Pee Wee Reese

Infobox MLB retired
name=Pee Wee Reese


position=Shortstop
bats=Right
throws=Right
birthdate=July 23 1918
city-state|Ekron|Kentucky
deathdate=death date and age|1999|8|14|1918|7|23
city-state|Louisville|Kentucky
debutdate=April 23
debutyear=by|1940
debutteam=Brooklyn Dodgers
finaldate=September 26
finalyear=by|1958
finalteam=Los Angeles Dodgers
stat1label=Batting average
stat1value=.269
stat2label=Hits
stat2value=2,170
stat3label=Runs batted in
stat3value=885
teams=
* Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers (by|1940-by|1942, by|1946-by|1958)
highlights=
* 10x All-Star selection (1942, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954)
* World Series champion (1955)
* 1956 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
* Los Angeles Dodgers #1 retired
hofdate=by|1984
hofvote=Veteran's Committee

Harold Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23 1918 - August 14 1999) was an American professional baseball player who played for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. [McHale, Matt. [http://www.thefreelibrary.com/_/print/PrintArticle.aspx?id=83619793 "Pee Wee Reese Dies; Ex-Dodgers Captain Led Brooklyn Team to '55 Championship"] - the Los Angeles Daily News - (c/o TheFreeLibrary.com) - Aug 15, 1999] Reese was a ten-time All Star shortstop who contributed to seven league championships for Brooklyn.

However, Reese is most famous for his ardent support for his teammate Jackie Robinson, the first modern African American player in the major leagues, especially in Robinson's difficult first years.

Early life

Reese's nickname came from his childhood, but it wasn't about his height: he was a champion marbles player (a little "pee wee" is a small marble). Reese was born and raised near then-racially-segregated Louisville, Kentucky.

Playing career

MLBBioRet


Name = Pee Wee Reese
Number = 1
Team = Los Angeles Dodgers
Year = 1984|Pee Wee Reese and Elston Howard have the dubious distinction of playing on the most losing World Series teams (six each). Reese's only World Series win, with the Dodgers in the 1955 World Series, occurred against Howard's New York Yankees team during Howard's first World Series. Like many players of his era, he missed three seasons due to military service. Reese enlisted in the United States Navy in 1943 and shipped out to fight in the Pacific theater of World War II.

Jackie Robinson

Reese was a strong supporter of the first 20th century black Major League Baseball player, Jackie Robinson. He was serving a stint in the Navy when the news of Robinson's signing came. Although he had little or no experience interacting with minorities — according to Reese, his meeting Robinson marked the first time in his life that he had shaken hands with a black man — he had no particular prejudices, either. It is reported that his father had made him starkly aware of racial injustice by showing him a tree where a lynching had occurred. [ [http://sports.jrank.org/pages/3813/Reese-Harold-Pee-Wee-Youth-in-Kentucky.html "Harold "Pee Wee" Reese - Youth In Kentucky"] ] The modest Reese, who typically downplayed his pioneering role in helping to ease the breaking of the 80-year-old color line, said that his primary concern with regard to Robinson's arrival was the possibility of Reese losing his shortstop job. Robinson was assigned to the right side of the infield, and Reese retained his position.

Reese refused to sign a petition that threatened a boycott if Robinson joined the team. When Robinson joined the Dodgers in 1947 and traveled with them during their first road trip, he was heckled by fans in Cincinnati, Ohio. During pre-game infield practice, Reese, the captain of the team, went over to Robinson, engaged him in conversation, and put his arm around his shoulder in a gesture of support which silenced the crowd. This gesture is depicted in a bronze sculpture of Reese and Robinson, created by sculptor William Behrends, that was placed at KeySpan Park in Brooklyn, New York, and unveiled on November 1, 2005.

Throughout that difficult first year in the major leagues, Reese helped keep Robinson's morale up amid all the abuse. Their rapport soon led shortstop Reese and second baseman Robinson to become one of the most effective defensive pairs in the sport's history.

The friendship between Reese and Robinson is the subject of a popular 1990 children's book called "Teammates", written by Peter Golenbock and with illustrations by Paul Bacon. [Golenbock, Peter (Author)., Paul Bacon (Illustrator). "Teammates". San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. 1990. ISBN 0152006036]

At Reese's funeral, Joe Black, another Major League Baseball black pioneer, said::"Pee Wee helped make my boyhood dream come true to play in the Majors, the World Series. When Pee Wee reached out to Jackie, all of us in the Negro League smiled and said it was the first time that a White guy had accepted us. When I finally got up to Brooklyn, I went to Pee Wee and said, 'Black people love you. When you touched Jackie, you touched all of us.' With Pee Wee, it was No. 1 on his uniform and No. 1 in our hearts." [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1355/is_15_96/ai_55983462/print "Rachel Robinson Recalls How The Late Pee Wee Reese Helped Jackie Robinson Integrate Basebal"] - Jet Magazine (c/o FindArticles) - Sept 13, 1999]

Broadcasting career

Following his retirement as a player, Reese enjoyed considerable success as a play-by-play announcer on network television. He called games for CBS from 1960-1965 (with Dizzy Dean) and for NBC from 1966-1968 (with Curt Gowdy). Reese also broadcast several World Series for NBC radio.

Later life

Eventually Reese went to work for Hillerich & Bradsby, makers of Louisville Slugger baseball bats. He battled prostate and lung cancer during the final years of his life, finally succumbing on August 14, 1999, at his Louisville home.

Awards and honors

In 1984, Pee Wee Reese was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

In front of the main entrance into Louisville Slugger Field, stands a statue of Pee Wee Reese.

Personal life

Reese was married to the former Dorothy "Dottie" Walton on March 29, 1942, who survived him in death. They had two children.

ee also

* List of major league players with 2,000 hits
* List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
* List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
* List of Major League Baseball stolen base champions

References

External links

*
*
* [http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/R/Reese_Pee_Wee.stm Pee Wee's page @ Baseball Library.com]
* [http://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=reesepe01 Pee Wee's page @ Baseball Almanac.com]
* [http://www.thesportgallery.com/products/brooklyn.html The SPORT Gallery] Classic photo of Pee Wee Reese and the Boys of Summer