MLB creating committee to study decline in African-American players

[Deberg_1990]

Why has it been on the decline with African Americans? Too much competition with other sports?

MLB might be the most diversified of all major american sporting leagues. Its an International league now.




http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/blog/ey...erican-players



Major League Baseball is creating a committee to study why fewer African-Americans are playing baseball, reports Tyler Kepner of The New York Times. The first meeting will be held on Wednesday in Milwaukee.

“I don't want to miss any opportunity here,” [commissioner Bud Selig] said in a telephone interview from his office in Milwaukee. “We want to find out if we're not doing well, why not, and what we need to do better. We'll meet as many times as we need to to come to meaningful decisions.”

(snip)

“I really think our history is so brilliant when it comes to African-Americans,” Selig said. “You think about the late 1940s, the 1950s — wow. And you look at that and you say to yourself, ‘Why did it not continue, and what could we do to make sure it does continue?' ”

According to Kepner, only 8.5 percent of players on this year's opening-day 25-man rosters were African-American. The reigning world champion Giants are one of several clubs with zero black players. Recent research by Mark Armour from the Society of American Baseball Research says the highest percentage of African-American players in baseball was 19 percent in 1986.

Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski will be chairman of the committee. Former Mets manager Jerry Manuel, Stanford athletic director Bernard Muir and senior director of the MLB scouting bureau Frank Marcos will also serve on the committee, in addition to several other front office employees from around the league.

I think at least part of the reason the number of African-Americans in baseball has declined has to do with the lack of baseball scholarships colleges can offer. NCAA Division I schools are allowed only 11.7 baseball scholarships, and many fund fewer. Other sports like football (85 scholarships in the FBS) and basketball (13 in Division I) can offer more, which may be luring young athletes -- of all races, not just African-Americans -- away from the diamond.

There is no shortage of star African-American players in MLB today. Andrew McCutchen won a fan vote to be on the cover of the MLB 13: The Show video game while others like Matt Kemp, CC Sabathia, Prince Fielder, Michael Bourn and Jimmy Rollins are household names. Perhaps better marketing of these guys (and others) will help influence young African-Americans to play baseball.

[Prison Bitch]

That's because the sport is quite popular in Asia & Latin America. Not popular in Africa or our urban core. Is this really confusing to people, and is there really a need to "study" it?

[lcarus]

Of course they like football and basketball more than baseball these days. Lol. What's next? Are they gonna do a stupid study on why black youth like Lil Wayne more than Hall & god damn Oates?

[ChiefMojo]

Lol

[beach tribe]

I wonder when they are going to reboot (rape) "Major League"

[Demonpenz]

Mike Trout is the blackest athlete in the majors.

[seaofred]

Just out of curiosity, what is the percentage of European American in the MLB?

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Sad that this is being done. (now awaiting some suburban yuppie to call me a racist ****)

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by PGM

Sad that this is being done. (now awaiting some suburban yuppie to call me a racist ****)

Why is it sad? Is there anything they can do do make it more appealing to the African American youth? Because ultimately, they just want to make sure they are providing a good talent pipeline into their league.

[Hammock Parties]

Baseball is a more difficult game to play and get into at a high level.

Who the **** wants to go through the minors when you can go straight from high school to the NBA, or spend two years in college and get drafted #1 overall and start in your first game?

If you can't run fast or you have a shitty vertical though, baseball is great!

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Why is it sad? Is there anything they can do do make it more appealing to the African American youth? Because ultimately, they just want to make sure they are providing a good talent pipeline into their league.

There is a GREAT talent pipeline from all over the world. If they don't want to play so be it. Plenty of talent to choose from.

[warpaint*]

It's cheaper to hoop. That's the impetus and genesis of this and now it's ingrained in urban culture.

[Garcia Bronco]

I can play basketball with 2 people. Baseball? Only on Xbox. You need at least ten people. Plus, baseball is ****ing boring and it's barely athletic.

['Hamas' Jenkins]

Good luck finding a place to ply your craft if you're a baseball player in an inner city.

This isn't a new thing. There was a program a few years ago called RBI-Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities.

[ThaVirus]

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

It's the urban black culture. Nobody there likes baseball all that much. I see no reason to blame MLB on that. What did they do to cause that?

Pretty much this. Baseball is ****ing huge in the Dominican Republic where a great deal of its population is black. Not so much here in America for whatever reasons.

Originally Posted by Goldmember

Maybe Latino players are beating them out? About a year ago, I read somewhere that poorer black families in the US can't afford to send their kids to the baseball camps and leagues that showcase talents. Maybe a combination of both?

Originally Posted by Garcia Bronco

I can play basketball with 2 people. Baseball? Only on Xbox. You need at least ten people. Plus, baseball is ****ing boring and it's barely athletic.

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

Good luck finding a place to ply your craft if you're a baseball player in an inner city.

This isn't a new thing. There was a program a few years ago called RBI-Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities.

These are all reasons I'd cite, if prodded.

-Need a diamond and large field, preferably away from cars/windows. Where are you going to find that in an urban area?
-Need at least 6 or 7 people per team to cover bases, pitch, catch, and cover the outfield.
-Need gloves, the ball, bats and makeshift bases.

Takes too much shit to get going. You can grab a basketball and play by your damn self if need be. For football, you just need a big area and a handful of people for a full-fledged game- even less if you just want to go play catch or "smear the queer" or whatever. Plus it's boring as all balls.

[Bump]

probably because baseball is so ****ing boring