Is it me or does MLB come off like the guy who claims he's not racist because he has a black friend on Jackie Robinson Day? Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against celebrating JR. I just think MLB over does it though. Everyone wears 42. Who is the first minority to play in the NFL? NBA? I guess baseball feels like it has to because it's not seen as diverse as the other pro sports.
Jackie Robinson was the first minority in any of the three majors, and MLB including blacks is more significant because the Negro Leagues' success prevented honest critics from fully accepting a segregated MLB's otherwise legitimate supremacy. Even as a black person who doesn't watch baseball, your comments about MLB's lack of diversity seem nearly groundless. Like all three sports it has a disproportionate percentage of blacks. It has a higher percentage of hispanics and possibly Asians than either NFL or NBA. And since it has the strongest players' union by far, and you almost can't coach without being a former player - whereas NFL coaching job duties are so close to corporate or industrial operations management that the education and demographics reflect it accordingly - you could argue they treat minorities better than anyone else.
Robinson's entry is more significant because it symbolizes a permanent shift in MLB policy and overall identity; and because as a Dodger Robinson was a beast.
One wonders why it isn't Branch Rickey who is celebrated. It isn't like black players didn't want to play in major league baseball until Jackie came along; the teams would not sign them (with not so subtle pressure from Commissioner Landis). Rickey broke the color barrier by signing Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers (after Landis died). Without Jackie Robinson, someone else would have been the first black player (like Larry Doby, signed to the Indians the same year). Without Branch Rickey and new commissioner Happy Chandler, who knows how long the color barrier would have remained in place. Jackie is the symbol of integration, but hardly the one responsible for making it happen.
They do overdo it. Baseball isn't racist. Baseball just isn't what it was years ago. Black players are choosing football and basketball over baseball.
I would have expected bigtexxx or giddy to go with this line of logic but you would have been third on my list probably. Nice call.
Yes somebody else would have made it eventually but Robinson was the first. The fact that he was a heck of a player and handled the whole situation with class sure didn't hurt others getting in... We all made a huge deal when Yao broke in and if there was any remarks that might be considered racist they'd be all over the GARM...Yao played well and was a class act...Now imagine if Yao would have dealt with a 1000x more racist society...That's what Jackie did in the 1940s. I don't think it's overdone. It's one game out of a 162 to remember a day and pay homage one of the games best players and arguably the most influential. (myself personally I think there should be two players retired from all of baseball Jackie Robinson and Babe Ruth) Regarding the declining # of African Americans in the majors today that is more to do with the popularity of the NFL and the NBA and really less kids playing baseball. I'm not sure what % of baseball is Latino but I would guess around 50%...
I've been trough this before. If they are one of the top players, sure. Football has the advantage of having the biggest rosters. Basketball players can go overseas and still make good money. I would venture they find baseball more boring, and it is a lot easier to go play pickup basketball and football than it is to go play baseball, particularly in urban areas.
I'm not so sure about that. It appears that Latinos have largely taken over the positions that blacks used to excel at (e.g., outfielders, first base). The skill positions (e.g., pitchers, infielders) will tend to reflect the broader population base demographics as they rely more on skill than natural athleticism.
[rquoter] At the start of the 2011 season, the total players of color were 38.3 percent. The opening day rosters were 61.5 percent white, 27 percent Latino, 2.1 percent Asian, 0.4 percent Native American or Native Alaskan and 0.3 percent Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. The percentage of African-American players decreased to 8.5 percent of total players on the 2011 Opening Day season rosters. It was 10 percent in the 2010 season. The 2011 percentage was the lowest since 2007 and the third lowest in decades. The percentage of Latino players decreased from 28.4 percent in 2010 to 27 percent in 2011. This was one of the lowest percentages for Latinos since 1999 when it was 26 percent. The percentage of Asians increased slightly to 2.1 percent, up by 0.2 percentage points. The 2008 season was the first season in which there was an increase in African-American players in MLB over the previous season since 1995. After reaching 10.2 percent in 2008, African-American players have taken what could be considered a step back to the current level. There continues to be significant debate on why African-Americans seem to be abandoning baseball. In the 2010 season, the total population of Major League Baseball players of color (40.5 percent) was comprised of Latinos (28.4 percent), African-Americans (10.0 percent), Asians (1.9 percent), and Others (0.2 percent). Between the 1998 and the 2011 seasons, between 59 to 61.6 percent of the players have been white in each season with the exception of 2004, when 63 percent of the players were white. The percentage of international players in MLB on 2011 Opening Day rosters was 27.7 percent, spanning 14 countries and territories. The percentage of international players in MLB in 2010 was 30.1 percent, an increase of 1.9 percentage points from 2009. In addition, of Minor League players under contract as of 2011 Opening Day, 47.4 percent were born outside of the United States. Minor League players span 41 countries and territories, down from 43 a year ago. [/rquoter] http://www.tidesport.org/RGRC/2011/2011_MLB_RGRC_FINAL.pdf
And by "not as diverse", you mean "not as black". Overall, baseball is the most diverse (due to the number of Hispanics and Asians that are largely underrepresented in other sports) of the sports and the one whose makeup reflect the population as a whole most closely. US Demographics: White 64%, Black 13%, Hispanic/Latino 16%, Asian 5% MLB Demographics: White 60%, Black 8%, Hispanic/Latino 28.5%, Asian 2.5% Racial Majority: MLB: 60% White NFL: 67% Black NBA: 76% Black
