Around Baseball 2020

[Boxcar]

Yeah I think it's way too simplistic to say "fewer black players in MLB = racism". There are a whole bunch of factors involved, including just the general decline in popularity in the sport among youth today. I hope for the sake of the sport that the % of black players increase over time, as some of the greatest players who ever lived were black, and in the future you want to the Kyler Murray's to choose baseball over CTE. However, it is going to require a lot of work from MLB, not just the RBI program but also making baseball more accessible period. Every black person in America needs to know who Mookie Betts is. Or Aaron Judge. or Tim Anderson. And so on. If young black kids see black athletes playing baseball on TV, it becomes a lot easier to attract them to the sport. MLB can't even market Mike Trout, so it's not a race issue with them, it's more about not having a clue how to market the sport or its players.

 

I remember reading that over 30% of MLB is Hispanic, and it is ~50% in the minors. That % is likely going to grow beyond any other race looking at the minor league trends (fewer draft rounds in the future will certainly add to that likelihood). Without looking it up, I'm pretty sure MLB has more Asian players than any other US sports league. I don't think it's fair to lump baseball in with hockey as a "white" sport. It's actually ignorant to do so.

 

There's a pretty simple reason for the disparity.

 

Baseball is super expensive. Median income for black households is much lower than that of whites or Asians.

 

Black kids also tend to gravitate more towards basketball and football where they are grossly over represented. If anyone is trying to apply some kind of racist insinuation, it isn't there.

[max silver]

Yeah I think it's way too simplistic to say "fewer black players in MLB = racism". There are a whole bunch of factors involved, including just the general decline in popularity in the sport among youth today. I hope for the sake of the sport that the % of black players increase over time, as some of the greatest players who ever lived were black, and in the future you want to the Kyler Murray's to choose baseball over CTE. However, it is going to require a lot of work from MLB, not just the RBI program but also making baseball more accessible period. Every black person in America needs to know who Mookie Betts is. Or Aaron Judge. or Tim Anderson. And so on. If young black kids see black athletes playing baseball on TV, it becomes a lot easier to attract them to the sport. MLB can't even market Mike Trout, so it's not a race issue with them, it's more about not having a clue how to market the sport or its players.

 

I remember reading that over 30% of MLB is Hispanic, and it is ~50% in the minors. That % is likely going to grow beyond any other race looking at the minor league trends (fewer draft rounds in the future will certainly add to that likelihood). Without looking it up, I'm pretty sure MLB has more Asian players than any other US sports league. I don't think it's fair to lump baseball in with hockey as a "white" sport. It's actually ignorant to do so.

 

I've also seen it suggested that the long term slog and financial sacrifice required for many players to even make the majors is a factor as well. For the elite black athletes they can step straight out of college onto an NFL football field or NBA basketball court, so for the poor inner city athlete the idea of toiling in the minor leagues as a career choice to be paid below poverty level wages isn't much of a way to raise themselves and by association their families out of poverty.

[L54]

I think it's interesting for people in general to point at baseball as having an issue with only 8% black players (~12% of people in the USA are black I believe), but basketball with only 20% white players is perfectly fine.

 

I agree with his other points though. I feel like we're going to see quite a few more players bail on the season as soon as the first clubhouse infections make their rounds, and I don't blame them at all.

 

I agree Abom. Both the NFL and NBA disproportionately employ blacks over all other races yet nobody is arguing that we need more diversity in football or basketball.

 

Maybe African American representation in baseball is lacking because the MLB does a horrendous job at marketing to youth and the NBA and NFL are the most recognizable brands in the NA sporting world. Travel ball is expensive and the guys who are two sport athletes almost always bypass the MLB for football or basketball because they can cash a check much quicker. Factor in that over 25% of the league is Latino and I'm having a hard time finding a minority issue.

