(Baltimore) Brooks Robinson, a Major League Baseball Hall of Famer whose brilliant defensive play at third base and unassuming, humble demeanor made him one of the most revered and accomplished athletes in Baltimore history , is dead. He was 86 years old.
Orioles officials and Robinson’s family announced the news in a joint statement Tuesday. The press release did not specify the cause of death.
The Orioles called for a moment of silence before their game against the Washington Nationals, and players from both teams lined up outside their dugout to pay their respects. Also, before the game, fans gathered around the nine-foot-tall bronze statue of Robinson inside Camden Yards.
“A great player, a great man on the field, a great man off the field,” said former pitcher Jim Palmer, a former teammate, overcome with emotion.
“Respectful, kind. And you don’t meet a lot of guys like that. Brooks was a genuine person. He wasn’t acting. Brooks was simply a genuine person. »
A player who developed and rose to prominence before the era of autonomy in major league baseball, Robinson spent his entire 23-season career with the Orioles.
Almost single-handedly, he helped the Orioles defeat the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970 World Series. In 1966, he homered in Game 1 of the Fall Classic against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Orioles swept the series in four games for the first title in their history.
Over the course of his career, Robinson appeared in 18 All-Star Games, won the American League Gold Glove in 16 consecutive seasons and was voted American League Most Valuable Player in 1964. This that season he posted a .317 batting average with 28 home runs and 118 RBIs.
“An integral part of the Orioles family since 1955, he will continue to leave a lasting impact on our club, our community and the sport of baseball,” Orioles executives said.
He concluded his career with 268 home runs, 1,357 runs scored and a respectable .267 batting average in 2,896 games. Not bad for “good old” number 5, from Arkansas.
But Robinson will always be remembered for his work ethic and the skills he demonstrated at the “hot corner.”
He established himself as one of the best third basemen in baseball history, whether rushing toward home plate to recover a weak ground ball or diving to his right to intercept a ball. struck sharply along the boundary line of the third cushion.
“Brooks may have been the last to arrive in the locker room on game day, but he was the first on the field,” said former Orioles manager Earl Weaver.
“He was practicing catching groundballs and we were all wondering why Brooks was doing this routine. I expected nothing else from Brooks. Seeing him work like that was very important for any young person who arrived. He was so stable, and he stabilized everyone else. »
Robinson arrived in Baltimore in September 1955, at the age of 18, after spending most of his first professional season at Class B York. With the Orioles, he had only two hits in 22 visits to the plate and was struck out 10 times in three strikes.
He bounced back and forth between the major leagues and the minors until July 1959, when he settled in Baltimore for good.
Brooks Calbert Robinson Jr. was born in Little Rock on May 18, 1937. He eventually settled in Baltimore, but never really lost his southern accent, which suited Baltimore fans who appreciated his rustic charm and his discreet attitude.
Nicknamed “Mr. Oriole,” he was a Baltimore sports hero, along with former Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas and Orioles infielder Cal Ripken, who played for another generation.
Many Orioles fans who never got to see Robinson play were able to enjoy his observations during the team’s television broadcasts.
Ripken was known as The Iron Man because he played 2,632 consecutive games, but Robinson didn’t like inactivity either. From 1960 to 1975, he appeared in at least 152 games in 14 seasons and 144 games the other two campaigns.
“I’m a guy that just wanted to see his name in the lineup every day,” he said. “For me, baseball was a passion that bordered on obsession. »
Robinson retired in 1977 after hitting just .149 in 24 games. His jersey was retired that same year. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1983 in his first year of eligibility.
It was during the 1970 World Series that Robinson had his most memorable performance. A performance that earned him the title of Most Valuable Player of the fall classic.
It came a year after the Orioles’ stunning World Series loss to the New York Mets, during which Robinson was limited to one hit in 19 plate appearances.
Robinson had such a spectacular defensive performance against the Reds that few remember that he completed five World Series games with a .429 batting average, hit two home runs and scored six points — or that he made an error on the first ball hit in his direction.
In the first game, Robinson broke a tie with a seventh-inning home run. An inning earlier, he had made a sensational play by backhanding a powerful grounder from Lee May along the third base line before spinning and throwing the ball to the first base in time for the out.
Robinson drove in a single in Game 2 and left an indelible mark on World Series history following his exploits in Game 3.
He first jumped high in the air to catch a bouncing ball from Tony Perez before leading into a double play in the first inning. In the second inning, he rushed to grab a weak grounder from Tommy Helms before removing it at the first base. He capped off this unforgettable afternoon by diving to catch a flying shot from Johnny Bench.
Fittingly, the World Series ended with a groundout to Robinson in Game 5, clinching a 9-3 victory for the Orioles.
“I’m starting to see Brooks in my dreams,” Reds manager Sparky Anderson said during the World Series.
Palmer and other teammates would claim that the whole country got to see what Robinson did regularly during the regular season. Robinson used to blush when asked to recall his exploits from October 1970.
“I tell people I’ve played for 23 seasons and I’ve never played five games in a row like I did in that World Series. It was a once-in-a-lifetime five-game stretch, and it happened to be during a World Series. »
His Maryland legacy continued long after his retirement.
There is a Brooks-Robinson Drive in Pikesville, and the state’s annual high school all-star game, held at Camden Yards, is named in his honor.
