Was Elston Howard the first African-American to play for the New York Yankees?
Research shows Elston Howard was the first African American to play for the Yankees when he joined the team in 1955 as a 26 year old rookie. Howard played in 97 games that season, but only 9 as a catcher (the Yanks had Yogi Berra, who won the MVP that year), he was an outfielder in 75 games. Howard hit .290, with 10 home runs and 43 RBIs.