20yrs. ago, my father said 'As long as Black & White folks shower together & cheer together, these hope for this country. When the cheering stops & they kick us out of the shower, its time to leave or get your gun.

Pops was a 'Direct Action' kinda guy, a quality MISSING in 'Pls. Like Me' Black America today.

Check your facts -- Grady Sizemore has an African-American father.

You are right about Sizemore. My fault for trusting these lying eyes, and a demonstration of how perilous - and phony - the discussion about "race" is. I will correct.

Wish you hadn't used the Derby lineup to introduce this topic. Not just because of what the previous commenter duly noted about Grady Sizemore's father being African American, but because, to borrow from the sabermetricians, eight players is a statistically insignificant sampling. Ryan Howard (memo to Rick Reilly) wasn't an All-Star. Perhaps he should have been, but that's why he wasn't in the Derby. A-Rod didn't want to be in the Derby. Ortiz was hurt, otherwise he probably does participate (instead of, say, Evan Longoria, a rather curious choice).

Your point about MLB investing in Latin America rather than inner cities because it's cheaper for them (and also because they avoid the competition from football and basketball) is spot on. I just think citing the relative whiteness of a random Derby lineup obscures that point.

The time when MLB's hypocrisy in this area crosses my mind is every April 15, when Bud Selig is milking Jackie Robinson's name for all it's worth...

I think there's something deeper going on with the decline of African-Americans in MLB. Contrary to popular belief, not all blacks are great athletes. MLB's claim that the decline in blacks is because of competition for top black athletes may have some validity, but it must also be stated that MLB has rarely courted average or slightly above average African-American athletes who might become utility players or middle relievers. If you're black and not a potential superstar or starter, you had/have very little chance of making a major league roster. For example. look at the Atlanta Braves recent roster choices. Why would you have to be a great athlete to compete with the likes of Orr, Langerhans, Thorman, Norton, Paronto, Diaz, etc. It's not as though major league rosters are filled with white guys who are such great athletes they would be playing other pro sports if not for baseball. Maybe the top black athletes do have other career options, but I suspect there are black athletes that are good enough to compete with the caliber of player I just mentioned but never get an opportunity.

My fault about the earlier e-mail, Dave. I see some cats already spoke on Grady's ethnicity.

MLB has never really shown brothers love anyway. I am done with baseball after the Indians (I have mad hate for Chief Wahoo but I like the actual players, for the most part) dealt C.C. Sabathia.

Even more bothersome to me -- is this. There were a total of (2) baseball inductees into the Hall of Fame this year. One black guy, - one white guy. Somehow, and well deserved I'm sure, the white guy --- has become the "unofficial" ambassador, and the face, for baseball, through a huge endorsement contract with a hotel/motel chain.

Do they (the hotel/motel chain) think that (a) black people don't stay at hotels? Do they think that (b) the black baseball player isn't as articulate, and doesn't have just as pleasant a smile, and can read a teleprompter?

If baseball sincerely wants to "address this problem" the are going to have to put a face on it. They had the chance, and they blew it. And I suspect, unfortunately, it will continue.

Always the answer to abuse and denial of rights; Just Say No to the sponsors and the ticket sellers. When the Master can no longer profit from his subjects, he will seek another venue. Perhaps the players who feel rejected could speak up and tell the truth.

The trouble with this country is that when faced with decisions of being uncomfortable or hanging on for a little more pleasure, we choose the latter.

Fill the stadii with empty seats, and see how well the sport does.

I am committed to Oneness through Justice and Transformation
peace,
st john

I agree with drillfork that the home run derby lineup was a bit of an awkward device to talk about a valid point. And not only is Grady Sizemore part African-American, Ryan Braun is part Jewish, which doesn't qualify as white to many people.

Also, while Milton Bradley was the only African-American on the roster, Hanley Ramirez, David Ortiz and others would probably be considered black if they weren't Dominican. It all speaks to the fluidity of race, color, and culture.

That said, I agree that the current of lack of African-American baseball players is due to the lack of resources available in their communities—and those are probably the least important resources lacking.

He got rid of Milton Bradley for peanuts last season.

I think this discussion is an interesting one. Those who have pointed out that the Derby isn't the best starting point for the discussion are right, but at the same time I haven't heard this being discussed anywhere else as of late.

I'd like to suggest, in addition to what has been said, two things.

Firstly, the vast majority of discrimination that occurs in this society happens unconsciously or subconsciously. When teams are making decisions about players (at the minor league, amateur, professional, and youth levels) the prejudices of those making decisions (whatever their background) come through in their actions even if they do not mean for them to or don't consciously agree with the principles of discrimination. This means that in baseball, as has been proven in other realms, the discrimination is subconsciously made by people who are probably not racist -- this makes the matter worse.

Secondly, without ever having come across anything that deals with this in terms of baseball, there is obviously also racial discrimination in Latin America. As somebody alluded to, Ortiz-Ramirez-Delgado-Sabathia etc. are BLACK in their countries. So those same principles of all the black players being studs and an under representation of blacks as role-players and average major leaguers also applies to Latin American blacks vs. whites (mestizos).

I do not see how the wealth argument can be used to justify why African Americans do not play baseball. Football, as is my understanding, costs just as much ( if not more) to play and finance a team yet there is no shortage of black players in the NFL.

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard is being booed and heavily critized in philly .It seems that for about 25% of the fans he can t do anything right.

