If you have been watching the World Series this year, you may have noticed many things. The skin color of the players involved probably wasn’t one of them, unless you work for NBC BLK.
NBC BLK is an offshoot of NBC News that covers “stories, issues and opinions from the African American perspective.” As you can imagine for a liberal corporate media outlet, this means that some of the most noxious, race-obsessed content can be found there. This includes a piece titled “World Series highlights the dwindling of Black players in America’s pastime.”
The premise of the piece is flawed, but even its central contention is misleading at best. Curtis Bunn claims that the Atlanta Braves (Terrance Gore) and the Houston Astros (Michael Brantley) each only have one black player. Not included are Yordan Alvarez, Framber Valdez, or Cristian Javier of the Astros, nor are Ozzie Albies, Guillermo Heredia, or Jorge Soler of the Braves. All of those players are black, but the piece likely just lumps them into the “Latin” category it uses throughout.
It’s unclear what exactly the implication of the piece is. Bunn notes that “In the 1970s, the percentage of black players was more than double what it is today.” Why? It isn’t exactly clear. Bunn cites “pop culture critic” Gerald Early, who talks about the end of black team owners from the Negro Leagues, but that’s cited as ending when Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947.
Moreover, the NFL has never had a black owner, yet black players make up nearly 60% of the league. The first black owner in the NBA was Robert Johnson of the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) in 2004, and the only one now is his successor, Michael Jordan. Yet 74% of NBA players are black.
So long as black players are not actively being discouraged from playing baseball, the skin color of the World Series rosters is irrelevant. Just as there is no concern that there are a disproportionately lower number of white and Hispanic players in the NFL and NBA, the skin color of MLB is irrelevant as well.
Most people do not look at the skin color of various sports lineups. This should be especially true for children, who do not need to “see someone who looks like them” to become a fan or aspiring player of a sport. Many of my favorite athletes growing up (former Panthers receiver Steve Smith, former NBA player Yao Ming, and the late NBA star Kobe Bryant among them) did not “look like” me. If the only issue here is black athletes choosing not to play baseball, then there is no issue at all.
There are plenty of storylines to follow in this World Series. The Braves are trying to deliver a championship for one of the most snakebitten sports cities in the country, despite having their best player injured since July. The Astros are trying to redeem themselves after being marred by a cheating scandal. Skin color is irrelevant, as it often is. Only those who view the world through a warped racial worldview think otherwise.
