Was Jackie Robinson really the first black baseball player to play professional?

1878 John "Bud Fowler" Jackson becomes the first black pro baseball player, for a team in Chelsea, Mass. that is the correct answer

Yes. Jackie Robinson was the first african-american to play in the National League followed by Lary Doby, who was the first african-american to play in the American League.

No he wasn't the first to play professionally -- there were hundreds (or thousands) who played professionally in the ***** League. There were some black players in the "major leagues" back in the late 1800's. (Of course, back then it wasn't anything close to big business, and things weren't regulated much at all, and the records are far from complete.) From Wikipedia: "The separation's beginnings occurred in 1868, when the National Association of Base Ball Players decided to bar "any club including one or more colored persons." As baseball made the transition toward becoming a professional sport over the next decade, and the NABBP dissolved into competing organizations in 1871, professional players were no longer restricted by this rule, and for a short while – in 1878 and again in 1884 – African American players played in the big leagues. Over time, they were slowly excluded more and more. As prominent players such as Cap Anson, John McGraw, and Ty Cobb steadfastly refused to take the field with or against teams with African-Americans on the roster, it became informally accepted that African Americans were not to participate in Major League Baseball. The minor leagues were segregated by the end of the 1898 season." In the "modern" era (from 1900 on) there were no black major leaguers until Robinson in 1947.

Jackie Makes History On this date in 1947, Jackie Robinson made his historic debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first African American to play major league baseball in the 20th century. Robinson went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award that season

Yes of course

NO I WAS YOU DUMBBO

john jackson "bud fowler played in the 1800's but he claimed for a while to be native american but yes jackie robinson broke the color barrier

You heard right. There were a few other Afro-Americans that played baseball before Jackie Robison did but the leagues were not combined at the time it was just the NL for a long period of time. Once the AL was formed and years later the two combined they became MLB. Jackie was the 1st Afro-American to play MLB baseball.

He wasn't the first to play professionally , he was the first to play in the Major Leagues. Minor leaguers and those who played in the old ***** Leagues are professionals also.