him a free ride to Pasadena Junior
             Mallie was thrilled at Jackie's accomplishments and attended every meet he was in, including the meet where Jackie set a National Junior College record in the long jump of 25' 6 1/2" and received an athletic scholarship to UCLA. There, he became the first athlete to earn varsity letters in four sports. Unfortunately, Jackie left UCLA in the spring of 1941, at his mother's request, to help support the family. Six months later, Pearl Harbor was bombed and Jackie enlisted in the U.S. Army.
             It wasn't until the spring of 1945 when Jackie sought out his real dream of playing professional baseball. He joined the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League, a league formed in response to segregation. He spent his entire rookie season touring with the Monarchs on a salary of $400 a month. In mid-August, Jackie's life was about to be changed forever.
             Branch Rickey, owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, had been scouring the country for months looking for a black ballplayer he felt could best withstand the pressure of being the first black man in the Major Leagues. He wanted an interview with Jackie.
             Jackie crossed the mighty threshold into white professional baseball at that meeting, signing a minor league contract with the Dodgers' farm club, the Montreal Royals. The following season, Jackie Robinson was promoted to the Brooklyn Dodgers. He entered the history books on April 15 as the Dodger's opened the 1947 season with the Boston Braves at Ebbets Field.
             However, Robinson's track to success was filled with obstacles. His first manager in the minor leagues, a Southerner named Clay Hopper, often wondered aloud whether "niggers were really humans and not monkeys" (Scott 162). Hall of Famer, and former Yankee, Enos Slaughter allegedly hated blacks so much that while running the bases, he lunged at Jackie, spikes first, causing a...