LPITR@http://www.lpitr.state.sc.us
The University of South Carolina-Aiken
e-mail carolb@aiken.sc.edu