Ernie Banks Shows How Infectious A Positive Attitude Can Be

The Huffington Post recently ran an article detailing the positive attitude of the National League Hall of Famer Ernie Banks or Mr. Sunshine as he was often known. During his 19-year career in Major League Baseball, Banks became known for his positive attitude which came to the attention of his fellow players and the wider public when he made his famous “let’s play two” statement.

Recalling the incident, Banks revealed the temperature was around 106 degrees at Wrigley Field when he returned to the clubhouse after another loss for the Cubs. As he looked around the clubhouse and saw the downhearted look on his fellow player’s faces, Banks made the statement, “Beautiful day, let’s play two!”

During his plaudit-laden career, Banks became a popular figure at a time when racial tensions were at their highest and the first African-American players were making their way to the professional ranks from the Negro League. Banks was one of the first players to join the professional ranks of U.S. baseball and were the first African-American player for the Chicago Cubs when making his debut in September 1953 at the age of 22.

Modern sportspeople could take a leaf out of the book of Ernie Banks, the man who has become known as Mr. Cub following his refusal to leave the team despite their lowly league position throughout his career. The view of the shortstop and first base specialist was the process and journey to success was more important than winning personal and team awards. Putting this into an easy to understand saying, Ernie Banks was often heard to state, “digging for gold is more important than the gold itself.”

In the early days of his career, Banks remained a silent observer of the players on his the Cubs roster scared to speak in case his race was used against him. In his effort to become one of the great baseball players of all time, Ernie Banks understood it did not matter what team he played on, as long as he gave his all each and every day. The positive attitude of Ernie Banks stood out during a major league playing career lasting from 1953 to 1971 and remains a contradiction in terms of modern sports. Banks refused to give up on his team or teammates despite the Cubs consistently finishing bottom of the standings during a career affording him a place on the MLB All-Century Team.

Originally published at bobkleinnewportbeach.wordpress.com on October 1, 2018.