Ephraim Salaam Breaks Down Why Baseball Has Lost Its Appeal With African-American Kids

THE ODD COUPLE - Chris Broussard & Ephraim Salaam discuss what to make of the lack of black players in Major League Baseball and try to get to the bottom of why numbers continue to shrink.
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[@ca11medeemoney]

It's a social media thing too, youth football and basketball are huge on KZbin etc, it makes the kids want to emulate what they see.

[@Cahluvca]

🎯

[@endzhere1638]

I came to say the exact same thing. Baseball isn't a sport that lends itself to exciting tiktok reels.

[@th3villag3pOp3]

Appreciated Ephraim’s nuanced perspective

[@marcuswright284]

Baseball is so boring

[@straightfacts6482]

In high school, my baseball games looked like practice 😂 There was hardly anyone watching except a couple of parents. Now that I’m in college at a D1 HBCU, I thought more people would come to the games, but the stands are still empty. I don’t think black people really care about getting into the sport, to be honest.

[@soda8736]

And that's all it is. It's simple.

[@__thebadger]

Still prolly care more about baseball than you do women's basketball. The wnba is 65% watched by white dudes older than 50.

[@nochilllwill]

baseball died a long time ago, it’s not just black people that don’t care, it’s the majority of america

[@itsjob595]

Thank you! I went to ecu and baseball is big. People still didn't fill stands at games

[@iang7244]

@@itsjob595East Carolina University? Go Pirates.

[@durellscott9411]

Man i dont trust nobody to throw a 100 mph ball at me with out hitting me 😂 especially my opponent

[@Thehitman1099389]

Ong the first pitch I get tagged with is when I’m charging the mound bat in hand lol

[@durellscott9411]

@@Thehitman1099389 lol fr.. if i can move 🤣

[@ExtraVictory]

​​@@Thehitman1099389i was a decent pitcher in high school (but pretty bad in college) and i can assure you the culture & those around you would never for one second make you think about charging _with_ the bat, but without it, sure. The potential criminal charges, years of hassle spent dealing with slow moving court and tons of lost money isn't even the major concern (the problem is also that you look completely ridiculous if you charge the the mound with the bat, only to stop or do nothing with it when you get there. But your brain will definitely realize on the way that swinging the bat even once at the pitcher would completely ruin your life) Which is why players who charge, not just on tv, not just at every level, ane even after i hit them, (which we do intentionally at times and are told to) throw the bat first

[@MDK384]

this was definitely a part of not wanting to play baseball for me. that ball is not forgiving. even fielding when you're a kid is a nightmare cause the fields are ass. next thing you know a groundball hits a rock and bounces up and hits you in the nuts. i used to pitch in little league too and kids will hit it right back at your head... miss me with that

[@durellscott9411]

@@MDK384 trust me i believe u..we used to play baseball in the neighborhood but there was no where really to wait for the next person to bat..so we gave a lil space to the batter..but let me tell u, it wasn’t enough space for me cuz he swung and let go of the bat 🤦🏾‍♂️ all i seen was a spinning bat coming and it hit me right in the shin 🤣

[@Northphilly-wu4oq]

As a 41 year old man i remember when i was a kid you would see the highlights on espn now baseball doesnt get any coverage until the playoffs. So blacks kids dont see it

[@davruck1]

Because they took the athletes out the game

[@_CPerk]

Yup, all our best athletes are playing football and basketball

[@FalseNi9e]

It don't even get covered in rhe playoffs

[@havok5538]

Nah.....Black kids don't play it as youngsters. No tee ball.....No Strikeout.....no 500 No parks that allow kids to play baseball....Grammer schools don't play softball anymore in gym Here's a Big one....Less and less Dads in the home that play catch and or toss pitches to their Sons

[@davruck1]

@@havok5538 I played plenty of baseball with tennis balls. Coordination is coordination. We are just as good as anyone. We’re just not putting up with that league’s BS

[@dorianchadwick805]

There's layers to it. Baseball is not intertwined with Hip-Hop as basketball and football. Basketball/Football allows for athletic flash you can't display in baseball. It can become expensive over time as well. While football does have a lot of equipment most of it is provided by the school or the league so parents just buy the cleats. Baseball not so much, you have to buy cleats, the gloves, and sometimes the bat, and pants. Marketing also has a lot to do with it as well. The news media dont really talk about baseball as much as Basketball/Football.

[@brandonneumann5294]

It’s simple. Blacks are not interested in baseball. You don’t play what you’re not interested in. That’s it.

[@maddie690ify]

Baseball has become a pay to play sport. So expensive. Private pitching and hitting coaches. Expensive travel leagues. Parents must have weekends off to travel to other cities and stay overnight for tournaments. Too expensive for some.

[@SmartDave60]

Generation X was the last generation where we ALL played organized baseball.

