And now, No. 42 belongs to a baseball eternity, much as the man who wore it with such dignity and grace while changing the face of his game and his country.
Baseball moved dramatically to preserve the memory of Jackie Robinson on the 50th anniversary of his major league debut by permanently retiring the number of the modern game's first black player.In ceremonies at Shea Stadium attended by President Clinton, acting commissioner Bud Selig announced the unprecedented step. "Number 42 belongs to Jackie Robinson for the ages," he said.
Scores of red, white and blue balloons were released from behind the right field fence and, on the left field wall, Robinson's No. 42 appeared next to three previously retired New York Mets numbers: Casey Stengel's No. 37, Gil Hodges' No. 14 and Tom Seaver's No. 41.
The only players allowed to wear the number will be the 12 around the majors like Butch Huskey of the New York Mets and Mo Vaughn of the Boston Red Sox already using it as a tribute to Robinson.
Huskey was clearly touched by the gesture.
"I have a lot of pride," he said. "I can walk anyplace and they'll say, `He's one of the guys who can wear number 42.' I'll walk alone."
Leaning on two canes because of his recent knee injury, Clinton walked to home plate with Selig and Rachel Robinson, Jackie's widow.
As a crowd of 54,047 - 34,596 paid - stood, the president paid tribute to Robinson.
"I can't help thinking that if Jackie Robinson were here with us tonight, he would say we have done a lot of good in the last 50 years, but we can do better," Clinton said. "We have achieved equality on the playing field, but we need to establish equality in the boardrooms of baseball and throughout corporate America.
". . . We ought to have a grand slam society, a good society where all of us have a chance to work together for a better tomorrow for our children. Let that be the true legacy of Jackie Robinson's wonderful, remarkable career and life."
Mrs. Robinson thanked the president for joining the celebration.
"This anniversary has given us an opportunity as a nation to celebrate together the triumph of the past and the social progress that has occurred," she said. "It has also given us an opportunity to reassess the challenges of the present. It's my passionate hope that we can take this reawakened feeling of unity and use it as a driving force so that each of us can recommit to equality of opportuntiy for all Americans.
"I believe that the greatest tribute that we can pay to Jackie Robinson is to gain new support for a more equitable society and in this heady environment of unity," she said. "It is my hope that we can carry his living legacy beyond this glorious moment. This is a great moment for all of us."
In the hours before the game, Clinton visited both the Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers clubhouses.
"He met everybody and took a picture with all of them," Mets manager Bobby Valentine said. "He's unable to scoot around, but he took the time to meet everybody. As much as guys try to be cool, it was an honor. The guys were lounging around and when they heard, `He's here,' the guys snapped to. It was neat. It was an exciting, wonderful day."
Mets reliever Toby Borland, who saved the 5-0 victory, said meeting the president was special. "I said, `Uh, uh, uh, I'm Toby Borland.' Now I can go back home to Louisiana and tell people in that little town I met the president."
Robinson's grandson, Jesse Simms, threw out the first ball. Simms, who will play football at UCLA this fall, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, shook hands with home plate umpire Eric Gregg, a black, as he went out for the pitch and again as he left the field.
Shea was a sea of security, with metal detectors all over the stadium for the first visit by a sitting president. There was a brief pregame ceremony with both teams lined up on the foul lines and a half-dozen of Robinson's old teammates, including Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax introduced to the fans.
Among those on hand was Larry Doby, who followed Robinson to the majors, joining the Cleveland Indians 11 weeks later as the first black player in the American League. "Jackie was first, and I think . . . what's happening tonight should be his," Doby said in an interview on ESPN, which televised the game nationally.
The video board in left field showed highlights of Robinson's career between innings.
On the main scoreboard, normally an advertisement for Budweiser, was a photograph of Robinson in his classic white Brooklyn uniform coming down the third base line, daring a pitcher to do something about it. Next to that was a message: "He was the handsome, heroic giant of our youth who taught us determination, taught us perseverance and finally, he taught us justice."