About Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All-Star, Reese contributed to seven National League championships for the Dodgers and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984. Reese is well known for his support of his teammate Jackie Robinson, the first Black player in the major leagues' modern era, who faced widespread racist backlash upon being promoted from the Negro leagues to the major leagues. This support is commonly exemplified with a story of Reese's response to escalating harassment of Robinson that had been taking place during a pre-game warmup in 1947. In this story, Reese walked from his standard position on the field to Robinson's position in the infield and put his arm around Robinson's shoulder. While the details of the incident are possibly apocryphal, it is considered representative of Reese's pattern of public acts of camaraderie towards Robinson, which gestured inclusion and acceptance of his teammate within a prejudiced societal context. The Cardinals won the first two games of the best-of-three-game series to capture the National League pennant. Reese is also famous for his support of his teammate Jackie Robinson, the first Black player in the major leagues' modern era, especially in Robinson's difficult first years, most notably when he put his arm around Robinson during a pre-game warmup in front of a heckling crowd.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.