[@davidcovington1046]

Facts!

[@davidcovington1046]

Facts!

[@1Eashawty]

Not true, I was born in 1990 & everyone first sport was baseball since u can start instructional league as early as 3 or 4. Very few of us stuck wit baseball tho we just ended up liking other sports like basketball & football more. Most of us stopped playing baseball by the time we got to high school

[@SmartDave60]

@@1Eashawty Gen X kids ALL played organized baseball to puberty at least. I stopped at 15; when guys started throwing REALLY hard. 🙂

[@wsmith461]

Exactly I’m 49 and we all played baseball back when I was a kid back in the 80’s

[@jtred515]

The popularity point was 100% correct. In high school, kids and especially black youths, crave popularity, that gets you the girls and attention. Playing baseball is considered corny in the black community. Theres no world series parties or cookouts. And soccer is out of the question

[@davruck1]

You sound slow. So why did baseball become corny when it used to be everyone’s favorite sport? MLB made it corny. Racists made it corny. Now the nba and NFL are going down the same road

[@JB-tp6uj]

@@davruck1 Baseball lost its place to Football and the strike in the 90s didn't help. At its peak, the MLB was roughly only 20% black, so black interest and participation never reached the heights that it has for football or basketball. The OP is right, the popularity of the game waned especially in the 80s as the NFL and NBA's popularity grew. And that popularity carried over to the local level in elementary and high schools all over America.

[@Riles3152]

I would venture to say that most of the Black community would’ve never considered baseball “corny“ up until the late 90s/early 2000s.

[@davruck1]

@@Riles3152 nobody thinks baseball is corny. MLB is corny. NBA is corny and nfl too. The corn commissioners ruined it via greed and racism

[@coreyeatmon5101]

8 dudes play in basketball and football no one knows or cares who they are.

[@stingrey1571]

my best friend who is white, his son plays baseball and is very good. he was considering taking his son out of it as it was becoming too expensive to play. fortunately for him, his son has become so good, coaches and scouts have been sponsoring and playing for the kid to play on teams and tournaments.

[@RicardoGonzalez-bn5uu]

Expensive, hard to play with a group of friends in neighborhoods now, no highlight culture or cultural impact anymore, seen as boring for many

[@chironjo]

Where I grew up up we would play with two bases if we couldn’t get the full roster, like 6 on 6, using a back stop and no catcher.

[@maddie690ify]

I think you are right. A lot of American sports pros now come from money. Private coaches and travel ball are expensive.

[@Localtravel3r]

There is no mixtape culture in baseball…

[@paralleluniverse99]

Thank God

[@blaketindle4703]

Only on Chappelle’s Show!😂

[@qualinteranzy7948]

You can't just go anywhere and pick up a baseball and play it's not as simple as "there's no mixtape " the sport is boring asf ,slow pace sorry the sport sucks

[@IAMvonte-2518]

@@qualinteranzy7948facts

[@davruck1]

@@qualinteranzy7948the sport is not boring. You just haven’t seen it played well. I think the nba is boring.

[@KevinHernandez-qz8sb]

Because its boring and all they want to do is be NBA players, NFL players, rappers.

[@lglg1039]

U forgot influencers

[@greggibson33]

@@lglg1039 Influencer. Another way of saying 'unskilled worker.'

[@STR33TJESSUS]

Exactly simple logic ,idk why they even have this topic must be a slow day

[@chironjo]

Baseball is only boring to those who’ve never played it or understand it. What’s taking me away from the game is the antics of the majority of the Latino players, showing off at all times.

[@chicagodude8888]

@@chironjoMost of the guys who hate baseball all shot put their throws like girls, don’t have the hand eye coordination to hit a ball with the correct fundamentals, look like pansies and become resentful of the ego blow that comes with it.

[@brianerisca6822]

Plenty of black people play baseball still .. they just speak spanish so yal don't count them lol

[@andreasmith901]

Right,Them African Latinos are Darker than Black Americans😂😂😂

[@Bea-Dubya]

They don’t count themselves as Black.

[@adrianf7732]

That’s the inconvenient truth that no one in the sports media want to acknowledge.

[@low-kei4655]

The Breakdown is why baseball has lost its appeal with "African-Americans kids." It's referring to a specific group of Black people, Afro-Latino's/Caribbeanian's are well represented in the MLB and they're one of the major driving forces in the sport today.

[@andreasmith901]

@@brianerisca6822 right 🥱

[@dez_chi_boi]

David Justice was on Keyshawn Johnson’s podcast and broke it down perfectly. Basically this is what MLB wanted it was all part of their plan it’s documented

[@MarcBigga]

Their plan for what exactly?

[@Gnofg]

It is the cost.