Despite his high strikeout rate he leads the NL in RBI's and homers.The team and the fans seemed to have no interest in seeing Howard make the all star team.Instead Chase Utley and even Pat Burrell were heavily promoted.There were even Burrell for all star t-shirts !

Despite the fact that Howard is a rookie of the year and former MVP . the phils force him to arbitration every year to beg for a half decent 1 year contract !He will be leaving the phils asap. If Howard was white the phils would give him 25 million a year with no problem.

I didn't view the All-Star game nor the home run derby even though three Twinkies were elected to play. Justin Morneau reluctantly agreed to enter the home run derby and darned if he didn't win. But, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, one would've thought Josh Hamilton had won. We were only sure of Morneau's victory because of the picture above the article showing him holding the trophy. Maybe Canadians aren't liked either?!

Dennis Jones

Dave,
An interesting article. Do you know anything about the success or lack of success of MLB's RBI program. From a quick look at their web site they do seem to have Black kids in some places playing baseball. What impact does this have?

I graduated from a Historically Black College which in the 1970's produced a few players that went into the minors. It might be interesting to look at schools and places where Black people are playing baseball and talk with them about why they do.

Baseball has always relied on its popularity as a summer leisure game (including organized city leagues) to encourage active interest among kids, making it very different from football and basketball which are integral to every high school and college experience. Baseball could disappear from every high school and college and practically nobody would notice. Basketball has the additional advantage of being reasonably entertaining with as little as two players. Does anyone play pickup baseball for fun anymore? I can't recall the last time I saw a game. When I was young, you had to get up pretty early to get the local diamond. Any explanation of changing demographics in baseball has to address the decline of the game as a regular leisure activity.

In the days of disgusting biases against Latinos, I have problems with the implications of this piece. I live in the Southwest and am married to a first-generation Mexican-American. I am also a huge sports fan. I find it troubling that in the move to fight for blacks in baseball (or the inner city), Latinos are always the main target. It's far too easy. It's not really what I expect from someone on the Left. However, if the pseudo-Left's lionization of Barak Obama has taught me anything it's that any group is open for vilification in the service of "approved" causes these days. First, feminists; now Latinos.

Well, both Utley and Burrell are having better years overall than Howard is, so I don't see how you can really complain about their inclusion versus his exclusion. This is especially true with respect to Utley, who statistically is just in another world when compared to every other second baseman in baseball. Even by the week before the All-Star break, Howard was still slugging below .500.

As far as the Home Run Derby goes, I would have loved to see Howard there. But my understanding is that MLB's policy is to only invite current All-Stars plus the defending champ. Howard was neither. That policy might be wrongheaded, but it's certainly not racist.

Yeah, and he gave up Andre Ethier, his team's minor league player of the year, to acquire Bradley in 2005. Because he's, like, racist and stuff, I guess.

Kim, I think you miss the point David and others are making, which is not about blaming Latinos at all. It is actually a point about MLB exploiting Latino ball players. There have been lots of articles documenting the ways MLB recruiters go to poor Latin American countries such as DR and sign ball players for paltry sums, often enticing them to drop out of school at a very young age with promises of riches. For every player that actually makes it to the Major league and makes big $ there are many many more who end up with no contracts, injuries, and no education. The story is more that I can summarize-- google it. The point I think David is making is that the MLB has chosen to disinvest in urban areas that might yield more African American players in favor of putting resources into exploitation oversees.
Was this really a conscious choice? Are they really linked? Who knows. But I certainly agree that both the disinvestment in urban areas and the exploitation in Latin American countries are both problems that need to be addressed.
You are absolutely right that our discussions of racism should never pit one group against another as scapegoats or for claims of access or injustice but I don't think that's what this article is doing.
I'd also like to know more about the success of the RBI program another reader mentioned...

Given all the inquiries about the success of RBI, I figured I'd offer my perspective on it. I tried out for and made the RBI Phillies during high school, and was surprised by not only the lack of black kids but the number of players who didn't live within the city limits. RBI as an acronym stands for "Reviving Baseball in the Inner Cities," so even ahead of providing an opportunity for minorities you'd think it would prioritize the recruitment of actual city kids. At least in my experience, that's not the case.

In response to the posting by Phil, I think the "baseball is in decline" argument is rather tired. True, pickup games are harder to come by than they may have been in the '70s or '80s, but that's a function of the video- and computer-game generation as much as it is a dip in the sport's popularity. I've been hearing for 15 years that lacrosse is overtaking baseball as the primary spring sport, but there's no tangible proof of that as of yet. A lot of kids are not only not playing baseball - they're not doing much of anything outdoors.

Lastly, I think it's a stretch to imply Philadelphia's fan base is inherently racist, and I take some measure of personal offense. That said, the fact that Howard and the Phils went to arbitration was ridiculous, and there may be a double standard in terms of how he is received by the fans. But my guess is he's getting booed for being on pace to break his own single-season strikeout record (set last season), not because he's black. After all, I've never seen a more beloved athlete in Phila than AI.

did anyone notice the total lack of minorities in the college world series? theres somethingmore here than i can figure out. my friend thinks that expensive aluminum bats are keeping blacks away from the game at an early age.

Oh for heaven's sake, stop playing around with the race card and stop making excuses. If you're black and you can't turn a double play, then you don't deserve to be in the majors. Same for any white, yellow, orange, purple or polka dotted man. Can't we all just shut up about color and watch the damn game?