After his discharge from the Army in 1944, Robinson began to play baseball professionally. At the time, the sport were segregated, and African Americans and white people played in separate leagues. Robinson began playing in the Negro Leagues, but he was soon chosen by Branch Rickey, president of the Brooklyn Dodgers, to help integrate Major League Baseball. He joined the Montreal Royals, a farm team for the Brooklyn Dodgers, in 1946. Robinson later moved to Florida to begin spring training with the Royals. Rickey knew there would be difficult times ahead for the young athlete, and so made Robinson promise to not fight back when c onfronted with racism. Robinson had an outstanding start with the Royals, leading the International League with a .349 batting average and .985 fielding percentage. His successful year led to his promotion to join the Dodgers. Robinson played his first game at Ebbets Field for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947, making history as the first Black athlete to play Major League Baseball. Robinson would go on not just to be the first african American player to join the league but also the most achieved. Robinson recieved all kinds of threats from different teams in the league but Leo Durocher the manager of team had his back along with his team. In one incident, while fans harassed Robinson from the stands, Reese walked over and put his arm around his teammate, a gesture that has become legendary in baseball history.