[L54]

I've also seen it suggested that the long term slog and financial sacrifice required for many players to even make the majors is a factor as well. For the elite black athletes they can step straight out of college onto an NFL football field or NBA basketball court, so for the poor inner city athlete the idea of toiling in the minor leagues as a career choice to be paid below poverty level wages isn't much of a way to raise themselves and by association their families out of poverty.

 

Exactly. Why waste your time playing for $400 a month for five months when you can make 8k a week on the Eagles practice squad.

[Boxcar]

Ian Desmond just became one of my favourite players. That was a great post. Gave his reasoning, talked about what he is personally going to do, mentioned some things baseball does poorly, and in the end he cited being home for his family as the number 1 reason.

 

Yeah, let's listen to a sub replacement level player making millions, complaining about the systemic systems of institutional structures.

 

Still baffles me that people s*** all over meritocracy, you know, the driving force in every sport.

[Brownie19]

This is an interesting debate.

 

MLB seems like one of most diverse sports leagues in the world that consistently celebrates that by showing which country the players are from. I'd be interested to see the stats of other leagues. Are there many black majority owners in the NBA or NFL (or in any other league around the world)?

 

I will admit I don't fully understand the restrictions and challenges of all sports within all regions, but to suggest baseball isn't accessible to kids is a little odd. Outside of areas/regions that simply don't offer it (as previously noted), baseball is a relatively inexpensive sport (kids don't need $200-$500 gloves). You need a glove and some cleats and then you can share bats and helmets (or at least you used to be able to). Hockey is 4 - 5 times more expensive for kids at a local league level.

 

If they get really good and need more competition, do they need money to join travel teams? Yes, they probably do; however, that's generally true for the top kids playing hockey (and basketball) in Canada too. How's that work for basketball and football in the US? Do the best kids just dominate in local league straight into top High School programs? (maybe they do).

 

Is it fair to blame leagues and compare 'how it used to be'? I'd argue that it's significantly harder for leagues in 2020 than it was back in 1970 due to the massive increase in competing interests.

[Brownie19]

Ian Desmond just became one of my favourite players. That was a great post. Gave his reasoning, talked about what he is personally going to do, mentioned some things baseball does poorly, and in the end he cited being home for his family as the number 1 reason.

 

Hurl - where did he say what he was going to do? It obviously isn't in the quote provided. I'm curious as far to often it seems people just whine and bitch without any notion of doing anything to foster improvement. Join the MLBPA union and impart change.

[glory]

I agree with the points being made here. The NBA and NFL present a much greater chance of being paid right away than MLB does, the latter being more of a long term play (and no guarantee you'll play in the majors long enough to ever truly cash out). It's also easier to toil in the minors for years if you grew up in an upper middle class or better family, so combine that with the cost it takes to play baseball as a youth compared to just buying a basketball/football and going to a park, and those factors definitely contribute to the drop in black players over the years. I think marketing the game/players better will help a lot though. If black kids see Judge, Betts, and others marketed on social media like crazy, and suddenly it becomes cool to play baseball again, then you might see more kids pursue it.

 

Either way, I don't think baseball has a race issue when it comes to players. It's the marketing of the sport that needs work. If anything, the racial breakdown in MLB is likely superior to any other sport in North America. It just has seen a decline in African Americans over the past 30 years, something they are at least trying to remedy, which is more than any other sport would do to improve a demographic.

[Bobthe4th]

I agree with the points being made here. The NBA and NFL present a much greater chance of being paid right away than MLB does, the latter being more of a long term play (and no guarantee you'll play in the majors long enough to ever truly cash out). It's also easier to toil in the minors for years if you grew up in an upper middle class or better family, so combine that with the cost it takes to play baseball as a youth compared to just buying a basketball/football and going to a park, and those factors definitely contribute to the drop in black players over the years. I think marketing the game/players better will help a lot though. If black kids see Judge, Betts, and others marketed on social media like crazy, and suddenly it becomes cool to play baseball again, then you might see more kids pursue it.

