By Alexis Shoats
There’s a thrill and a bit of chaos walking into a sports stadium. Fans are wearing jerseys, other merchandise related to the two teams, or jeans and a tee with sneakers on. Sunglasses and maybe a hat for fashion and protection from the sun. On this specific day, I brought my jean jacket because I anticipated the weather being a bit cool at Truist Park. Upon walking through security, everyone seemed to be a bit giddy and eager to rush to their seats or get in a concession line. There’s excitement in the air. Close to 41,000 people are here to experience the nation’s favorite pastime.
My boyfriend and I are running a bit behind so we decide to grab our seats and get up a little later for drinks and food. Although I have a deep love and affinity for sports, baseball is not at the top of the list of sports I typically watch. Which I am not afraid to admit, so I naturally had a few questions about players. We chat about the pitcher Reynaldo López, and the Braves team overall this year. This reminds me of a conversation we had earlier this week about diversity in the MLB and baseball as a whole, from childhood to professional including minor league.
The sport started communally instead of being created by one person or group. Also contrary to popular belief, versions of the game were first formed in Europe in the 18th century. By the time of the American Revolution, a more American version of the sport was played through New England, and after a gathering of a few members of the New York Baseball Club, the rules of the game changed as well as the look of the game. For instance, the infield changed to a diamond instead of a rectangle. These changes would help shape the modern game of baseball played today. However, what is often forgotten during this period is that Black men were also playing baseball on military, college, and company teams. According to the Library of Congress, several professional Black teams were formed during this time such as the St. Louis Black Stockings and the Cuban Giants (New York).
Before Jackie Robinson broke the color line, only three Black baseball players integrated into the league. On June 21, 1879, William Edward White was a substitute in a game for the Rhode Island - Providence Grays against the Cleveland Blues. At the time teams were pretty small, so they pulled substitutes from college or amateur teams for the day. William was a college champion at Brown University, and according to a New York news clipping that the Society for American Baseball Research discovered, “He played credibly that game; batting ninth he went 1-for-4, stole two bases, scored a run, and fielded first base “in fine style,”1 handling 12 chances without an error.” With White’s help, the Grays beat the Cleveland Blues. Uneventful to fans at the time because of his passing appearance but as we look back it was incredibly historical.
Moses Fleetwood “Fleet” Walker a catcher for the Blue Stockings, (a minor league team for Toledo that would join the American Association) was the next known Black professional MLB player to play integrated. As imagined he and his team faced countless racist remarks and actions from other teams who refused to play alongside a Negro. Adrian “Cap” Anson, the star player for the White Stockings, refused to take the field because of Fleetwood’s position on the team. Anson was a racist who would go on to play a prominent role in segregation in the sport. Nonetheless, Walker would go on to play the rest of the season with the team, and while being injured his little brother Weldy Walker who also played baseball was able to step into a game and play. Weldy would become the third Black man to play for the MLB. However, as I stated this would end until the 1940s when Jackie Robinson broke the color line. In 1887, the international league team executives would ban Colored contracts for the foreseeable future with help from player complaints such as Cap Anson.
At this point in the Braves vs. Oakland game, it was the fifth inning, and starting pitchers JP Sears (Oakland Athletics) and Reynaldo López (Atlanta Braves) were still in the game. Aside from noticing the lack of diversity on the field, the stands reflect the same thing. Although Black Americans do enjoy the sport and have a serious love for it, the crowd is majority white and this isn’t uncommon across stadiums. Baseball has always been known as a white man’s sport because of its prejudice and segregated past. When Jackie Robinson broke the color line, Black players experienced record highs for a few decades. However, the league’s segregated past wasn’t too far behind and caught up with the sport in various other ways. Black players would begin to see a decline in opportunities. This effect has lingered since the major league began shutting out Black players after record highs in the 1970s. In 2002 only 10% of the league was composed of Black players, and in 2023 based on a study conducted by TIDES (The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport) only 6.2% of players were Black.
There are many theories of why this has occurred including a lack of Black coaching staff and an overall lack of diversity on the staffing team. The league has only two black managers, Ron Washington and Dave Roberts. It’s also important to note that 39 of the 40 MLB owners are white, and only one is Latino. Lack of representation could affect the number of opportunities given as well as in any other career field, it can make a person feel isolated and anxious about their performance. This is also discouraging for any former black baseball players who hope to transition into a front office or dugout role.
In addition, the expense of the sport has become overwhelming for many Black parents. Black parents are less likely to have disposable income than others. The MLB currently partners with Boys Scouts of America and Nike for their Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities Program. The program states that it offers resources, infrastructure, and education about the sport to underserved communities. This all sounds great, however, this is a surface-level promise for many. Although the MLB does prioritize bringing some level of access to the sport to these communities, there aren’t any substantial promises of help with expenses, gear, or 1:1 coaching. Expenses in combination with the lack of representation can make the experience unpleasant and isolating for Black families.
It’s now the end of the game, the Braves are winning and it seems like they aren’t going to let this win get away from them. Fans are riled up at this point and excited to close out the game. I have enjoyed myself, however, as a fan, I do hope to see changes within the league. The little black boys coming to the games deserve to see more representation. They deserve to know that their dreams are attainable. This starts with Black players receiving more opportunities in the professional league. Some might try to debate this but statistics do not line and the fact is Black players are not granted the same opportunities. So, if the MLB intends to fix this problem they are going to have to get serious about their efforts.
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