Branch Rickey

Baseball executive

• Born: December 20, 1881
• Birthplace: Stockdale, Ohio
• Died: December 9, 1965
• Place of death: Columbia, Missouri

Education: Ohio Wesleyan University

Also known as: Wesley Branch Rickey

Significance: Branch Rickey was an influential sports executive who played a significant role in the evolution of professional baseball in the twentieth century. Although he was responsible for creating the modern minor league farm system and introducing technical innovations such as the batting helmet, Rickey is perhaps best known for facilitating the racial integration of Major League Baseball (MLB) when he signed Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947.

Background

Branch Rickey was born Wesley Branch Rickey in Ohio on December 20, 1881. He was the second son born to Jacob Franklin "Frank" and Emily Brown Rickey. Rickey's older brother, Orla, was born in 1875, and their younger brother, Frank, was born in 1888. After finishing grade school, the ambitious Rickey studiously educated himself through reading while working on the family farm. His efforts eventually landed him a job as a teacher at a local grade school. Once he saved enough money through teaching, Rickey enrolled at Ohio Wesleyan University.

During his time at Ohio Wesleyan, Rickey took an interest in sports and began playing both baseball and football. When it became clear that he had a particular talent for baseball, Rickey turned to playing semi-professional ball to make extra money to pay tuition. He entered the semi-pro summer circuit in 1902 and later moved to the minor leagues while also coaching the Ohio Wesleyan team. After distinguishing himself as a talented player in the minors, Rickey was purchased by the Cincinnati Reds upon his graduation in 1904.

Rickey's career as a player in the major leagues was short and rather unspectacular. He played parts of only three seasons with the St. Louis Browns and New York Highlanders and became notorious for refusing to participate in Sunday games for religious reasons. Aside from two cameo appearances in 1914, Rickey took the field as a player for the last time in 1907. After a brief and unsuccessful stint as a lawyer, Rickey's fortunes finally turned around when he was hired as an executive and field manager for the St. Louis Browns in 1913.

Life's Work

Rickey's second career in professional baseball got off to a somewhat rocky start. After two largely unimpressive seasons and a period of service in the US Army during World War I (1914–1918), Rickey left the Browns in favor of joining the neighboring St. Louis Cardinals as team president and field manager in 1919. Although he stepped down as team president in favor of new Cardinals majority owner Sam Breadon just a year later, Rickey remained a vital part of the organization. He continued as field manager through 1925 but was eventually relieved from the position when his team failed to perform up to expectations. Because he showed a great talent for developing players, however, Rickey was retained as general manager.

Rickey's transformative influence on professional baseball was felt as soon as he entered the front office. Until that time, major league teams competed with one another to sign players from the minors. This meant that teams with the most money to spend almost always got the best minor league players simply because they could outbid other teams. Rickey believed that the best way to circumvent this problem was for teams to create feeder systems by taking control of minor league teams and directly developing their own future players. This approach—which eventually became known as the farm system—quickly paid dividends when Rickey put it into effect. The Cardinals won six pennants and four World Series under Rickey's leadership and were regular contenders for his entire seventeen-year tenure with the team. Moreover, as other teams recognized the advantages of Rickey's unique approach to talent development, the farm system became a league-wide standard.

After the 1942 season, Rickey left St. Louis to become general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers. With the Dodgers, Rickey continued to be an innovator. He built the first ever full-time spring training facility in Vero Beach, Florida, and introduced technological advancements such as pitching machines, batting cages, and batting helmets. He also became the first general manager to hire a full-time statistical analyst.

Rickey's biggest contribution to baseball—and the one for which he is most remembered—was challenging the MLB's strict color barrier. African Americans were prohibited from playing in the major leagues. As a result, talented African American players who wanted to become professionals were forced to play in their own segregated leagues, known as the Negro Leagues. Rickey believed that these players had much to offer and wanted to break the color barrier. Convinced this was a risk worth taking, Rickey signed elite Negro League player Jackie Robinson to a minor league contract in 1945 and eventually added him to the Dodgers' lineup in 1947. Despite some initial resistance, Robinson's debut proved to be a watershed moment in baseball history.

Following his departure from the Dodgers in 1950, Rickey finished his career with a five-year term as general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates and a brief return to the Cardinals in the 1960s. On November 13, 1965, he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and collapsed while giving his acceptance speech. He never regained consciousness and died less than a month later.

Impact

Few people in history had more of an impact on professional baseball than Rickey. His decision to break the color barrier by signing Jackie Robinson forever changed the game. His many other innovations were critical to the evolution of modern baseball. In recognition of his long list of remarkable accomplishments and contributions, Rickey was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967.

Personal Life

Rickey married Jane Moulton Rickey in 1906. The couple had six children together, including son Branch Rickey Jr. and daughters Alice Rickey Jakle, Jane Rickey Jones, Mary Rickey Eckler, Elizabeth Rickey Wolfe, and Sue Rickey Adams.

Bibliography

"Branch Rickey." National Baseball Hall of Fame, baseballhall.org/hof/rickey-branch. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.

Breslin, Jimmy. Branch Rickey: A Life. Penguin Books, 2011.

Kerrane, Kevin. "How Branch Rickey Invented Modern Baseball." Deadspin, 15 Nov. 2013, deadspin.com/how-branch-rickey-invented-modern-baseball-1458137692. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.

Lowenfish, Lee. Branch Rickey: Baseball's Ferocious Gentleman. Bison Books, 2009.

McCue, Andy. "Branch Rickey." Society for American Baseball Research, sabr.org/bioproj/person/6d0ab8f3. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.

Oshinsky, David. "The Man Who Hired Jackie Robinson." New York Times, 25 Mar. 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/books/review/the-man-who-hired-jackie-robinson.html?mcubz=3. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.

Polner, Murray. Branch Rickey: A Biography. McFarland & Company, 2007.

Spencer, Lyle. "Rickey's Foresight Shapes Game for Generations." MLB.com, 14 Apr. 2012, m.mlb.com/news/article/28519610. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.