 

Either way, I don't think baseball has a race issue when it comes to players. It's the marketing of the sport that needs work. If anything, the racial breakdown in MLB is likely superior to any other sport in North America. It just has seen a decline in African Americans over the past 30 years, something they are at least trying to remedy, which is more than any other sport would do to improve a demographic.

 

Yeah that's the same handicap that sports like tennis have. For sports like soccer, everyone can play without specialist equipment, and if you enjoy it or are good enough you can then start with organised facilities. That first step is difficult anyway, and added to the poor marketing of MLB, kids are more likely to pick another sport.

[TheHurl]

Hurl - where did he say what he was going to do? It obviously isn't in the quote provided. I'm curious as far to often it seems people just whine and bitch without any notion of doing anything to foster improvement. Join the MLBPA union and impart change.

 

It was a 9 page instagram post where he talked about what got him to the big leagues. He went back to his community fields and schools. He is going to use some of his time off giving back to Sarasota and Sarasota baseball. Read the whole thing. It is a well thought out post. So unlike BJMB

[connorp]

This is an interesting debate.

 

MLB seems like one of most diverse sports leagues in the world that consistently celebrates that by showing which country the players are from. I'd be interested to see the stats of other leagues. Are there many black majority owners in the NBA or NFL (or in any other league around the world)?

 

I will admit I don't fully understand the restrictions and challenges of all sports within all regions, but to suggest baseball isn't accessible to kids is a little odd. Outside of areas/regions that simply don't offer it (as previously noted), baseball is a relatively inexpensive sport (kids don't need $200-$500 gloves). You need a glove and some cleats and then you can share bats and helmets (or at least you used to be able to). Hockey is 4 - 5 times more expensive for kids at a local league level.

 

If they get really good and need more competition, do they need money to join travel teams? Yes, they probably do; however, that's generally true for the top kids playing hockey (and basketball) in Canada too. How's that work for basketball and football in the US? Do the best kids just dominate in local league straight into top High School programs? (maybe they do).

 

Is it fair to blame leagues and compare 'how it used to be'? I'd argue that it's significantly harder for leagues in 2020 than it was back in 1970 due to the massive increase in competing interests.

 

Admittedly you can skimp of some costs like bat/glove but the biggest costs for travel baseball are the travel team fee and the time/cost associated with said travel team. Good AAU basketball teams are typically sponsored by the sneaker compiles and all the burdens are off the parent. Time and money. Also, it’s not proven of course but there’s evidence kids in their teens are getting more than just free travel teams. They’re getting paid or at least things besides just the team fee. Never going to find that in baseball

 

Really basketball aau is a business like Latino baseball. You could cut costs and play baseball Latino style but who is going to cover all the costs/pay the kids with the hope of a payout at the end? Nobody in the US for baseball

[TheHurl]

community development projects by professional leagues have always without fail had a positive participation rate increase in those communities. Does anyone remember in the 90's MLB invested 100's of millions into black baseball camps. Colleges saw an increase in participation rates, there was an MLB spike about 10 years later. The programs were no longer funded as MLB encouraged retired athletes to fund the programs (the Braves were the only team which continued to fund a program on their own I believe). It's not about marketing players, it's about funds. Fund baseball in lower income communities and lower income communities will provide you with baseball players. This is a proven method in sports. But the funding has to be ongoing, not a nice PR move and dropped when it is no longer needed.

[connorp]

community development projects by professional leagues have always without fail had a positive participation rate increase in those communities. Does anyone remember in the 90's MLB invested 100's of millions into black baseball camps. Colleges saw an increase in participation rates, there was an MLB spike about 10 years later. The programs were no longer funded as MLB encouraged retired athletes to fund the programs (the Braves were the only team which continued to fund a program on their own I believe). It's not about marketing players, it's about funds. Fund baseball in lower income communities and lower income communities will provide you with baseball players. This is a proven method in sports. But the funding has to be ongoing, not a nice PR move and dropped when it is no longer needed.

