(WHTM) – Baltimore Oriole Brooks Robinson played a critical role in baseball’s long-awaited return to York. Robinson died yesterday at age 86.

“You just learned very quickly how much of A genuine man he was and how kind and caring and sincere he was in everything that he did,” said Kyle Mace, Baltimore Orioles Fan.

That man…was Brooks Robinson. Outside this region, baseball fans know him as a Baltimore Orioles third baseman, who excelled both at the plate and in the field…a first-ballot hall of famer…18-time all-star…16-time gold glove award winner…a legend by any standard.

Here, though, he was “mister oriole”. The face of the franchise. One historian said no player, has ever meant more to his team and his city than Robinson did to the Orioles and to Baltimore.

And in York–his legacy is personal.

“As our team president said to Carl Brooks a great player is to do a disservice to him because he was certainly that but he was so much more I mean he was really larger than the sport of baseball,” said Doug Eppler, Director of Marketing, York Revolution.

Robinson spent his entire 23-year major league career in Baltimore. Before that– he got his start in the minors with the York white roses…and well after retiring, he played a key role in bringing minor league baseball back to York; truly a revolution for the white rose city.

“This is a community that loves baseball and is very thankful to those people that League Baseball is possible in their town. Right at the top of the list is Brooks Robinson without him baseball would not come back to York all those years ago,” said Eppler.

if you visit Wellspan Park, you’ll find sixteen plates on the ground with facts about his career– and a statue created by Lorann Jacobs, showing Robinson signing a little league player’s ball. A fitting representation, fans say, of a man who meant so much to so many.

“Have these permanent tributes to him because he made a permanent impact on this community and on each of us who work here and all the fans that come to this ballpark you know every time that we step foot in this place, we’re going to think of brooks and be thankful for what he did,” said Eppler.