They should all wear Number 42.

As many baseball fans out there know by now, April 15th marks the 60th Anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking "The Show's" color barrier. As a gesture of respect, Ken Griffey Jr. contacted Major League Commissioner Selig and Robinson's widow Rachel and asked if he could wear Jackie's old number 42, which MLB retired in 1997 to mark the occasion. Once word of Griffey's gesture got around, other players (as suggested by the commissioner) decided to don Jackie's number, totaling over 200 ballplayers, and entire teams: Jackie's own Dodgers, plus the Cardinals and Pirates.

Now some players like Tori Hunter and C.C. Sabathia saying that with so many players donning the big Cuarenta Y Dos this expanded celebration will water down the meaning of MLB's Jackie Robinson Day.

That, i say, is the most insane and ego driven thing I've ever heard.

How can as many people as possible wearing the number of a man who changed how America thought about racial equality in baseball and beyond be overkill?

If anything, everyone on a Major League roster should wear Number 42. Hell, the bat boys, umpires and cracker jack flingers in the upper deck should wear it, too.

Number 42 is much more than a number.
Number 42 is the ultimate numerical symbol for America's greatest gift: Opportunity.

That's why it's the only number in professional sports no player is allowed to wear. (except for Mariano Rivera, thanks to the built-in grandfather clause). The baseball gods have (wisely) decreed it impossible for anyone to do anything more important than what has already been done while wearing Number 42.

Number 42 belonged to a man who crashed through a barrier made of fear and hate, turned back and called for everyone to do the same. That bright red 42 Jackie wore was about looking past color and realizing that giving people the chance to realize their potential is all that matters.

{c}