Roy Campanella was a Major League Baseball player in the National Negro League with the Washington Elite Giants (1937) and Baltimore Elite Giants (1938-1942, 1944-1945), before he played with Brooklyn Dodgers (1948-1957). When Campanella made his big league debut on April 20, 1948, he became the second Simon Gratz High School (Philadelphia, PA) graduate to play in the majors. Do you know who preceded him? [Answer]
Roy Campanella Rookie Card | 1949 Bowman Baseball Card (#84 | Checklist)
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Roy Campanella | National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque | Class of 1969 (HOF)
Ebbets Field was a Major League Baseball stadium in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City -- A baseball cathedral that served as home for the Brooklyn Dodgers, from 1913 to 1957. Roy Campanella was behind the plate on September 24, 1957, the last game ever played in Ebbets Field. Five days later, on September 29, 1957, Campy appeared in his last game (due to a career-ending car crash a few months later that left him permanently paralyzed / newspaper article below), pinch-hitting for Roger Craig, which was also the last game played by the BROOKLYN Dodgers, who moved to the west coast in 1958, where they became the LOS ANGELES Dodgers.
Roy Campanella Car Crash | The News-Tribune (Ft. Pierce, FL) | January 28, 1958 | Page 6
Baseball Almanac Research Library
Did you know that Roy Campanella (NL) and Yogi Berra (AL) each won their first Most Valuable Player Award in 1951? Did you know it was the first year where both league MVPs were catchers? In 1953, Campy won his second MVP, the first catcher with two. One year later, Berra won his second, the first American League catcher with two. Then the legendary duo made history yet again, each winning their third MVP in 1955, Yogi tying Jimmie Foxx (3x MVP) & Joe DiMaggio (3x MVP) in the junior circuit, Campy tying Stan Musial (3x MVP) in the senior circuit.