Virtual home of the Brooks Robinson Statue in Baltimore
Virtual home of the Brooks Robinson Statue in Baltimore
The statue was unveiled and given to the City of Baltimore on October 22, 2011. Among those speaking at the ceremony were Governor Martin O’Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Jeff Idelson, the President of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Emmy-nominated Baltimore actor Josh Charles, Principal Sponsor Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr, and sculptor Joseph Sheppard. Click here to see the Dedication Ceremony Program.
The statue is located in Baltimore, on a plaza between Russell Street and Washington Boulevard, just northwest of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. For GPS or internet mapping services, use: 555 Washington Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21230. Click here to see a map of the location of the statue.
Of course the statue has a Facebook page! What 21st-century statue doesn’t?
You’ll also find the statue on X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube.
Inquires: BrooksStatue@gmail.com
The Babe Ruth Birthplace Foundation, Inc. is an independent, not-for-profit educational institution dedicated to perpetuating Maryland’s storied sports heritage. This mission is executed through celebration and preservation of the historic legacy of Baltimore-born Babe Ruth, the Baltimore Orioles and Colts and Baltimore Ravens, as well as local and regional sports at the amateur, collegiate and various professional levels. Preserving, exhibiting, interpreting and augmenting the Museum’s collection enables the organization to chronicle and tell the story of the State’s rich sports culture for diverse audiences and future generations. The Babe Ruth Birthplace Foundation owns and operates the Babe Ruth Birthplace in Baltimore.
The statue was unveiled and given to the City of Baltimore on October 22, 2011. Among those speaking at the ceremony were Governor Martin O’Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski, Jeff Idelson, the President of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Emmy-nominated Baltimore actor Josh Charles, Principal Sponsor Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr, and sculptor Joseph Sheppard.
Part I – Introduction (6 minutes)
Part II – Comments by Governor Martin O’Malley (3:15 minutes)
Part III – Comments by Sculptor Joseph Sheppard (4:50 minutes)
Part IV – Comments by Senator Barbara Mikulski (6:30 minutes)
Part V – Comments by Henry A Rosenberg Jr., Principal Sponsor (6:01 minutes)
Part VI – Comments by Kevin Cleary, Mayor’s office (2:42 minutes)
Part VII – Comments by Josh Charles, Actor and native Baltimorean (7:09 Minutes)
Part VIII – Scott Garceau on letters and comments from notable sports figures (3:09 minutes)
Part IX – Comments by Jeff Idelson, President National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (5:55 minutes)
Part X – Unveiling of Statue / Comments by Brooks Robinson / Closing comments (11:53 minutes)
Dedication Ceremony Program (PDF)
Statue Construction Slide Show – See The Creative Process From Conception to Completion, followed by pictures from the Dedication Ceremony.
Visit the Brooks Robinson Statue YouTube Channel
Brooks Robinson was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He was signed by the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent in 1955. His professional career began that year with the York (PA) White Roses, a Piedmont League affiliate of the Orioles. He made his major league baseball debut on September 17, 1955 with the Orioles. After over 2,800 games, over 10,000 at-bats, and over 9,000 total chances in the field, he retired from the Orioles on August 13, 1977, having never played for another major league team.
Brooks established a standard of excellence for modern-day third basemen. He played 23 seasons for the Orioles, setting Major League career records for games, putouts, assists, chances, double plays and fielding percentage. A clutch hitter, Robinson totaled 268 career home runs, at one time an American League record for third basemen. He earned the league’s MVP Award in 1964 and the World Series MVP in 1970, when he hit .429 and made a collection of defensive gems. Robinson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983 after receiving 344 votes of 374 ballots cast (91.98%). Highly regarded for his defensive ability, he was named as the third baseman for the Rawlings 50th Anniversary All-Time Gold Glove Team. Over his career, Robinson won 16 Gold Gloves.
In 1970, Brooks was named the S. Rae Hickok Professional Athlete of the Year, granted to the top professional athlete in all United States sports. The award included a “Hickok Belt” of alligator skin with a gold gem-studded belt buckle. Brooks was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.
