In the 1960s, the White Sox had several exciting young players who peaked early, then faded inexplicably. Robinson, a chunky ex-Marine, was the prime example. After hitting .310 as a rookie in ’61, he raised that to .312 the next year, with 109 RBI and a league-leading 45 doubles. On July 22, he went 6-for-6 against Boston. That winter, Chicago sportswriters named him the city’s top athlete. He slumped in 1963 and was a salary holdout in ’64. Although he hit .301 that year, his power stats fell off badly. When Eddie Stanky took over as manager, Robinson was put in his doghouse as a complainer. He was traded to Cincinnati in 1967, and was out of the majors within two years.
