CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Guardians will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Frank Robinson becoming the first Black manager in baseball today when they open the home season against the White Sox at Progressive Field.
Robinson, a Hall of Fame outfielder, made history when he homered in his first at-bat as the Indians’ player-manager off the Yankees’ Doc Medich at Municipal Stadium.
Duane Kuiper and Rick Manning were not on hand to see the famous home run. They were optioned to Class AAA Oklahoma City at the end of spring training. Not surprisingly, they felt they should have made the opening day roster.
By May, both players had joined the Indians and got a first hand view of Robinson’s managerial style.
“I was 20,” said Manning. “(When I was) growing up, Frank was one of the greatest players in the world. I loved playing for him.”
Kuiper had made his big league debut in 1974, hitting .500 (11 for 22). The Indians had veteran Jack Brohamer at second base, but when Brohamer was injured in 1975, Kuiper took over.
“Frank liked the give and take in the locker room,” said Kuiper. “If he came at you, he expected you to give it right back. That’s the way he communicated.”
Rick Manning (right), shown circling the bases after hitting a home run for the Indians in 1980, enjoyed playing for manager Frank Robinson. Cleveland Plain Dealer
The Indians were loaded with veterans including Gaylord Perry, Rico Carty, John Ellis, George Hendrick, Boog Powell, John Lowenstein, Oscar Gamble and player-coach Tom McGraw.
“They were hardcore,” said Manning. “They’d argue with Frank. John Ellis got into it with Frank in the dugout during a game.”
It was nothing for a veteran to tell Manning, ‘Hey, rook, go get me a Coke and bring it to my locker.”
Said Manning, “I didn’t care. I was in the big leagues.”
Robinson and Perry started butting heads in spring training. Perry told reporters that he wanted to be paid “one dollar more” than Robinson. Meanwhile, Robinson wanted Perry, ace of the pitching staff, to run more.
“They did not like each other,” said Kuiper. “There were times when I’d be playing second base and Frank would tell me to go out and tell Gaylord something on the mound.
“I think Frank did that half the time just to tick Gaylord off.”
Former Indians teammates Rick Manning (left) and Duane Kuiper have good memories of playing for Frank Robinson, MLB’s first black managerThe Plain Dealer
As Kuiper would approach the mound, he’d tell Perry, “This isn’t my idea.’ ”Gaylord would answer, “I know whose idea this is. Now get the hell out of here.‘”
Kuiper admired Robinson for gambling on young players like Manning, Dennis Eckersley and himself. Eckersley was the only one who broke camp with the big-league club, and he did it in the bullpen.
“He put a lot of trust in us,” said Kuiper.
Manning agreed.
“When Cleveland unveiled the statue of him at Progressive Field in 2017, I spoke at the ceremony,” said Manning. “I said I felt I should have made the opening day roster.
“Afterward he told me, ‘I wanted all of you up there.’ But I was 20. I didn’t know the business of the game.”
Kuiper said Robinson really never talked about being MLB’s first Black manager.
“But you could tell he was extremely proud of it,” said Kuiper.
As for feeling the pressure of being the first man through the door, Manning never saw it.
“I wouldn’t have known even if he did,” said Manning. “He was the first, and I bet he felt he should be the first. That’s the way he went about things.”
The Indians finished fourth in the American League East in 1975 at 79-80. They improved to 81-78 in 1976 as the players learned more and more about what made their manager tick.
In the spring of 1976, the Indians optioned a right-handed pitcher named Bob Reynolds to Class AAA Toledo. He was nicknamed “Bullet Bob.”
Kuiper said Reynolds was upset because Robinson didn’t tell him in person. Robinson and the team were on a road trip at the time.
When the regular season started, the Indians were scheduled to play the Mudhens in Toledo in June.
“When we got to Toledo, Reynolds had already told some of the players that he was going to throw at Frank if he played in the game,” said Kuiper. “I think Frank may have heard about it and decided to play, because he wasn’t originally.”
Robinson pinch-hit in the fifth inning with Reynolds on the mound. Reynolds’ first pitch was over Robinson’s head. The at-bat ended with Robinson flying out to left.
“I never thought Frank would go up there and hit,” said Manning. “He did, and Reynolds threw one at him. The next pitch he hit in the air and he made a little circle around the mound, and just popped him.”
Kuiper said Robinson threw three punches and knocked Reynolds down. Robinson was ejected from the game.
“Frank came out of Oakland,” said Kuiper. “He spent his whole career proving he wouldn’t be intimidated by anyone.”
It was a strange night in Toledo. Cleveland catcher Ray Fosse homered, but twisted his knee and couldn’t run around the bases. So pitching coach Harvey Haddix , 50 at the time, jogged around the bases for him.
“I remember leaving Toledo on the bus thinking about all the goodwill we created,” said Kuiper with a laugh.
The next day Kuiper walked by Robinson in the locker room and said, “Are you going to punch me?”
The Indians fired Robinson during the 1977 season.
“It upset me when he got fired,” said Manning. “I thought he did a good job.”
Robinson would go on to manage the Giants (1981-1984), Baltimore (1988-1991), Montreal (2002-2004) and the Nationals (2005-2006).
“I must have done something right, because he took me with him to San Francisco,” said Kuiper, who played for the Giants from 1982 to 1985.
Manning is in his 36th years as an analyst of for Guardians/Indians baseball.
Kuiper has broadcast Giants games on TV and radio since 1986.
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