The Lineup Card, Then the Clipboard
October 3rd, 1974
The Cleveland Indians designated Frank Robinson as their official player-manager for the 1975 season, making him the first black manager in the major-league history. A first-ballot Hall-of-Famer and one of the best players of his era (and what an era that was), Robinson went on to homer in his first at-bat in '75 as the team's combination DH/skipper. He continued to manage the Indians until 1977, a year after he retired from play. He then moved on to managerial stints in San Francisco ('81-'84), Baltimore ('88-'91, with a Manager of the Year award in '89) and Montreal/Washington ('02-'06).
October 3, 1989
Art Shell, already a Raider legend and Hall-of-Fame lineman, is named by Al Davis to replace Mike Shanahan as the head coach of the L.A. Raiders, making him the first black head coach in modern NFL history (NFL pioneer Fritz Pollard was the head coach of the AFPL Akron Pros in the early 1920's). Shell went 7-5 with the Raiders that year, after the team had staggered to a 1-3 start. The following season he was named Coach of the Year after leading the team to a 12-4 record and an appearance in the AFC Championship (where they, ah, had a few problems with the Bills). He remained at the helm of Raider Nation until the close of the '94 season, until, of course, he was brought back for last year's woebegone campaign.
The Cleveland Indians designated Frank Robinson as their official player-manager for the 1975 season, making him the first black manager in the major-league history. A first-ballot Hall-of-Famer and one of the best players of his era (and what an era that was), Robinson went on to homer in his first at-bat in '75 as the team's combination DH/skipper. He continued to manage the Indians until 1977, a year after he retired from play. He then moved on to managerial stints in San Francisco ('81-'84), Baltimore ('88-'91, with a Manager of the Year award in '89) and Montreal/Washington ('02-'06).
October 3, 1989
Art Shell, already a Raider legend and Hall-of-Fame lineman, is named by Al Davis to replace Mike Shanahan as the head coach of the L.A. Raiders, making him the first black head coach in modern NFL history (NFL pioneer Fritz Pollard was the head coach of the AFPL Akron Pros in the early 1920's). Shell went 7-5 with the Raiders that year, after the team had staggered to a 1-3 start. The following season he was named Coach of the Year after leading the team to a 12-4 record and an appearance in the AFC Championship (where they, ah, had a few problems with the Bills). He remained at the helm of Raider Nation until the close of the '94 season, until, of course, he was brought back for last year's woebegone campaign.
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