 

As someone mentioned, if US is like 13% black and 8% play MLB where is the huge disparity/injustice to warrant spending hundreds of millions every year on one demographic to the detriment of others

[connorp]

Or is it blacks right to dominate baseball like other sports?

[TheHurl]

For anyone saying the black community cannot afford baseball. In 1975 black income was proportionately lower than it is now. MLB was 27% black players. It has gone down every year since 2007. I will say that the increase in Travel baseball cost is an issue. I know in Ontario it's over $5k a year to play with an "elite" team. I understand travel teams in the states start in that range as well. They have to expand the MLB urban youth academy to a national program (currently it runs in Compton, Houston and Puerto Rico). Compton program started in 2006. 100 athletes from that program have been drafted by MLB teams.

[TheHurl]

As someone mentioned, if US is like 13% black and 8% play MLB where is the huge disparity/injustice to warrant spending hundreds of millions every year on one demographic to the detriment of others

 

27% in 1975. 8% today. 5.6% of NCAA players compared to 21% in 1980.

 

If you want to put this into financial terms I can do that. If you want to MLB to grow, getting young black americans is the only way to get it done. Young white North Americans are influenced heavily by Black America.

[Brownie19]

I'm still a tad confused. In terms of people picking up the game for the first time at home or in a field, the cost of basketball, baseball, soccer and football is all pretty equal. I mean I guess 10 kids can play with 1 football or 1 basketball, whereas each kid would need their own glove in baseball? Is that the argument? I mean we're talking about some $30 use baseball gloves here.

 

Once you go to an organized (local league) team - is football not a lot more expensive than baseball due to all the equipment? In my world, parents need to buy kids cleats and a glove that need to be replaced (upsized) yearly or every other year. We're talking $100 for new gear, or like $50-$60 for used stuff. The cost to play basketball, baseball and soccer at a local league should all be somewhat comparable. I'd image the actual cost to play football would be higher (whether parents buy their kids equipment or if that's provided as part of a league fee).

 

Don't the 'good kids' in every sport need to join travel teams to truly develop and advance? Perhaps you could argue the distance/cost of one sport is more than the next, but regardless, you need some coin if you want your talented kid to advance no?

 

Yes, some leagues/teams get money to help cover costs - but ones that don't (or don't get as much) typically have sponsorship opportunities in place to help cover parent costs.

 

I guess the reality is money does play a part because you certainly hear stories of people from poor families making it in the NFL (and NBA to a lesser extent) a lot more than you do in MLB and the NHL. I'm obviously missing how that happens I guess. I'd like to say it's because top talent kids playing basketball and football get recruited through High School programs where the costs to play are very minimal; however - the same could be said for baseball (and hockey).

[connorp]

For anyone saying the black community cannot afford baseball. In 1975 black income was proportionately lower than it is now. MLB was 27% black players. It has gone down every year since 2007. I will say that the increase in Travel baseball cost is an issue. I know in Ontario it's over $5k a year to play with an "elite" team. I understand travel teams in the states start in that range as well. They have to expand the MLB urban youth academy to a national program (currently it runs in Compton, Houston and Puerto Rico). Compton program started in 2006. 100 athletes from that program have been drafted by MLB teams.

 

You answered yourself. It changed from Mickey Mantle playing in the sandlots to the costly highly competitive travel baseball it is now. It’s even different from 20+ years ago when I was in school.

 

Kids not playing in highly competitive travel ball after little league are left behind. There’s no money in baseball for that.

 

The shoes companies and AAU travel teams in basketball aren’t doing it as a public service. It’s a business.

[glory]

27% in 1975. 8% today. 5.6% of NCAA players compared to 21% in 1980.

 

If you want to put this into financial terms I can do that. If you want to MLB to grow, getting young black americans is the only way to get it done. Young white North Americans are influenced heavily by Black America.

 

I agree with this. Black culture has blended into pop culture and it has been that way for many years now. If baseball were 20% black (for example), the league’s marketability would increase dramatically. So I agree spending money to improve in this area will come with benefits.

