1. I signed African-American superstar and future hall-of-famer Jackie Robinson.
2. I drafted the first Latin-American baseball player, future hall-of-famer Roberto Clemente.
3. I created the framework for baseball's "farm club" system.
4. Some called me "The Mahatma."
5. Oh, and I earned a law degree at the University of Michigan.
Who am I?
too easy. branch rickey.
Steve, you are correct! (But did you know he had a law degree from Michigan?)
You can read more about Branch Rickey here:
http://www.basicfamouspeople.com/index.php?aid=708
At Northwestern we tend to keep track of baseball notables with law degrees. See e.g. Landis, Kenesaw Mountain.
I believe Branch Rickey is also the author of the quip: "Luck is the residue of design."
Current baseball notables with law degrees: Theo Epstein and Tony La Russa. Where did they obtain their law degrees?
Being a die-hard Cards fan (attended my first game in 1966!), I am aware that Tony La Russa has a law degree from FSU. I could feel the karma when I was a visitor at FSU in Fall 2003.
Theo Epstein? Looked him up on the internet and discovered his law degree is from … (I'll let another reader disclose the answer!).
Here's another baseball player (although, sadly, now departed from this transient realm) with a law degree: Donn Clendenon, longtime Pirate who became a key part of the Miracle Mets of 1969. After retiring from baseball he earned a law degree from [You have to guess where!] and then later practiced law in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.