[@stingrey1571]

@@MarcBigga it is like manufacturing jobs in america. mlb exported baseball to the latin america for cheap labor. americans (black, white, hispanic etc) are going to be signed to standard minor league deals. those kids in the venezuela arent being paid anything.

[@samhopkins743]

@@stingrey1571once they get to mlb they get paid a lot lmao, look how much Soto is about to get

[@greggibson33]

David Tin Foil Hat Justice.

[@Bama20512]

Expensive as hell for equipment and it’s a definitive learning to curve to the game

[@soda8736]

What about football equipment

[@frankie8387]

Football is just as hard too

[@Thehitman1099389]

@@frankie8387not really I’d rather play safety or running back then have to pitch or hit a ball at 100mph

[@IAMvonte-2518]

@@Thehitman1099389hm idk about running back. Might’ve been a bad example

[@Thehitman1099389]

@@IAMvonte-2518 it has the lowest payout of all the high end positions but it’s also the most interchangeable position imo

[@Sambam1981]

Baseball is an expensive sport to play when you are young. The equipment and the travel is expensive

[@mikehoward3018]

Yep that’s the problem if you want to play on a competitive league it is very expensive

[@maddie690ify]

Very expensive and must be able to travel

[@karenhardie1132]

Yup, our son played traveling baseball. Tournaments every weekend. 2 nights in a hotel, food, gas. We would drop hundreds of dollars for one weekend. All very expensive. Equipment, uniforms, baseball camps.

[@bryansilva6306]

Cuz they don’t want to? Why is this conversation always about Africans and only African it makes no sense. Like there’s something wrong if they’re not 80% of the league like the nba or nfl

[@bbott137]

It really comes down to youth leagues and where the investment is. Baseball has done an absolutely terrible job putting pipelines in place in the US for players here. Not to mention playing pick up games gets you yelled at for not being insured (in a league game or practice) and kicked off the field. In the US you are basically left on your own until you hit Division 1 college. Outside of that you have no help getting better at all anywhere. I watched in my high school years as the 15 best kids every year got no direction or help. The kid who ended up making it to Triple A was a left handed pitcher, and probably was the 14th best pitcher in the league. There is so much talent left to waste away in the US.

[@Nickvanexel23]

Baseball is an expensive sport. Bats, gloves, equipment are thousands of dollars. Being from Detroit growing up in the 90s all we needed was 1 basketball and 1 football and we had motion

[@thomasirizarry2127]

I grew up in Puerto Rico, where baseball is part of the culture, and played in Little League. Today, I have a six year old son and live in the West Coast. As a parent, you have a choice to make when it comes to extra-curriculars. The time and money add up quick. So around here, it comes down to soccer and baseball as far as organized sports are concerned. Despite growing up with baseball, I had to choose soccer. Reason being, soccer has 11 players per side on the field at any given time while with baseball your kid is going to be sitting in a dugout half the time. Soccer simply offers more active participation per player throughout the game. Im not trying to sit under the sun on the bleachers and I cant even see my kid half the game, except for an at-bat every couple of innings and him standing around in the outfield getting distracted the rest of it. Except for cultural heritage, baseball doesn't make a whole lot of sense as a parent.

[@JasonQuinn-qq4om]

The top black athletes are playing basketball and football. Baseball is slow and boring. You have to be patient to watch baseball. Kids today are not patient.

[@UNDFTDGordon]

My dad and I were talking about this the other day. Unfortunately, baseball has no clout in the hood. Youngsters see basketball and football players in endorsements, with shoe deals, highlights etc. Baseball players aren’t very popular in the hood and the path from the minors to the majors takes time. When you’re drafted in basketball and football, especially in the lottery, you’re in the league immediately. The Latin and oriental population love baseball so I’m all about those who want to play like Ohtani.

[@TheBrotherHoodSports]

Because blacks finally gave up and stop trying to be in a league that doesn’t want them in it.

[@soda8736]

Oh so it's racism now.. lol

[@Kikibrat2]

👏🏾

[@anthonytaylor7928]

Heck look at what happened to the black kids from Chicago in the little league world series and the white coach found a way to take their American championship away

[@oblivionpro69]

They don’t want them in it but they allowed foogazi stats from a smaller inferior black league to count as real stats?

[@TheBrotherHoodSports]

@@oblivionpro69 The elites realize they need us but the poor racist fans don’t know any better.

[@blaketindle4703]

What Ephraim said is common. At my high school the baseball team played during classes as well.

[@Stylish105]

It's just human nature to gravitate towards something more predominant in your culture. I just think black Americans parents watch and digest or play more basketball and football.

[@josiahandre_]

You’re getting no 🐱 if u playing baseball in high school.

