Ex-Met remembers his boyhood idol and hero
EAST ELMHURST, N.Y. - Ed Charles compiled a .263 batting average over an eight-season major-league career. In his final year - 1969 - the third baseman nicknamed "The Glider" helped the "Miracle Mets" win a World Series.
Charles, an African American, knows none of that would have been possible if not for Jackie Robinson, the man who broke Major League Baseball's color barrier 60 years ago.
In a recent Q&A, the now 73-year-old Charles spoke to how profoundly the man who remains his hero affected him and countless other major-leaguers.
Question: You actually saw Robinson play 61 years ago. Tell us about that.
Answer: The Dodgers assigned his contract to Montreal, their triple-A affiliate [in 1945]. Montreal's spring training was in Sanford, Fla., but due to the hostility there, they decided to move the base over to Daytona Beach [in 1946].
It so happens that their practice field was right in the black community, directly across the street from where I lived. I used to watch him as soon as I got out of school instead of going home. Other kids used to run after him and try to get his autograph. I was too shy. I just admired him like he was God.
Q: What did he mean to a boy of your age?
A: He gave you a reason to hope that things were going to get better. I was a kid that said, "If Jackie can make it, maybe he can open the door for a flood of blacks to make it into Major League baseball."
Q: Were there fears for Robinson in the black community?
A: We didn't want anything to happen to Jackie. In fact, if anything happened, you probably would have had a race riot. There was a lot of tension.
Q: Describe your sense of what he experienced as the lone pioneer.
A: He had the weight of the race on him, [but] he knew that every black person was pulling for him.
Q: What did you like about his game?
A: He took it to the opposition. He was daring. He didn't sit back and wait. After he made it there, he was very aggressive. He was talented . . . and fancy!
Q: You were grown when you finally met Jackie Robinson. What was your reaction?
