MercuryNews
Monte Irvin's No. 20 retired by Giants
During a news conference before Saturday's game, Gaylord Perry jokingly told Monte Irvin that "it's harder to get your number retired than it is to make it into the Hall of Fame."
At 91, Irvin has now done both.
The Giants retired Irvin's No. 20 on Saturday, making him the 11th player in franchise history to earn the honor.
Irvin and Hank Thompson became the first African-Americans to play for the New York Giants on July 8, 1949, two years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier.
Irvin hit .293 with 99 home runs in eight Major League seasons and helped the Giants win the 1954 World Series.
"It's a pleasure to be here. At my state in life, it's a pleasure to be anywhere," Irvin joked during a pregame ceremony. "Now I feel like my life in baseball is complete."
Irvin humbly deflected any talk of being a pioneer, saying that Robinson "was the real hero." His fellow Giants legends respectfully disagreed.
"He went through a lot of the same stuff Jackie Robinson went through," Willie McCovey said. "Jackie was just first."
Irvin, Thompson and Willie Mays formed the majors' first all-black outfield during the 1951 World Series, and Mays credited Irvin, his former roommate, with helping him adjust to the big leagues.
"In my time, you had to have some guidance, and Monte was like a brother to me," Mays said. "Monte would bring me to his house in New Jersey, and I didn't know it at the time, but he was trying to keep me out of (New York) where I would enjoy myself. "He protected me dearly." Orlando Cepeda went to see Irvin play in Puerto Rico in 1944. It was Cepeda's first baseball game, and he was disappointed that an injury was keeping Irvin out of the lineup — until Irvin pinch-hit in the seventh inning and hit a one-handed double. "Just another lucky day," Irvin said with a smile.
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