Roy Campanella
Roy Campanella was an
American catcher in the
Negro leagues and
Major League Baseball.
He was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father was of
Italian descent; his mother was
African American, so he was barred from
Major League Baseball until 1947, when players of color were admitted to the major leagues.
Campanella played for the
Brooklyn Dodgers from 1948 to 1957, as their regular catcher. In 1948, he had three different uniform numbers before settling down to number 39 for the rest of his career.
Encyclopedia
|
| Roy Campanella |
|---|
| Position | Catcher |
| MLB Seasons | 10 |
| Teams | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| Debut | 20 April 1948 |
| Final Game | 29 September 1957 |
| Total Games | 1,215
|
| LCS Appearances | 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956 |
| World Series Teams | 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956 |
| Allstar Teams | 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956 |
| Awards | NL MVP:
1951, 1953, 1955 |
| TSN NL Player of the Year: 1953 |
| Baseball Hall of Fame |
| Nickname |
| "Campy" |
|
Roy Campanella was an
American catcher in the
Negro leagues and
Major League Baseball.
He was born in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father was of
Italian descent; his mother was
African American, so he was barred from
Major League Baseball until 1947, when players of color were admitted to the major leagues.
Campanella played for the
Brooklyn Dodgers from 1948 to 1957, as their regular catcher. In 1948, he had three different uniform numbers before settling down to number 39 for the rest of his career.
His first game was on April 20, 1948.
He played in the
All-Star Game every year from 1949 to 1956.
He received the Most Valuable Player award in the
National League three times: in 1951, 1953, and 1955. He was in tenth place in the MVP voting in 1952.
In 1953, he hit 40 home runs in games in which he appeared as a catcher, a record that lasted until 1996, when it was broken by Todd Hundley. It's also this feat which earned him a mention in
Billy Joel's history themed song
We Didn't Start the Fire.
Campanella was paralyzed from the chest down after an automobile accident in January 1958. Through physical therapy, he eventually was able to gain substantial use of his arms and hands. He was able to feed himself, shake hands, and gesture while speaking, but he would be confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life.
In May 1959, the Dodgers, by then relocated to
Los Angeles, honored Campanella with
Roy Campanella Night at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The
New York Yankees agreed to make a special trip to Los Angeles to play an exhibition game against the Dodgers for the occasion. The attendance at the game was over 93,000, still the largest crowd ever to attend a Major League Baseball game.
In 1969, Roy Campanella was inducted into the
Baseball Hall of Fame, the second player of African American heritage so honored after
Jackie Robinson. On June 4, 1972 the Dodgers retired his uniform number 39 alongside
Jackie Robinson's and
Sandy Koufax's .
After his playing career, Campanella remained involved with the Dodgers. In 1978, he moved to
California and remained active in the Dodgers' community relations department. He served as a mentor and adviser to young catchers in the Dodger organization.
In 1993, Campanella died at his home in Woodland Hills, California. He was interred in the Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in
Los Angeles.
His widow, Roxie, died in 2004.
In 1999, Campanella ranked number 50 on
The Sporting News is an American [i]-based sports [i] weekly magazine, book publisher, ...
list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was a nominee for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.
The book includes short stories from former Dodger pitcher Carl Erskine. Campanella is prominent in many of these stories
In 2006, Campanella will be featured on a
United States postage stamp . The stamp is one of a block of four honoring Baseball Sluggers.
In September 2006, Campanella's club, The
Los Angeles Dodgers announced the the creation of The Roy Campanella Award, Which will be voted among the club's players and coaches and be given to the Dodger who best exemplifies "Campy's" spirit and leadership. The winner of the inaugural award will be honored on September 24th.
Roy Campanella authored the inspirational book
It’s Good to be Alive, which details his journey back from a near-fatal car accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Thanks to years of tireless efforts by physical therapist Sam Brockington, Roy Campanella regained some use of his arms, and eventually overcame his initial bitterness, adopting an optimistic outlook on life.
Michael Landon made his TV-movie directorial debut in the 1974 movie
It’s Good to be Alive, In which Campanella was portrayed by
Paul Winfield.
See also
- Top 500 home run hitters of all time
- Batters with Two 3-Home run Games in a Season
External links
