Marlins establish scholarship fund with $420,000 donation to Jackie Robinson Foundation

Ahead of Major League Baseball’s plan to celebrate Jackie Robinson Day on Friday, more than four months later than usual because of the coronavirus pandemic and at a time when calls for racial equality and social justice are at an all-time high, the Miami Marlins and the Marlins Foundation will be donating $420,000 to the Jackie Robinson Foundation.

The donation will be used to award a $20,000 annual scholarship starting in fall 2021 to a deserving African American student from South Florida that demonstrates Jackie Robinson’s nine values: courage, determination, teamwork, persistence, integrity, citizenship, justice, commitment and excellence.

“Jackie was an inspiration for his work on and off the field, and his impact can be seen across South Florida and throughout the nation,” Marlins CEO Derek Jeter said regarding the donation. “We, along with the Jackie Robinson Foundation, are committed to support our community’s youth in their pursuit of academic success. This significant contribution will provide opportunities and support for the future leaders from our local community in their pursuit of excellence.”

The Jackie Robinson Foundation Scholarship program addresses the financial needs of college students and provides mentoring and support services. The scholarship lasts four year and can be used at the undergraduate school of the recipient’s choice. The recipient will also be enrolled in the Jackie Robinson Foundation’s “42 Strategies for Success Curriculum.”

“This endowed scholarship gives The Jackie Robinson Foundation a permanent connection to the Miami Marlins,” said Sharon Robinson, Jackie Robinson’s daughter and the vice chairperson of Jackie Robinson Foundation’s board of directors. “It is especially gratifying given Derek Jeter’s long-term support for JRF and the Robinson family. We are deeply grateful.”

Jackie Robinson Day is normally celebrated on April 15, the day Robinson broke MLB’s color barrier in 1947. Players don Robinson’s No. 42 in the field, and teams normally hold some sort of community service event. The Marlins, for example, have hosted conversations about Robinson’s life and legacy with members of 5000 Role Models, Boys and Girls Clubs of Miami-Dade and students from Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

But an audible had to be pulled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, which postponed the start of the MLB season by four months.

The Marlins held a virtual roundtable called “Connected to 42” that featured eight current and former members of the organization who discussed Robinson’s impact on various generations of baseball.

Listening to players

The delayed celebration of Jackie Robinson day also comes at a time when discussions about racial equality are at the forefront.

Six MLB teams did not play Wednesday night, following the lead of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, who did not take part in their playoff game as part of a protest in wake of the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The NBA ultimately postponed all three postseason games that were scheduled for Wednesday. The WNBA also shelved its three games that were supposed to be played in its Bradenton bubble, and five of six Major League Soccer games were not played, including Inter Miami’s home game against Atlanta United.

The MLB games postponed: Cincinnati Reds at the Milwaukee Brewers, Seattle Mariners at the San Diego Padres, and Los Angeles Dodgers at the San Francisco Giants. All three games are being made up as part of doubleheaders on Thursday.

Marlins manager Don Mattingly said postgame Wednesday said that while the team did not discuss potentially postponing their 5-4 loss to the Mets, the organization is open to listening to players if they wanted to sit out games.

The Marlins, led by a biracial CEO in Jeter and a Black president of baseball operations in Michael Hill, have actively encouraged players to share their viewpoints and said players’ voices weren’t going to be restricted as the Black Lives Matter movement continues to unfold following the deaths of George Floyd, Beonna Taylor and more Black Americans by law enforcement.

Prior to their home opener, the Marlins placed a banner in center field of the “Black Lives Matter, United for Change” placard that general managers held up prior to the 2020 MLB Draft in June.

“We’re going to support our players and we’re going to be behind them,” Jeter said in June. “I told them that I encourage them to speak up. Make sure you’re very clear with where you stand because in the worst case scenario you don’t want to be in a situation where you have to apologize and say you didn’t mean it that way.

“Be very clear with how you feel and we’re going to support you.”

MLB released a statement Wednesday night that said: “Given the pain in the communities of Wisconsin and beyond following the shooting of Jacob Blake, we respect the decisions of a number of players not to play tonight. Major League Baseball remains united for change in our society and we will be allies in the fight to end racism and injustice.”

In addition to the three games, several players including the St. Louis Cardinals’ Dexter Fowler and Jack Flaherty, the Colorado Rockies’ Matt Kemp and the Chicago Cubs’ Jason Heyward did sat out their teams’ games on Wednesday.

“At this critical time, Players have been deeply affected by the recent events in Wisconsin and by similar events in other parts of the country,” MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark said in a statement Wednesday. “We are proud of the stand that our Players have taken, and we remain committed to supporting their efforts to effect change in MLB communities and beyond.”