[@joel8692]

😅 it depends. I played highschool baseball at a school that had one of the best baseball programs in the country that produced several MLB stars and if u were on the varsity team u were slaying everything

[@Ulquiorra105]

A letterman jacket is a letterman jacket. Athletic/in shape is athletic/in shape. And you get the benefit of not getting seriously injured like in football. Ain't nothing wrong with Baseball. While with soccer, yeah... good luck. Also, shout out to Hockey lol.

[@josiahandre_]

@@joel8692 I’m talking more so if you’re a black man. But even with that example, it’s still the minority in the country

[@1Eashawty]

I was born in 1990 we all grew up playing baseball first & we were all black. Most of us stopped playing baseball by middle school or high school because it just wasn’t fun compared to other sports like basketball or football

[@imgonnapackit]

Ephraim sounds so much smarter than anyone else in the sports talk space. He backs up every take with a logical foundation.

[@scottiepippen3041]

top 5 episode. great guest

[@NatTurnerswitBurnerz]

Most sports are boring if you don't engage. I've known people who thought watching basketball was pointless until the last two minutes. I've known people who don't care about football because of all the stoppages or unless they're betting on it. If people were being honest, because of the speed, skill, and physicality, they'd have to admit hockey makes all these other sports look boring asf. But I enjoy all of them because I can appreciate each of them on their own merits.

[@lightsoutdso]

They need MoRE of those Telecast with Spanish players 😂 they turn up the entertainment dial 100× That's something more what blk folks can relate too. That old white man jarger is played out. Those fake announcer voices and corny dialog.. naah we wanna hear the papis talk REAL nad really dig into guys that aren't doing their part or have fell off!

[@cryptidian3530]

You can play basketball by yourself. You can't play baseball by yourself unless you go to the batting booth and practice hitting. And baseball is a very slow sport. Basketball and football are much more action packed.

[@tru3dialect]

Because it's harder to make the majors than being an nfl or nba player. You don't get sent to the minors immediately as an nba or nfl player

[@witchdoctor813]

The MLB is almost a majority international players league. Black people have stopped playing baseball and the White players are getting their jobs took by international players. Last years all star game roster was almost 50% international.

[@Cahluvca]

Well....

[@davruck1]

White players were never very good. But they weren’t going to let the league become all Black so they went international. They are doing the same thing with basketball and football

[@brandonneumann5294]

White Americans still make up a majority of mlb

[@damepoe919]

That makes no sense. It's called business they spreading the sport around the world to add to its popularity....basketball a newer sport...soccer was created in England now its the most popular sport in the world...more than half of all the soccer teams in England are foreign players. And England is the most watched league in the world. NBA trying to do the same thing...MLB did that already and still doing it. It's not about not wanting the league to be all black. Majority of the international players they bring in are black too...black Americans just don't like baseball bc the popularity fell due to lack of media coverage and social media coverage. Baseball players in the 90s were just as big of stars as Lebron and Tom Brady. Now you wouldn't know the best player in the league if he walked past you

[@davruck1]

@@damepoe919 soccer was not created in England. They just spread it through colonialism. They suck

[@endzhere1638]

Cant believe they didnt mention the #1 reason, Social Media. Baseball might be the worst sport for social media compared to football, basketball and even soccer. Baseball doesn't really produce exciting highlight reels, and its kinda hard to have 1v1 in Baseball.

[@LoveAllTrustNone]

once Black Americans stop playing baseball, the sport became irrelevant

[@RamonAdorno-ds1wu]

Because you need a father to play catch with and unfortunately most black kids dads are locked up in jail. Single moms and grandmas don't play catch.

[@darnell16player]

The MLB doesn’t do a good job of reaching out to other states or places in the United States. If they reached out I would say there would be more players

[@_CPerk]

I’m 41, I grew up in DC until I turned 12 then we moved to the VA suburbs. I didn’t even think about playing baseball until we moved to VA and some of our neighborhood friends invited us to play basically whenever there wasn’t a basketball game going on. We both loved playing baseball, and had natural skills, but both very raw. Some of the Dad’s in the neighborhood encouraged us to try private training and a travel league, but my folks couldn’t afford It. My brother probably could have played in the minors if he kept going…but once we got to high school, football and basketball took over and even track leapfrogged baseball. It’s a fun sport to play but it’s brutal to watch, very slow game with not a lot of scoring.

[@CPC36]

A great breakdown from the gentleman. Of course, the more obvious question is, "Does baseball owe it to black Americans to increase their numbers in the sport?"

[@everybodywannabelikemike_]

Baseball is boring and just like hockey there’s not a lot of places to play baseball in the hood

[@lance-h1g]

Baseball is too slow paced for a lot of adults but for kids especially they get sick of just basically sitting around watching/waiting for something to happen. It’s the only sport I believe that practice is actually more fun than games because in practice your constantly getting to hit, throw, catch, run, do something; whereas, in the games 95% of what you do is sit/stand and watch.

