MLB Network to honor 4 Black baseball icons

February 1st, 2021

February is Black History Month, and MLB Network is celebrating with an extensive look at the lives, careers and legacies of four icons of the sport: , , and .

MLB Network will dedicate each week in February to a different player, focusing on Aaron from Feb. 1-5, Gibson from Feb. 8-12, Brock from Feb. 15-19 and Morgan from Feb. 22-26.

Features will include interviews with contemporaries, who will discuss what it was like to play with or against Aaron, Gibson, Brock and Morgan; statistical deep dives from MLB Network's Brian Kenny; breakdowns from broadcaster Bob Costas exploring little-known facts; vignettes on active players who bear similarities to each legend and more.

Additionally, MLB Network's Harold Reynolds will interview former players for his “Black Magic” segment, which will profile specific moments or interesting aspects of each subject’s career, with Ken Griffey Jr. discussing his epic blast off Baltimore’s B&O Warehouse during the 1993 Home Run Derby, Ozzie Smith sharing the origin of his famous back flips and Dwight Gooden and Alvin Davis breaking down their Rookie of the Year Award-winning seasons in ’84 -- the last time that two Black players swept the honors until 2020, when the Mariners’ Kyle Lewis and the Brewers’ Devin Williams each won.

The Rookie of the Year Awards were renamed for Jackie Robinson in 1987, 40 years after Robinson broke baseball’s color line.

The baseball world lost Aaron, Gibson, Brock and Morgan within the past five months, but they made a lasting impact on the game and Black history, and you can tune in all month long as MLB Network celebrates these all-time greats.