5 days after signing the historic contract, Robinson made his Dodgers debut. After a brief military career following college, Robinson began playing baseball in 1945 for the Kansas City Monarchs. He was a highly successful college athlete, going Division 1 at UCLA in baseball, basketball, football, and track. After putting up solid numbers while in Kansas City, he caught the attention of Dodgers General Manager, Branch Rickey. In 1946, Rickey eventually signed Robinson to a pro contract and sent him to play in Montreal. In 1947, Robinson was officially brought to play for Brooklyn. Although he went hit-less in his debut, he managed to reach a base on an error and score the go-ahead run. He went on to win Rookie of the Year and finish 5th in MVP voting with a respectable statline of 12 home runs, 48 RBIs, a .297 batting average and a league-leading 29 stolen bases. After 10 years with the Dodger, Robinson retired. He finished his career with 947 runs, 734 RBIs and a .311 average. With 6 all-star appearances, 197 stolen bases, and an MVP season in 1949, Robinson was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1962. He became the first professional athlete to have his jersey retired across his respective sport.