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former American League MVP Ken Griffey Jr.'s son
Trey abandoned baseball to accept a football
scholarship at the University of Arizona, and Hall of
Famer Barry Larkin's son Shane is playing basketball
at Miami. The lack of African­-American players also
affects diversity in the stands. Just 9% of fans who
attended an MLB game last season were African
American, according to a recent Scarborough
Marketing Research study. "It's what you grow up
around," Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Andrew
McCutchen says. "For the African­-American
community, it's more basketball, it's more football. Just
the hype of it. It's what people like. Baseball is more of
a laid­-back sport. There's not a lot going on. "Growing
up, I really loved baseball, and it's something I
flourished at as a child. But look at the world now.
Technology is running the world. There are so many
different things people can do, so it kind of turns them
away from baseball." Said Dodgers center fielder Matt
Kemp: "We're definitely aware what's going on in MLB
as far as African Americans. I'm trying to make
baseball cool for African Americans and let
African­-American kids know that baseball can give you
the same opportunities as football, basketball or any of
USA Today/ ­- News, Dom, 15 de Abril de 2012
CLIPPING INTERNACIONAL (Civil Rights)
the other sports. You get paid just as much, get to
drive those nice cars and do all of that fun stuff that all
the other NBA guys get to do. We're just a little bit
more low key." It's difficult, scouts and general
managers say, since colleges also are attracting so
few African­-American athletes. Universities offer only
11.7 scholarships in baseball, compared with 85 in
football. "The lack of full scholarships in NCAA
baseball sways kids to other sports," Oakland Athletics
scouting director Billy Owens says. "Plus there are
more options athletically and recreationally. Back in
the '40s and '50s, baseball was unequivocally the No.
1 sport in America. Now it's extremely popular but not
a monopoly. We should embrace our past, promote
the present and continue to strive and make things
better for everyone." Williams says perhaps there's too
much emphasis on the lack of African Americans in
baseball. The White Sox GM is more intrigued with the
additional benefits of MLB's efforts. "I'm happy with
MLB's efforts to bring more young men to the game,
but not why you think," he says. "It's the educational
and motivational part of the programs that hopefully
lead to college opportunities that most impress me."
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