Elston Quotes

“In early August, Bill Virdon was fired and replaced by Billy Martin. Virdon’s dismissal left Elston with mixed feelings: He was glad to be reunited with Billy, his old friend and teammate, but once again he was hurt because he had been snubbed for the job he so badly wanted. We loved Billy. At heart, he was a nice person, very generous. Billy’s problem was that he was an alcoholic. One time we were in Kansas City for the playoffs; he joined us for breakfast and ordered eggs and scotch. When Billy was drunk he could be a pretty rotten person; he got into fights. But”
― Arlene Howard, Elston: The Story of the First African-American Yankee

“In 1971, the Yankees hired Bill White, making him baseball’s first black broadcaster. Everyone was so proud of him. Over the years we had seen Bill quite a bit starting from the days when he played with the Cardinals, then in spring training at St. Petersburg, and later whenever we went home to St. Louis. When Bill came to the Yankees, he knew little about the American League players. So Elston naturally was the first person he went to that spring training.”
― Arlene Howard, Elston: The Story of the First African-American Yankee

“On April 14 in Boston, Elston’s name went down in Yankee history. He got into his first game when Irv Noren was ejected over a call at home plate. According to the Black Associated Press, Elston made his Yankee debut at 4:32 p.m. “Howard’s appearance at-bat signaled the fall of a dynasty that had been assailed on all sides as being anti-Negro. The fans gave Howard a well-deserved round of applause, making his debut on the heretofore lily-white Bronx Bombers.” Elston played three innings that day. He singled and drove in a run in an 8–4 loss to the Red Sox. Finally, the Yankees had become the thirteenth club in the major leagues to field a black player. The only holdouts were the Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers, and Boston Red Sox.”
― Arlene Howard, Elston: The Story of the First African-American Yankee

“They didn’t want a black man on the Yankees even though the Dodgers had Jackie and had broken down the color barrier. The Yankees didn’t want Elston, because of the innate prejudice at the time on that ball club and in that organization. And when Elston came, what he had to go through is somewhat the same as what Jackie had to face.”
― Arlene Howard, Elston: The Story of the First African-American Yankee

“Explaining racial segregation to your five-year-old son is a very, very hard thing to do. When we would bring Elston Jr. down to spring training, Elston struggled to find the right words, the right way to tell our son about the difference between North and South, right and wrong, and black and white; that because of his skin color he had to use a different public rest room or was not allowed to eat a hamburger at certain restaurants. Beaches and swimming pools were off limits. “It’s like a private club,” Elston would say, “and we aren’t members.”
― Arlene Howard, Elston: The Story of the First African-American Yankee