[@marlonious7650]

All of our parents stopped wanting to be around people who brought racial tension. It was uncomfortable for us as kids and especially for our parents.

[@sj4632]

bllacks bring the most racial tension

[@Cahluvca]

Elephant in the room

[@IAMvonte-2518]

This is a big part of it.

[@itsjob595]

White people at a baseball game damn sure would make u feel uncomfortable

[@The_king567]

That didn’t happen

[@Wo1fLarsen]

Support Marquis Grissom and Lou Collier. They doing great black youth baseball work in Georgia.

[@blaketindle4703]

Because if baseball were any slower it’d be farming.

[@mikewallace9292]

Not to mention the absurd amount of money baseball costs to play. From just the equipment to the little league price and the travel money it's crazy stupid

[@ozzaRlE]

It’s a sport that is not “cool “ for them. Not popular enough and some little leagues are savagely expensive.

[@eatupsidedown]

Cuz no club gives a f about a baseball player if you just on the team. Also if you can pitch- you might as well be a quarterback.

[@drlove994]

Baseball is a dying sport who cares?

[@sean24833]

I'm black and my son will definitely play baseball. You don't have to be 6'8 to play it or run a 4.3 just gotta be skilled.

[@iang7244]

Basketball is so genetically gatekept. Like, yes you do need to be skilled, but if you’re 6’8 in high school that advantage can’t be overstated.

[@sean24833]

@@iang7244 exactly

[@joel8692]

​@@iang7244 I played baseball at a high level in the U.S and even went to the Dominican Republic to tryout for a few MLB affiliated teams when I was 15 and I was killing It on every travel team i played on in the USA but once I got to play against othe and prospects in DR ybe speed of the game was so fast and u had to have perfect footwork

[@Ulquiorra105]

While with baseball, you can be 5'4" and a Hall of Famer.

[@geelangfordo3272]

​@@iang7244Same with football ball you either have elite track star speed or are a 6'6 280 pound giant.

[@prayersofarighteousman]

Well my 8 and 6 year olds love baseball more than basketball even and are developing into good lil players. Travel baseball is no more expensive than travel basketball. I played D2 football, knees shot, multiple concussions. Rather my boys avoid that. It is about intentionally and seeking opportunities outside of where you typically see our boys thrive.

[@KK-qs2kq]

People dont realize how expensive organized youth baseball is to play. Football and basketball are much cheaper and easier to get into.

[@greggibson33]

But Sherman Oaks ain't exactly poor country. Ephraim said his son was the only black kid on the team.

[@monarchist9691]

no way baseball is more expensive to play than football and basketball. one of the reasons baseball become so popular in the caribbean is because of how cheap it is

[@Bama20512]

Baseball takes patience to learn to play

[@TheFilmSpace1]

@@monarchist9691in the Caribbean not the United States

[@straightfacts6482]

@@Bama20512 To be honest, it’s not hard at all at the youth level. When players reach high school and college, that’s when they start quitting because everything isn’t as easy as it was in little league and travel ball. So, they just focus on basketball and football full-time.

[@coreyjeromeeddins]

Nobody wants to get hit by an 80 mph fastball anymore, especially black people. Just my opinion 🙂.

[@rickywashington2594]

I heard it from a pro baseball Hall of Famer...when travel ball came into play thats when it got real....real expensive!!!!

[@deweyfinn1497]

Baseball is comparable to watching paint dry

[@tradariusmaddox6827]

lol if u have a great pitcher, good luck lol

[@thewkovacs316]

Only to stupid people

[@hiitsme3039]

Nahhhh

[@ricardojordanjordan2216]

Don’t agree baseball ⚾️ is great

[@christiansoldier77]

Soccer is worst

[@ericbland1335]

Baseball is an expensive game.

[@richardwilliams9455]

To the Lebron comparison... Bryce was on the cover of SI, so someone of that level does get that

[@SmartDave60]

As a kid I watched great black ballplayers and could see myself in them. Willie Stargell, Rickey Henderson, Darryl Strawberry, Doc Gooden, Dave Parker, Reggie Jackson, Jim Rice, Andre Dawson .. Bring the swag back to baseball.

[@greggibson33]

It ain't gonna happen. It's 7% and shrinking. That's the whole point of this segment.

[@SmartDave60]

@@greggibson33 baseball is shrinking.

[@greggibson33]

@@SmartDave60 Agreed. It is what it is.

[@SmartDave60]

@@greggibson33 bring us back and it’ll change. We have that swag. 🙂

[@greggibson33]

@@SmartDave60 Nobody is stopping them.... they don't want to play.

[@johnshannon9433]

It’s also a game of failing in the that you can be really great all around player and still be a on terrible youth team. In other sports, it’s easier to take over when you’re good but you cant help it if the left fielder on your team cannot catch a routine fly ball.

