Vintage Baseball Glove Forum

Long time glover John Baggerly sent me a clipping from Sunday's San Francisco Chronicle with headline and picture of "A Giant What-if: Robinson with May," headline. It refers to the famous trading of Robinson to the Giants from the Dodgers but Jackie refused to report and retired instead after the 1956 season. There's good, close-up shot of Robinson with his glove. Looking at it at first I thought it was a Rawlings Trapeze. Upon closer examination it turned out to be, of all mitts, a Caprico 6-finger. Most of the glove guys have seen those Robinson 6-finger Capricos with Jackie's signature on them. The photo had been "doctored" to show Robinson in a Giants uniform. I don't think the Caprico Robinson 6-finger retail gloves came along until after 1960 so am not sure when the photo was made. I had not looked into gloves Robinson used when he was playing for photos but do recall that he used a Rawlings Trapper and perhaps other Rawlings gloves. He did not have a contract with any of the leading makers like Spalding, Rawlings, Wilson or MacGregor but his name did appear on some Dubow store models. Sort of strange when this man had more impact on the game than anyone besides Ruth.

Joe;

I guess that what they say is correct once a Dodger always a Dodger. In fact I heard a former Dodger player say that while he was a member of the team they would not celebrate Halloween because of the orange and black colors that was associated with it!

If you consider the mind set of this country during those times. It is not strange at all that he could not get a glove endorsement from one of the major glove makers. You are so correct in saying that this man had not only a major impact on baseball, but the history of this country as well.

I can say that we as a nation have came a long way in the last 60 years, but we also have a long way to go!

I wonder if the Hall of Fame would know more about Robinson's glove.

It's a bit odd he would have a bat contract with Louisville Slugger and not

a glove contract. I also saw in an Ontario Paper a photo of Robinson in

the air making a catch and what seamed to be an early 50's Rawlings

model. I wonder though if anyone went through what Jackie did if he

could even remember a glove or model number. I know we all have

heard the stories, but i could not even imagine. Mean world at times.

It was a different world then. I was in it. And in the South. I played ball on mixed teams with the blacks and didn't think anything about it but school and social was an entirely different thing. If you remember the Jackie Robinson movie. Jackie, as a youth, wanted to join the sandlot game but didn't have a glove.
Willie Mays was signed to an early contract with MacGregor, '53 or '54
and MacGregor followed with other black stars like Frank Robby, Aaron, Clemente. Rawlings was more reluctant it seems and didn't sign a black player until "Mudcat" Grant about 1960. Spalding the same, Vada Pinson in 1961. Wilson got Ernie Banks slightly earlier, 1958 a local player in Wilson's hometown of Chicago. Denkert was signing some of the first black players like Henry Thompson and Monte Irvin likely in the mid-1950s
Possibly the Hall of Fame might have one of Robinson's gloves on display.
Now, on to the Jackie Robinson H&B store bat. Probably the most commonly made and used bats in the retail market, even after Robinson retired. Big handle, big barrel that was very popular among the bigger guys with the big hands. You can find a Jackie Robinson bat very easily. You will have a hard time coming up with a USA made Robinson glove.
The Capricos are found fairly often. As I study the San Francisco Chronicle picture I noticed that it's been illustrated a bit (to show Robinson in a Giants uniform). Robinson has some gray in his hair and I wonder if this was made from a shot that Caprico used after his retirement asking him to pose with the glove. Just a thought.
I'll pursue all of this in next newsletter. Thanks for the postings on Robinson, indeed let's salute all the first black ball players with each team.

When I was a kid, here in the Big Apple, my dad who was an only child and son of a German butcher who worked and lived in the meat cutting Chelsea district here in town, was a Yankee fan. Lou G. went to Columbia. My Dad, also named Lou, also went to Columbia. Everybody knows, or used to at least, that Elston Howard, a wonderful man, was the first African American to play for the Yankees. When I was a kid in Little League at an "end of the season" dinner, Elston came to speak and present the door prize. We all received a numbered ticket as we entered. Toward the end of the evening a number was drawn. (I was always lucky with this kind of stuff back then). I won and got myself up out of my chair, and as a ten year old, walked up and shook hands with Elston, Mr. Howard, I should say. He gave me a big soft warm smile and handed me a boxed dart board all the while devouring my outstretched hand in his gigantic clawlike right hand. I will never forget that handshake.
I have all kinds of ancient gloves from way before Elston. Still,when I was getting this enterprise underway, I felt compelled, at the same time, to get an example of every Topps & Bowman Elston Howard card ever made and one of those beautiful HOH Elston Howard Gloves to boot.
By the time that Elston Howard was finally setting up behind home plate for the Yanks, the trailblazing had pretty much been accomplished. Still, I agree. As each MLB team took part in this new way of being, we all were given a chance to witness baseball being played at a more fascinating level.

Had no idea who Vada Pinson was until today

I am currently relacing a Spalding VP-1 42-847 Vada Pinson glove as we speak.

Thanks for the history lesson gents!

saw a pic. in a baseball book today at barnes & nobles of robinson wearing what looked to be possibly a rawlings BD, photo was early 50's.