Yankees’ Aaron Boone witnessed roots of Jackie Robinson Day, a ‘great thing for America and our game’

NEW YORK — Yankees manager Aaron Boone was a third baseman with the Cincinnati Reds when their superstar centerfielder started the evolution of what Jackie Robinson Day has become.

“I was a teammate with Ken Griffey Jr., when he went to the commissioner and said, ‘Can I wear 42?’” Boone said on Saturday, the 76th anniversary of baseball’s color barrier breaking. “That turned into this day.”

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On the 50th anniversary, April 15, 1997, Major League Baseball held a ceremony prior to the Mets- Dodgers’ game at Shea Stadium. Rachel Robinson, Jackie’s widow, was there, as were MLB commissioner Bud Selig and President Clinton. That’s the day 42 was retired for all teams, although Yankees star closer Mariano Rivera was allowed to continue wearing the number.

In Cleveland, Griffey wore 42 for the Reds in a game against the Indians after being asked to do so by the Robinson family and getting permission from Selig.

A decade later, Griffey got permission again to wear 42 for the 60th anniversary of Robinson’s first game with the Brooklyn Dodgers, which led to Selig invited all other uniformed personnel for every team to wear 42 on Jackie Robinson Day. More than 200 did so in 2007.

And now all players, coaches and managers wear 42 once a year to honor Robinson, a second baseman who hit .313 and was a seven-time All-Star playing for the Dodgers from 1947-56. Robinson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962 and died in 1972 at age 53.

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Saturday was Jackie Robinson Day at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees and Twins wore 42 after donning Jackie Robinson Day t-shirts for pre-game.

“He’s one of the most important figures in American history,” Boone said. “The fact that our sport is intimately intertwined with it is very cool. The fact that our sport gets to honor that and pay respect to that and shine a light on it is a great thing. It’s an honor to see everyone out there in that number with our T shirts and our socks and everything. I think it’s I think it’s a great thing for America and our game.”