Brooks and his wife Connie have been a part of the fabric of the Baltimore community since their arrival in 1955. Brooks has supported educational and charitable organizations in every corner of the metropolitan area – from the Arthritis Foundation to the Zoo. He has assisted organizations as diverse as the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, Concert Artists of Baltimore, Catholic Charities, Little Sisters of the Poor, and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.
Brooks is a partner in Opening Day Partners, a group that owns several minor league baseball franchises, including the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, the Camden (NJ) Riversharks, the Lancaster (PA) Barnstormers, the York (PA) Revolution and the Sugarland (TX) Skeeters. He also serves as President of the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association and is on the Board at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Find out more about Brooks on the web at the independently-operated sites below. These sites are not affiliated with the Brooks Robinson statue.
Set your GPS to 555 Washington Blvd, Baltimore, MD 21230
Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr., a principal of the Dorothy L. and Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr. Foundation, and former Chairman of the Board of Rosemore, Inc., a family-owned holding company in Baltimore, MD. He formerly served as CEO and President of Crown Central Petroleum Corporation, now known as Crown Central LLC. Brooks Robinson served as a spokesperson and public representative of Crown Central beginning in 1968. After Brooks retired from the Baltimore Orioles in 1977, he was hired by Crown Central as a Special Assistant to the corporation and its Marketing Department. He made hundreds of public appearances for the company and appeared in dozens of print, radio, and TV advertising campaigns. Brooks retired from Crown Central in May 2003 after more than 25 years of employment and more than 35 years of affiliation with the company.
Joseph Sheppard was born in Baltimore County and lives and works in Baltimore City. Sheppard was trained at the Maryland Institute College of Art and as a Guggenheim Traveling Fellow in Florence, Italy. He is a world-renowned artist, sculptor, and author. There is a permanent gallery of his work at the University of Maryland University College in Adelphi, MD. He has won numerous awards from many organizations, including the Allied Artists of America and the National Sculpture Society.
Sheppard’s works are displayed in museums around the world, including the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC. His portrait of President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush hangs in the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas. In Baltimore, his statue of Pope John Paul II is the centerpiece of a prayer garden at Charles and Franklin Streets on the grounds of the Baltimore Basilica and his Holocaust Memorial sculpture is located in the 500 block of East Lombard St.
Batza Family Foundation
Stephen A. Geppi
Willard Hackerman
John A. Luetkemeyer, Jr.
Leroy Merritt
Opening Day Partners
Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation
Leonard J. Attman
Gary L. Attman
Ollie’s Bargain Outlet
Mark & Betty Butler
Stephen G. Peroutka
St. John Properties
Mark and Lorraine Schapiro
Under Armour, Inc.
Robert Lawless
Stephen Achuff
AEGON / Transamerica Foundation
Allan Amernick
Gregory Barnhill
Mr. & Mrs. Ed Brody
Mr. & Mrs. George L. Bunting, Jr.
J. H. Butta
Allan Charles
The Charlesmead Foundation
Mr. & Mrs. Joseph M. Coale, III
Harold C. Donofrio
First Mariner Bank
Gallagher, Evelius & Jones, LLP
Jerry Hampton
Mr. & Mrs. Charles E. Herget, Jr.
Dr. & Mrs. Robert Hieronimus
The Hoffberger Foundation, Inc.
Richard Hutchings
Mr. & Mrs. Graham Kastendike
Andrew Lapayowker & Sarah McCafferty
Legg Mason Charitable Foundation
Jerome Lesicko
Moag & Company
Mullan Foundation
MuniMae Foundation, Inc.
Henry D. Parker, Jr.
Mr. & Mrs. Richard Patterson
Janet Purnell
Robert Rice
William R. Snyder
Peggy Smith
Robert Strudwick, Jr.
T. Rowe Price Foundation
John C. Unitas, Jr.
Sandy Unitas
Julie A. Wagner
Barbara West
Thomas Winstead, Jr.
Atlantic Custom Carving
Babe Ruth Birthplace Foundation, Inc.
Baltimore City Department of Transportation
Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts
Baltimore Orioles
Excell Concrete Construction, LLC
Hampton Inn Baltimore/Downtown Convention Center
Hilgartner Natural Stone Company, Inc.
