When Jackie Robinson signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, it heralded an end to racial segregation in professional baseball.
And even though Major League Baseball teams were integrated, official recordkeepers refused to acknowledge stats from the Negro Leagues – where Black players were relegated to for decades.
Author and historian Larry Lester is one of the people who has fought to change that for years.
He's spent over 50 years compiling statistics from the Negro Leagues. Now, that effort is getting recognition from the MLB, and Lester spoke to Ari Shapiro on the battle for inclusion.
Statistics from the Negro Leagues have now been incorporated into the MLB's records – and it's reshaping the history of baseball.
For generations, Black baseball players' contributions to the sport have been ignored. Now, their legacies are being recognized.
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After Jackie, a new History Channel documentary, tells the stories of three of the Black baseball players who followed Jackie Robinson into the major leagues.
NPR's Scott Simon wonders about the money collectors paid for ticket stubs: one for the 1st game Jackie Robinson played as a Dodger, the other for the 1st game Michael Jordan played as a Chicago Bull.
It was the second time the record was broken in the same auction. Earlier on Sunday, a bidder bought a full ticket from Michael Jordan's 1984 NBA debut with the Chicago Bulls for $468,000.
As sports teams make visible their support for Black Lives Matter, NPR's Scott Simon reflects on the tradition of athletes speaking out on behalf of civil rights and social justice.
