ARLINGTON -- Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier in 1947, exactly three decades before Orioles manager Buck Showalter made his professional playing debut. But as Showalter worked his way through the Minors as a coach and manager, he had a personal connection to Robinson in pitching coach Russ "Monk" Meyer, who played with Robinson in the 1950s.
Meyer served as Showalter's pitching coach in the Minors, and he was the Yankees' bench coach in 1992 when Showalter took over as manager. On long bus rides, Showalter used to listen to Meyer tell stories about the first African-American player in the Majors -- the man who will be celebrated again Friday on baseball's annual Jackie Robinson Day, when all players wear his retired No.