[@Malaki727]

Because its boring.

[@lloyddaking6024]

Is this seriously a topic tn 🤣

[@Gnofg]

It is the cost of baseball.

[@luancosta7693]

Bro the way you talk about soccer is like is easy lol. try playing for one day. I love the show, love the NBA and the NFL, but soccer is not easy at all, it may seem easy if u dont know or have never played the game. Ask Ocho, he will tell you how hard it is

[@itsjob595]

You better be in shape to play soccer!!

[@luancosta7693]

@@itsjob595 yeah people say its easy when they dont know anything about the sport, smh

[@davidmarrotte3265]

Football and Basketball is where the money at!

[@kennethmack3226]

Great points by the guys. I would like to hear Rob Parker’s view on this subject being he’s a baseball guy.

[@renewd]

Walking or getting on base because of an error is not failing in baseball.

[@greggibson33]

Walk is not counted in your average (0-0) but getting on by error is (0-1)

[@renewd]

@@greggibson33 Getting on by error is counted as at bat, but the result is a net positive for your team, assuming you get to a base without a force out occuring. It is therefore not a failure.

[@BaithNa]

Because its slow, boring and takes a ton of space to have a field.

[@liberteysfinest]

The Latinos love it 🤷🏾‍♂️

[@witchdoctor813]

My generation was the last generation of Black kids that were into baseball. We had Black heroes like Griffey, Bonds, Jeter, Sheffield, etc. Several things happened that shifted Black kids interest- little league diminishing and travel ball took over, Football and basketball popularity has surpassed baseball. And I think the MLB is terrible at marketing the game. They’re more concerned with getting international talent than homegrown players.

[@soda8736]

So when black kids played baseball , was it about marketing then?

[@marlonthemightysmith7836]

Facts

[@MikeGenius-qh2xj]

Real spiel. The parents have to be interested. My dad wasn't around & I grew up around coke feinds..my mom used to steal me packs of baseball cards. Topps Fleer Upper Deck Donruss. Seen Gary Sheffield at the mall in Sacramento when he played for Milwaukee. Bo Jackson & Ken Griffey are the only cats I remember having shoes. Them Griffeys' still raw.

[@anthonytaylor7928]

Facts and more facts

[@anthonytaylor7928]

​@@soda8736yes it was in the days of Willie mays Hank Aaron and Ken Griffey and others they were marketed and promoted big time

[@cezarblack13]

✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽❤ 𝗕𝗟𝗠

[@xxdoggsxx1195]

That’s a lie because you also had to represent Latin descent. The other understand that a lot Latin people come from Africa America, and come from Africa from Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, so you are just talking out of your ass

[@Yakkii]

Basketball harden than soccer? In what world is using your feet easier than your hands? A kid can score a 3 pointer easier than a screamer outside of the box.

[@Ulquiorra105]

He meant that the 4 yos can just run around, all kicking the soccer ball, screwing around. While with basketball, it needs to be a bit more organized, and 4 yos would just be trying to pull the ball out of each others hands, causing a foul on every possesion.

[@rayrichard4665]

Where I’m from in Houston baseball has always been king, we have a all black league and many pros have came from the league players like Carl Crawford and Michael Bourn and many division one players as well

[@FrankTorres-x5z]

Baseball fields in my area haven't been played on by any race of kids in years

[@KoolKid2K4]

Shits boring

[@GooniesNeverSayDie1980]

If you do not live in one of the rare cities and suburbs that have a good to great baseball community, the game is absolutely boring unless you are pitcher, up at bat or in the dug-out.

[@itsjob595]

Bingo. You just standing around if you not the catcher , pitcher or at bat waiting. That's when I got bored.

[@davruck1]

@@itsjob595 if you’re just standing there you ain’t good

[@eamonkelley3811]

If you think baseball is boring you never cared to learn the game.

[@Ksmoove39]

We as black folk sadly don’t really like to “grind” and baseball is just that a grind with little to no social media love. No clicks or highlights and the culture loves that even though you can make a ton of $$$ with the work. This speaks volumes about the mentality of the culture

[@SE-gs6gd]

And football is not a “grind” lol. What are you talking about

[@itsjob595]

No it doesn't lol. Nice speech. Bottom line is boring bas hell. Black people keep telling you lol

[@chris-k8s5e]

Foolish take. Being good at Basketball n Football is not easy. Everyone can't do it WELL!!

[@ehrenmilliner6052]

I agree with someone in the comments who said what David Justice said! It's the MLB'S master plan to leave Blacks out of baseball! They don't Market to Black kids what so ever!! *Now baseball changed the game to don't care about Stolen Bases and Batting Averages! They just care about Exit Velocity of the bat!! You can play in the Big league if you can hit 20HRS, HIT .230, and Steal 10 bases in 165 games. They've watered down the the product and made baseball unbearable to Watch! *Lastly, when have you ever seen a baseball player, or even a Minority banal player do a National Commercial??? TRUTH IS REAL!!

