Of the 68 African-American players on opening day rosters, according to USA Today, only three resided in the NL West and none were in uniform Monday when the Padres hosted the Rockies on Jackie Robinson Day.
That doesn’t mean the impact of crossing Major League Baseball’s color barrier on April 15, 1947, isn’t significant in Petco Park’s home clubhouse where nameless No. 42 jerseys hung in front of every locker.
Seven players on the Padres’ active roster hail from the Dominican Republic, one is from Mexico and another is from Venezuela.
“He was a pioneer for us,” Dominican rookie shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr.