Conor Kelley, a catching consultant and author of The Catcher’s Handbook recently shared a series of tweets about the racism in baseball and how this affects the sport. There is a major problem in College Baseball right now with very few African-American players and coaches. Off the top of my head, I can only think of one African-American head coach outside the MEAC and SWAC conferences in Spencer Allen at Northwestern. (EDIT: I had forgotten about Eastern Kentucky head coach Edwin Thompson and Presbyterian College coach Elton Pollock.) There are four other minorities coaching in Meryl Melendez at Florida International and Mik Aoki at Notre Dame, Erik Valenzuela at St. Mary’s, and Mark Martinez at San Diego State. I could be missing some people so feel free to comment below.
You can check out all of Kelley’s tweets below.
Our game has a horrible undercurrent of racism. I’ve heard racist words every year I’ve played or coached, from the time I could understand.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
Our culture is a reason why kids of color won’t play ball. Baseball is white and intimidating. We are the racist uncle at the family party.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
I believe there are many good people in this game who fight for equality, but too many who are silent on it. Too many of you know a guy.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
You know what I mean, because I know a guy. I know a couple. Like the one who makes racist jokes in the coaches’ offices. Those ain’t jokes.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
In silence you’re just as complicit in his hate as he his. What we’re seeing in the US confirms that silence is not enough. We need to act.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
We’re leaders to the young men we coach. We’re showing them how to live. If we can’t stand up against pure evil, we are–all of us–cowards.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
So if your feelings on racism, Nazism, White Nationalism, and the Alt-Right are anything but total condemnation, I don’t want to know you.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
Your money is no good in my business. Your friendship isn’t something I want. You are scum and the world is better without you. Unfollow me.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
But if you know those beliefs are wrong and don’t belong in our dugouts, on our fields, or in the minds of our players, please speak up.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
You’re one of the most important people in your players’ lives, and they’re living through confusing times with no tools to process this.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
Have a meeting. Open your mouth. Give them the tools. Or don’t. Stay silent. But you know what that means.
Your silence is a stance.
— Conor Kelley (@KelleyCatching) August 16, 2017
9 comments
I’d say less to do with racism, more to do with high cost of youth/travel baseball and limitations 11.7 provides.
In actuality he’s spot on with what he’s saying. Scholarship limitations and travel ball cost have ZERO to do with it. There are plenty of qualified minority coaches and players in the country that don’t get an opportunity. We can send a man to the moon but can find a way for equality in baseball.
I agree there are qualified minority players and coaches, but racism isn’t the biggest factor keeping them from getting jobs. It’s just not easy to get jobs in college baseball. As far as players go, less minority kids play baseball which is correlated largely to population factors and financial factors. More basketball than baseball in inner cities because it’s affordable, and space allows it. If you were to increase 11.7, minority athletes wouldn’t feel pressure to choose football or basketball where they can legitimately be a third string player and receive a free education. So saying scholarships and travel costs have ZERO to do with it is one of the more naive things I’ve read heard on this subject.
It’s not like minorities just started playing baseball in college baseball. College Baseball has had 11.7 scholarships for as long as I can remember and it’s been the same thing. You will know every year which programs will have minorities on there team outside of the HBCUs the same one have them every year. Also, it’s time for some AD or president to hire a minority head coach at a good program. A program that has expectations to win. Minorities have helped many programs as players win championships it’s time for the schools to hire more minorities to be Head Coaches so they have an opportunity to win championships themselves at schools other than HBCUs.
It’s less of a racist issue, more of a pure numbers issue. There are less minorities playing college baseball thus there are less minorities coaching college baseball. Coaches with impressive resumes are passed up for jobs all the time, of all races. So much luck goes into landing a job it’s ludacris to expect with the small percentage of minorities college players to have a ton of minorities at “programs with expectations to win.” Which, I would imagine 99% of coaches are at programs where they expect to win. So as they do, the potential for opportunities will open. In regards to the 11.7 which changed in 1991 I believe, followed by Football going from 60 to 85 scholarships in 1992, the MLB strike of 94 where baseball popularity decreased as a whole, I’d be curious to the affect that had. Mix in the fact that scouts love drafting black high school baseball athletes. I don’t have stats on that, but would love to know the percentage of minority HS athletes who signed this year in the draft compared to white athletes. Which continues the cycle of less minority college players thus less minority college coaches. So to say it’s mostly racism seems absurd, is there racism? Sure, but don’t forget how hard the industry is for anyone. And shoutout to MLB helping the cause with the RBI program which you’re seeing results from example the ACE program in Chicago that helped Ro Coleman and Corey Ray hone their skills before going to power five schools and eventually pro ball.
I think Conor is wrong — and the way he’s wrong is contributing to the turmoil we’re in today.
Avowed white supremacists and KKK and Nazis certainly must be condemned. But name calling (or violence) by Conor and others does not help. Neither does vandalism, as in Durham; glad to see those people will be prosecuted. Racism should be opposed at EVERY turn — but shutting off communication and calling them scum really doesn’t further the cause because it shuts off the communication which can change minds.
TO BASEBALL: Having coached in junior college baseball, and college players in summer, for decades I must admit there are some racist coaches (a lot in the South and rural areas), but they certainly aren’t a majority everywhere. During my coaching time in California, I can assure you coaches would have gladly taken good Black high school players. There were almost none.
Let’s be clear about this: the loss is baseball’s, not the Black athletes’, who can find ample opportunity in basketball and football.
Baseball is a stacked deck for today’s Black athletes. Where are the Black players from Oakland McClymonds High School that turned out Frank Robinson, Curt Flood and Vada Pinson? There is the issue of broken families. At least as importantly, the good facilities and accomplished coaches are in White neighborhoods. Poor Black kids can’t afford the cost of travel ball, select summer teams. And they sure can’t afford college on the partial scholarships NCAA teams can offer (Everybody in basketball and football gets a full ride, which is still subsistence money.) And Conor is correct that Black kids usually see baseball as a White sport — a reasonable view given the facts just noted.
Baseball really needs Black athletes (something like 7.5% of MLB rosters and 1.8% of NCAA DI teams). They bring a calibre of athleticism and a calibre of competitiveness we need. College baseball would certainly benefit young African-Americans. But the game needs them more than they need the game.
Poor white kids can’t afford partial scholarships and travel ball cost either. You have some very valid points but don’t think for one minute broken homes and low income families are only in the black community.
He is saying what is talked about all the time among minority players and coaches. This issue hasn’t just started overnight its been ongoing. This issue has been swept under the rug for a long enough. Outside of Coach Melendez at FIU when was a minority given an interview to a program to this caliber or better?
Spencer Allen is in a Power 5 school, Tony Gwynn (RIP) was at San Diego State. Again, it comes down to numbers more than anything. I feel we underestimate how hard it is to get jobs already. My question would be, how often have minority coaches been overlooked for “a program of that caliber or better.” Who should be getting more of an opportunity I guess is my question. Now I do think there is some racism because there is in any industry, but I don’t feel race is the biggest issue in why there are less minorities playing or coaching. Just my opinion though
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