[@mynameismyname.967]

Griffey Jr. Was my favorite baseball player growing up. Now I'm 41, and i dont see any African American players who i can root for, and MLB does a horrible job marketing talent. Guys like Trout, Judge shoild be all over tv and radio campaigns. Who's our POC star that's english speaking?

[@KarlPostMalone]

I HATE to be THAT black guy…However, African-Americans, WEREN’T THE ONLY black men, to participate in the Negro Leagues. We stood next to African-Americans and depended on them to help us navigate the American language and how to move in society at those times.

[@2682shark]

Feel like this is a fairly recent change.. When I grew up in the 80s/90s most of the best baseball players were black.. Bonds, Griffey, Tony Gwen, Frank Thomas, Rickey Henderson, Strawberry, etc.. Now I don’t think I can even name 2 .. Mookie Betts, That it

[@amosculbreth5308]

Love this episode, hope to see more African Americans push back into baseball ❤

[@low-kei4655]

When I growing up in the 80's in Detroit, kids in my old hood use to play baseball, basketball and football on the Westside. All you really needed was a basketball, football, baseball, bat and some kids. After moving closer to downtown near the Jeffries Projects, we were introduce to street hockey, where we would wear our gymshoes (sneakers) instead of skates and play in a frozen parking lot with sticks and brooms. After my family moved back to the Northwest/Westside, baseball was still being played but basketball and football was now King. By the early to mid 90's you wouldn't see teens playing basetball at the parks unless it was for a school's team or for PAL (Police Athletic League) which is a cities youth program. Everybody knew a least someone with a football, a basketball rim or a ball. So these sports became more popular than baseball. Baseball kind of fell off and hockey wasn't the sport of choice in my hood you know. S/O to all my Gen X-Men and Women. We Built Different 💪💯🤬👊💰🤐💯

[@cecilparson1171]

The Baseball discussion is Two-fold. For young Black kids the parks don't have Baseball Diamonds anymore in alot of inner cities, and the potential financial payoff is a much longer wait. Free agency is typically 28-30 in MLB, compared to NBA& NFL. The game has lagged behind national because Baseball is best consumed as a regional sport. Cities like New York, Boston, St.Louis when you turn sports radio in those cities Baseball can dominate a show for hours. Nationally Baseball is treated like hockey. The focus is on the playoffs, a star player, or major franchise going deep. The acclaim & allure for young black kids isn't their in Baseball, and even young white kids who are moving towards the NFL.

[@lightsoutdso]

Deeper Dive.. it's the look also! The Esthetics matter for our people and over in the hood wherr they have immense talent.. they wanna be stylin and geared up, the uniforms play apart in that. White kids live for that 'I play baseball' look and on us it ain't as fly! Folks thinks its the boredom--baseball aint boring. It just takes Time too get entrenched. Y'all dont think kids in the hood wouldn't mind having competitions with fastballs and who can send that mofo out the yard the furthest?! It's Mental & also an even deeper dive.. it has a very Jim Crow Era aura too it "the good ole days" and today's era don't give Two about neing apart of the Hay Days. You see Now how they themselves have re-invented Football & Basketball?! Look at YT and see what these camps are doing!! WR vs CB is the boggest thing poppin and its JUST FOR FUN!

[@Tacana_Redd_Sox]

I’m 43 and from Los Angeles. I grew up playing little league at Baldwin hills park. The league was majority black. I think the rise of the nba ( mainly Micheal Jordan) in the late 80’s through the 90’s had something to do with the beginning of the lack of interest. The NBA and the nfl aggressively marketed itself to the younger crowds with certain shows. MLB wasn’t trying to market itself to anyone because it already dubbed “the national pastime” so u would only see a show like TWIB (this week in baseball) which was very straight laced and didn’t market itself to the younger generation. At the same time travel ball (equivalent to AAU) became a big deal in the 2000’s and that’s where people talk about the cost of playing because travel ball is expensive and you may need a sponsor. While this is happening the MLB put more focus on grass root development in the Caribbean. If there were MLB academies in major metropolitan areas that would begin to create more opportunities as well. Yes the game is slow paced at times but that doesn’t seem to bother the kids in the Caribbean.

[@madboyreadynow28]

The money is in baseball, and it's guaranteed. Is Bobby Bonilla still getting that mill a year from the Mets? I stopped my son from playing football because he showed primise in baseball. I spent all that money but in the end he didn't have a passion for sports. He had the talent but not the love and passion you need to make it a career. We see how abusive thr NFL is to young players. These kids come in at 22, 23 years old and made instant millionaires, and the media and NFL ask they react and respond like a 38 year old man married with 2 kids. It takes time. MLB players mess up as much as NFL. We just don't hear about 24/7 on ESPN and all other sports media.

