On July 19, 1950, the Yankees signed 21-year old outfielder Elston Howard from the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro League. Howard was a good prospect and the respect of his legendary manager, Buck O’Neil, .
We want to think of the Yankees as always being the model organization — not only for winning but for their baseball operations and how they conduct themselves. The unfortunate reality is that the Yankees were slow to integrate. Despite criticism from the media and pressure from fans, it took the Yankees eight years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier to promote a black player to the majors.