On May 18, 1947, Jackie Robinson made his first career appearance in Chicago, in front of a sold out Wrigley Field crowd. It still remains the largest paid attendance in the ballpark's history. (Among the people in the crowd: a young Ronnie Woo Woo attending his first Cubs game). The Dodgers beat the Cubs 4-2, but that doesn't even begin to tell the story of that day.

When the Dodgers announced that Jackie Robinson would be playing for them that season, the Cubs players held a closed door vote about whether or not they would take the field when he came to Chicago. The final vote tally was not released, but the Cubs voted no. Their owner, Phillip Wrigley, also voted no. He was afraid that the white North Side neighborhood surrounding Wrigley Field would rebel and take it out on the Cubs. The players and owners were overruled by Commissioner Happy Chandler, who forced everyone to accept Robinson or be barred from the game.

Needless to say, they went along reluctantly. The Cubs were a team that featured many Southerners like catcher Clyde McCollough, and pitchers Claude Passeau, Bill Lee, Dewey Williams, and Hank Wyse. This was not a good combination for Jackie Robinson when he stepped to the plate. Hank Wyse, an Oklahoman, explained what happened in the book "Wrigleyville."

"I remember the first game against him. I don't remember who started, but every time he come up, we knocked him down four times. The pitcher would stay in there until it was his turn to come up, and they'd knock Robinson down four more times. When it come time for the pitcher to come up, we'd take him out and let somebody else in, 'cause you knew darn well that the Dodgers were goin to knock him down. So we changed pitchers during the ball game. Paul Erickson was the last pitcher, and the last time he came up, Erickson throwed it at his head, and he went down. He got back up, and he stuck one in his ribs. All four times he got up they knocked him down. All four pitches. He didn't say nothin. He just got up and trotted down to first."

Happily, by the time the Cubs brought up Ernie Banks six seasons later, the mood around Wrigley had changed dramatically. Ask Ernie if he was treated well by the fans and his teammates, and he'll tell you that they were "wonderful."

On May 18, 1947, Jackie Robinson would have clearly disagreed.