Former professional athletes including Joe Namath, Ken Griffey Jr. and Jack Nicklaus, gathered on Monday, Jan. 31, 2022, to participate in the Mr. October Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic hosted by the Floridian National Golf Club in Palm City. PATRICK DOVE/TCPALM / USA TODAY NETWORK

Reggie Jackson Shares Powerful and Sad Story of Racism in Return to Rickwood Field

Originally posted on Fastball on SI | Last updated Jun 21, 2024 8:00 AM ET

National Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson shared an incredibly sad - and raw - story of the racism he faced early in his career on Thursday night.

Jackson joined FOX Sports on the pregame coverage of the famed "Rickwood Game" in Birmingham, Alabama and was asked about his emotions upon returnng to Birmingham, where he played as a minor leaguer in 1967.

Gary Parrish of CBS captured the video and put it out on social media:

Alex Rodriguez asked a question. Reggie Jackson answered it.

(Shouts to the producer and rest of the desk for staying out of Reggie’s way and just letting him talk. I doubt they expected this answer. But it’s a great few minutes of television.)

Alex Rodriguez asked a question. Reggie Jackson answered it.

(Shouts to the producer and rest of the desk for staying out of Reggie’s way and just letting him talk. I doubt they expected this answer. But it’s a great few minutes of television.)pic.twitter.com/7WqjlppvF8
— Gary Parrish (@GaryParrishCBS) June 21, 2024

Jackson played in Birmingham for the Birmingham A's in that 1967 season. He played 114 games at the age of 21. He hit 17 homers and had 58 RBI that year, showing the power that eventually would take him to the major leagues and into the Hall of Fame.

His story was a sad reminder of where the United States was at in terms of race relations in 1967, but it is encouraging to hear that he had a manager and white teammates that were there to support him during that difficult time.

As Parrish said above, credit to Kevin Burkhardt, Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz and Derek Jeter for letting him speak openly and honestly, and without interruption.

At the major league level, Jackson was a 14-time All-Star and a five-time World Series Champion. He hit 563 home runs.

You can read more coverage from the Rickwood Game here and here.

This article first appeared on Fastball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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