 

However, I don’t think you can underestimate the marketing aspect of this. A few weeks ago MLB’s Youtube channel posted a concert by Dropkick Murphy. Apologies to any of their fans who are reading this, but if MLB thinks that’s going to appeal to a young demo, they are out of their damn minds. MLB needs to feel trendy. They need to market their black athletes so that black kids can see them on their TVs/phones. Mookie Betts prior to the pandemic was going to get a contract north of $350m. Tell a black family that you could be under 6 feet and potentially make over $400 million in your career without the risk of CTE, and it would have an impact. Even knowing who Mookie is would make an impact.

[connorp]

I agree with this. Black culture has blended into pop culture and it has been that way for many years now. If baseball were 20% black (for example), the league’s marketability would increase dramatically. So I agree spending money to improve in this area will come with benefits.

 

However, I don’t think you can underestimate the marketing aspect of this. A few weeks ago MLB’s Youtube channel posted a concert by Dropkick Murphy. Apologies to any of their fans who are reading this, but if MLB thinks that’s going to appeal to a young demo, they are out of their damn minds. MLB needs to feel trendy. They need to market their black athletes so that black kids can see them on their TVs/phones. Mookie Betts prior to the pandemic was going to get a contract north of $350m. Tell a black family that you could be under 6 feet and potentially make over $400 million in your career without the risk of CTE, and it would have an impact. Even knowing who Mookie is would make an impact.

 

Let me be racist for a minute and tell you what a black parent in the inner city wants. To get paid now. Like their rent paid or a new car. Basketball can do that for a 15yo kids that looks like an NBA prospect. Even players to a lesser degree are seeing real money now, like free sneakers and Nike gear. Tangible stuff. Along with travel fees paid

 

You can spend money on marketing all you want, Mookie Betts telling you to drink milk to be like him one day...but the $ and cultural impact of basketball in the inner cities will always dominate.

[TheHurl]

I agree with this. Black culture has blended into pop culture and it has been that way for many years now. If baseball were 20% black (for example), the league’s marketability would increase dramatically. So I agree spending money to improve in this area will come with benefits.

 

However, I don’t think you can underestimate the marketing aspect of this. A few weeks ago MLB’s Youtube channel posted a concert by Dropkick Murphy. Apologies to any of their fans who are reading this, but if MLB thinks that’s going to appeal to a young demo, they are out of their damn minds. MLB needs to feel trendy. They need to market their black athletes so that black kids can see them on their TVs/phones. Mookie Betts prior to the pandemic was going to get a contract north of $350m. Tell a black family that you could be under 6 feet and potentially make over $400 million in your career without the risk of CTE, and it would have an impact. Even knowing who Mookie is would make an impact.

 

I 100% agree. It's almost as if I have given up on MLB Marketing. MLB putting the funds into getting no cost to participant programs will actually have a smaller impact than proper marketing. There are 30 cities which have MLB teams. Another 120 (i think that is the new number) MiLB cities. Start with those 150 cities. Create better partnerships and compete against the high cost travelling teams. It has to start with the MLB itself either way. The Jr. NBA is funded by NBA, Basketball Canada, USA Basketball, G League, Several top Euro clubs, FIBA Americas, FIBA Europe (UnderArmour funded too). There are paid programs, there are funded programs. Basketball isn't sitting back and letting pop culture and the players market the game...they are growing the game.

[King]

Holy s***!

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2020/06/30/andrew-toles-dodgers-homeless-mental-illness/3285031001/

 

Andrew Toles has been in at least 20 mental health facilities since 2019, his sister says, but he never stays long enough to get the help he needs. He usually stays a week, and then vanishes, moving onto the next city.

 

The family was hoping with the latest arrest he would be kept in jail, perhaps as long as six weeks, providing enough time to get help. The family seeks legal guardianship, but are powerless to obtain it without his consent. Instead, an anonymous person posted the $500 bail, believing they were helping, but let him loose on the streets again.