Image Engineering
Mahan Rykiel Associates
Maroon PR
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
Pickles Pub
Professionals on Request, Ltd.
R&R Events
Joseph Sheppard
Schmitz Press
The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company
The Brooks Robinson statue is made of bronze and weighs about 1,500 pounds. It was fabricated in Pietrasanta, Italy by Baltimore sculptor Joseph Sheppard. The statue depicts Brooks standing at third base, baseball in hand, preparing to throw a runner out at first base. The sculpture stands about 9 feet tall.
To celebrate Brooks’s 16 consecutive Gold Glove awards, the glove on the statue, while made of bronze like the rest of the statue, is colored bright gold.
Sheppard created models for the statue many years ago after studying historic photographs and films of Brooks. He met with and spoke to Brooks many times during the sculpture process. Sheppard created the clay models and molds for the final sculpture at the Massimo Del Chiaro Artistic Foundry in Pietrasanta, located in the Tuscany region of Italy. The finished bronze statue was created at the foundry using a version of the Lost Wax technique.
Work on the statue began in June 2010 and was completed in early August 2011. It was shipped to Baltimore later that month and installed on its pedestal at 8:45pm on October 11, 2011. There was an unveiling and dedication ceremony on Saturday, October 22, 2011 at Noon. The statue now belongs to the City of Baltimore.
The statue was commissioned by the Babe Ruth Birthplace Foundation, with principal funding from the Dorothy L. and Henry A. Rosenberg, Jr. Foundation.
The Brooks Robinson statue is located on a plaza in the 500 block of Washington Boulevard in Baltimore City. The plaza sits between Washington Boulevard and northbound Russell Street. The statue serves as a gateway to downtown Baltimore for traffic arriving in the city on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway and other access roads from the South. The site is directly across from the Northwest corner of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The plaza is owned by the City of Baltimore and is managed by the City’s Department of Transportation.
The base is a diamond of approximately 25 feet by 25 feet. The foundation, risers, and pedestal consist of reinforced concrete covered with black granite. Construction of the base began on June 28, 2011. The granite is known as Atlantic Cambrian Black from a quarry in Quebec, Canada. The treads and risers on the base have a thermal finish, while the inscribed stones on the pedestal have a polished finish.
The General Contractor for construction of the base and erection of the statue was The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company. Design work for the base was provided by Mahan Rykiel Associates. The principal subcontractors were Excell Concrete Construction and Hilgartner Natural Stone Co.
View a slideshow of the statue’s creation process and Dedication Ceremony.
B. ROBINSON
#5
BROOKS CALBERT ROBINSON, JR.
Baltimore Orioles 3rd Baseman, 1955-1977
Brooks Robinson was born in Little Rock, Arkansas, but he became Baltimore’s hometown hero. Arriving here in September 1955 at the age of 18, he went on to spend all or part of 23 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, along the way becoming the heart and soul of the franchise.
The all-time third baseman played in 18 All-Star games, won 16 Gold Glove Awards, and was the 1964 American League MVP, the 1966 All-Star MVP, and the 1970 World Series MVP. He was named Most Valuable Oriole in 1960, ’62, ’64 and was co-winner with Frank Robinson in 1971.
Baseball’s “Human Vacuum Cleaner” set 10 major league fielding records, and three American League records for third basemen, including highest lifetime fielding percentage (.971). He was voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983.
Brooks Robinson was the second person to ever receive the Roberto Clemente Award, granted to the baseball player who best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement, and the individual’s contribution to his team.
In 1970, Brooks was named the S. Rae Hickok Professional Athlete of the Year, an award granted to the top professional athlete in all United States sports that year. Brooks was elected in 1999 to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team – the best players at each position from 1900 through 1999.
“There’s not a man who knows him who wouldn’t swear for his integrity and honesty and give testimony to his consideration of others. He’s an extraordinary human being, which is important, and the world’s greatest third baseman of all time, which is incidental.”
– Sportswriter John Steadman
Donor Plaque & QR Code
1964 AL MVP
1966 All-Star MVP
1970 WS MVP
1983 Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee