Lew Burdette pitched for the Braves 1951-1963 and won 179 regular season games plus THREE in the Braves 1957 World Series win over the Yankees.
Lew Burdette
Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right • Throws: Right
6-2, 180lb (188cm, 81kg)
Born: November 22, 1926 in Nitro, WV us
Died: February 6, 2007
https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/Lew-Burdette/
The Brooklyn Dodgers became the Braves’ biggest rivals during this period, finishing one spot ahead of the Braves in the final standings in each of the Braves’ first four years in Milwaukee in races that often went down to the final week. Twice Burdette found himself at the center of run-ins with one of the Dodgers’ African-American stars, and was accused of being racially prejudiced – charges that he and his teammates vehemently denied. In August 1953, the Dodgers’ Roy Campanella charged Burdette on the mound with his bat in hand after he struck out and the two men exchanged angry words. Both benches emptied, but no punches were thrown and play quickly resumed. After the game Jackie Robinson told the press that Campanella only charged the mound after Burdette had addressed him with a racial slur. A similar incident occurred three years later (1956) when during pregame warm-ups Jackie Robinson threw a baseball at Burdette’s head (he missed) in response to being called a “watermelon.” Burdette emphatically denied that his comment was racially motivated, claiming that he was joking about Robinson’s “spare tire, not his race.” The two spoke after the game, and Robinson was placated by Burdette’s apology and explanation, and put the matter behind him.
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Jackie Robinson ran over Giant second baseman Davey Williams April 23, 1955. Tim Anderson and Josh Donaldson can learn more about Robinson. Monday, May 23, 2022
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