 

“This has been going on for the last year and a half,’’ Morgan said, “it’s just that this is the first time it has become public.’’

 

Just two weeks ago, a similar incident occurred in Kentucky. Toles even spent a month in prison in Hong Kong during the holidays. He was wandering the streets after losing his passport, and was arrested for stealing food at a gas station. He was released after Morgan Toles obtained help from the U.S. Embassy. Yet, when he returned to states, he disappeared again.

 

“We just need to find him. We need to bring him home. But he keeps running. He’s in this state of paranoia. He’s running from people. He just keeps running like someone is after him.

 

Toles, 28, symbolized one of baseball’s finest Cinderella stories when he was called up to the Dodgers in 2016. He was drafted in the third round by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2013, and became their minor-league player of the year. He later began behaving erratically, even threatening people, and was released in 2015.

 

......

 

 

It goes on even longer. This story is f***ing crazy. He has been diagnosed bipolar and schizo.

 

The whole thing is a must read.

[TheHurl]

Let me be racist for a minute and tell you what a black parent in the inner city wants. To get paid now. Like their rent paid or a new car. Basketball can do that for a 15yo kids that looks like an NBA prospect. Even players to a lesser degree are seeing real money now, like free sneakers and Nike gear. Tangible stuff. Along with travel fees paid

 

You can spend money on marketing all you want, Mookie Betts telling you to drink milk to be like him one day...but the $ and cultural impact of basketball in the inner cities will always dominate.

 

AAU has been great. They don't have the partnerships that you think (Nike and UnderArmour have walked away). They are what Little League should have been for baseball. But they have never felt competition in the past. I would bet they merge with Jr. NBA within 5 years.

[connorp]

AAU has been great. They don't have the partnerships that you think (Nike and UnderArmour have walked away). They are what Little League should have been for baseball. But they have never felt competition in the past. I would bet they merge with Jr. NBA within 5 years.

 

What’s changed? I feel like you’d know more than me on this but here’s first google article I found: https://wsspaper.com/50084/sports/sneaker-wars/

[Dick_Pole]

I feel little sympathy for the "racism" issue in baseball. Adrian Beltre, Edwin Encarnacion and David Ortiz are black men who talk with an accent. Plenty of "black" athletes in MLB who just so happen to be categorized as Latino because of where they are born. Just goes to show you how useless these race categorizations can be.

 

Now if we are talking about opportunity, okay so the American black kids go play in the NFL or NBA and the Latino black kids play in the MLB because where they grew up baseball is the incumbent sport and much cheaper to play and organize. What's so wrong with this? If you focus your efforts on the inner cities of the US aren't you just taking opportunities away from the poor Latino boys who don't have the NBA or NFL as an alternative?

 

Also we are talking about a few thousand men out of millions of visible minorities in the United States. Most of whom would be lucky to get one year of a major league sport payoff. Blacks in baseball should be way down the list of racial issues to tackle in the country. This is virtue signalling at its worst.

[Deadpool]

I'm still a tad confused. In terms of people picking up the game for the first time at home or in a field, the cost of basketball, baseball, soccer and football is all pretty equal. I mean I guess 10 kids can play with 1 football or 1 basketball, whereas each kid would need their own glove in baseball? Is that the argument? I mean we're talking about some $30 use baseball gloves here.

 

Once you go to an organized (local league) team - is football not a lot more expensive than baseball due to all the equipment? In my world, parents need to buy kids cleats and a glove that need to be replaced (upsized) yearly or every other year. We're talking $100 for new gear, or like $50-$60 for used stuff. The cost to play basketball, baseball and soccer at a local league should all be somewhat comparable. I'd image the actual cost to play football would be higher (whether parents buy their kids equipment or if that's provided as part of a league fee).

 

Don't the 'good kids' in every sport need to join travel teams to truly develop and advance? Perhaps you could argue the distance/cost of one sport is more than the next, but regardless, you need some coin if you want your talented kid to advance no?

