Civil Rights Game

The Civil Rights Game was an annual game between major league teams designed to commemorate baseball's role in promoting the cause of civil rights and to honor personalities who have played a major role in the fight for equality.

The game was first played in 2007 in connection with the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in 1947. The first two games were exhibition games played at the tail end of spring training in Memphis, TN. Subsequent editions were played in major league cities and were regular-season games, a result of significant media and popular interest in the annual event, which grew from a simple game to a series of events around the game. The game was moved to a later part of the season in 2012, but a formal announcement about the new date was only made after the All-Star break. In 2014, the game returned to an early-season slot. It was not played after 2015, although MLB did not make an official announcement about the reasons for dropping what had become a very successful event, and whether it would be revived at some point.

The teams in the game wore throwback uniforms, either from the Negro Leagues or from years that have played a significant role in history. Various events around the game were planned to underline the theme of civil rights, including baseball handing out Beacon Awards to personalities who have played a key role in the battle for civil rights, inside or outside baseball. The Beacon Awards include a "Beacon of Life" award, honoring a former player, and "Beacon of Change" and "Beacon of Hope" awards honoring other personalities from outside the game.

Results

Year	Date	Host City	Stadium	Team	Score	Team	Attendance
2007	March 31	Memphis, TN	AutoZone Park	St. Louis Cardinals	5-1	Cleveland Indians	12,815
2008	March 29	Memphis, TN	AutoZone Park	New York Mets	3-2	Chicago White Sox	7,717
2009	June 20	Cincinnati, OH	Great American Ball Park	Cincinnati Reds	8-10	Chicago White Sox	42,234
2010	May 15	Cincinnati, OH	Great American Ball Park	Cincinnati Reds	4-3	St. Louis Cardinals	41,326
2011	May 15	Atlanta, GA	Turner Field	Atlanta Braves	3-2	Philadelphia Phillies	42,117
2012	August 18	Atlanta, GA	Turner Field	Atlanta Braves	2-6	Los Angeles Dodgers	42,219
2013	August 24	Chicago, IL	U.S. Cellular Field	Chicago White Sox	3-2	Texas Rangers	22,079
2014	May 30	Houston, TX	Minute Maid Park	Houston Astros	2-1	Baltimore Orioles	38,482
2015	April 15	Los Angeles, CA	Dodger Stadium	Los Angeles Dodgers	5-2	Seattle Mariners	51,287