 

Yes, some leagues/teams get money to help cover costs - but ones that don't (or don't get as much) typically have sponsorship opportunities in place to help cover parent costs.

 

I guess the reality is money does play a part because you certainly hear stories of people from poor families making it in the NFL (and NBA to a lesser extent) a lot more than you do in MLB and the NHL. I'm obviously missing how that happens I guess. I'd like to say it's because top talent kids playing basketball and football get recruited through High School programs where the costs to play are very minimal; however - the same could be said for baseball (and hockey).

 

It's a LOT easier for a kid to play pickup basketball or football and develop those skills at a young age than it is to find a T-Ball league outside of the suburbs. Inner cities simply aren't equipped to develop the 5 year old kids with the early love of the game, and the basic skills needed to be even prepared for a travel baseball league. I mean, you start travel ball when you are already good enough to start travel ball, you don't just walk on at 12 with no experience playing baseball and hit the ground running...

 

Every school I ever attended, from elementary through high school, had at least one baseball diamond (with that awful gravel, but y'know...) and the ability to play at recess, but those just don't exist everywhere, so those kids who might have been inclined to check out baseball end up using the basketball hoops drilled into the wall of the school and getting their early skills there.

[TheHurl]

What’s changed? I feel like you’d know more than me on this but here’s first google article I found: https://wsspaper.com/50084/sports/sneaker-wars/

 

The FBI investigations have started to change it. Most players once they made it were signing with their AAU sponsors. Essentially they were "buying their future" and the FBI investigation wanted to come down on Adidas and Nike who were named. NBA and NCAA need the shoe money too...but they don't need their stars implicated in a FBI investigation so they are looking to control the AAU more. AAU is considering limiting team sponsors.

[Brownie19]

27% in 1975. 8% today. 5.6% of NCAA players compared to 21% in 1980.

 

If you want to put this into financial terms I can do that. If you want to MLB to grow, getting young black americans is the only way to get it done. Young white North Americans are influenced heavily by Black America.

 

What was the % of black americans in 1975 and 1980? Has that changed significantly? Shouldn't we be looking at the % of black americans between the ages of like 19 and 40 and comparing that to the % within the sport?

 

Also - couldn't you just argue there was a disproportional # in baseball back in 1975 and thus it's simply averaged out?

[TheHurl]

What was the % of black americans in 1975 and 1980? Has that changed significantly? Shouldn't we be looking at the % of black americans between the ages of like 19 and 40 and comparing that to the % within the sport?

 

Also - couldn't you just argue there was a disproportional # in baseball back in 1975 and thus it's simply averaged out?

 

1970 10.8% of the population was black. Stop trying to read something into this. The number of black athletes playing baseball is declining and has been declining for several years. This is at all levels of baseball, not just major league. If you want to look at numbers google them. The decline has been sharpest since 2005. I can see disputing my point that black culture are essential for growing the game. I could see a person arguing that even if they put up urban academies it wouldn't improve the numbers, as the best black athletes will choose a different sport anyway...but I don't get trying to read something into the numbers. It's plain and simple, there is less interest in baseball in the black communities than there used to be.

[saskjayfan]

For anyone saying the black community cannot afford baseball. In 1975 black income was proportionately lower than it is now. MLB was 27% black players. It has gone down every year since 2007. I will say that the increase in Travel baseball cost is an issue. I know in Ontario it's over $5k a year to play with an "elite" team. I understand travel teams in the states start in that range as well. They have to expand the MLB urban youth academy to a national program (currently it runs in Compton, Houston and Puerto Rico). Compton program started in 2006. 100 athletes from that program have been drafted by MLB teams.

 

Proportional income may have been lower in 1975 as you say. I'm really not sure. What about the cost? Is the proportional cost to play youth baseball significantly higher? Is there less accessibility to fields and leagues for young black american kids? I really have no idea. How many black baseball players are donating money back to youth baseball for African American kids?