[@Ksmoove39]

Well college baseball is popular depending on the region (south). Sadly Ephraim brings up a point that kids want the instant gratification but does this say something about kids choosing path of least resistance?

[@itsjob595]

Lol getting hit by 300 pound dudes is least resistance huh?

[@scuba0022]

Multiple reasons .. 1. It cost too much to play travel ball .. 2. Takes too long to get to the show with single double and triple A .. 3. The equipment cost to much .. vs basketball and football

[@larryhollins459]

Guy's let me tell you what has happened. I was born in 1962 those other people did not want us playing baseball. Their Americas pass time in the major league was intended for whites only. When I was around 15 years old in the mid to late 70's leather sneakers started to become popular. I noticed Nike, Puma, Adidas,Converse etc, these shoe companies began to invest in baseball facilities down in the Caribbeans meanwhile here in the states, they stopped letting us play on the baseball fields. The recreation centers said it was due to not having enough equipment to protect us from injury. That was the lie to keep us from playing. They had to stop the Barry Bonds and future Bo Jackson's. We had started to become two sports players like Bo Jackson, Michael Jordan, and prime time Deon Sanders. It's deeper then what time we played when we were in school we just out shined them even in the negro league we had no media but a stand full of fans. Please research this, shoe companies became big sponsor during this time. The professional baseball league could not but the shoe companies could put money anywhere through nonprofits. In the late 80's and 90's players from the Caribbeans started popping up everywhere.

[@realsinceday1632]

I'm ngl I can't speak on like back in the day like 70s and 80s but I don't remember baseball ever being considered a "black sport". Don't get me wrong there has always been great back players but even in the 90s and early 2000s I don't remember baseball being a "black sport". Chris said that only 6% of the MLB currently is black but he never said what that percentage was in the past. Sure there's probably less black players now I'm not disagreeing with that but that percentage was probably not that high to begin with.

[@havok5538]

For you people that contine to say the best Black athletes play basketball and football..... It shows you dont rwally know Baseball. Baseball is eye hand coordination, Muscle Memory, Focus, patience and the ability to shake off and forget failure. You dont have to be the Best athlete to be successful. Great athletes that possess the forementioned attributes become All-Stars & HOF players

[@lotusson]

While I agree with the points made by Chris and Ephraim, their focus was mostly on baseball's general popularity and not the declining interest among African Americans. Here's my hot take... As pointed out by (numerous) comments, baseball is kind of a boring sport to watch. You have to be deep in that culture to really get excited about it. That makes me think that baseball's popularity is largely due to its status as classic Americana... something African Americans have, historically, been kept out of. Thus, getting into baseball was seen as a way to break into, and get accepted by, white America. Whereas Football & Basketball - while obviously not immediately accepting of African Americans - where quicker to make the transition. And once African Americans realized there were more opportunities in those sports, interest in baseball dropped off a cliff.

[@yankeefederer1994]

Baseball doesn't translate as quickly to the typical athletic advantages that black athletes have. Speed and explosiveness are not as essential in baseball in comparison to coordination and throwing ability, which are more ubiquitous. Hence why people play sports where their athletic niche can be maximized. Speed and explosiveness are maximized in football and basketball, whereas in baseball they're add-ons at the highest levels. If you aren't coordinated enough to hit early on, doesn't matter how fast you are. If you can't throw a baseball with speed and precision, doesn't matter how powerful someone is.

[@creditorclass6513]

We won't see an African American Heavyweight Champion anymore either. They will all come from football or basketball like Deontay Wilder who was the never caught up skill wise.

[@Yakkii]

Baseball is boringgggg. That’s why they had to change the rules. They 100 odd games for no reason. No urgency = boring. The nba is kind of in that same space with the 82 games. But, it’s way more exciting due to the athleticism

[@dustinhawks7571]

Travel baseball is extremely expensive to play, especially during high school years. That's going to eliminate a lot of underprivileged kids from all walks of life in this country. The other part is, there's no immediate money in baseball. Rookie contracts for football and basketball far exceed the first 6 years of MLB pay before free agency.

[@theleap2946]

The biggest issue? Commentators and talking heads don’t know squat about baseball. Most of the commentary these days is top of their head nonsense that can easily be digested and discussed. Football and basketball are generally low effort hanging fruit. It’s the same reason why they don’t talk about hockey or soccer as well. There is nuance to these sports that these talking head nincompoops don’t want to learn. It’s the reason why they barely talk combat sports either. When I first started working in the sales world at ACE hardware, I could fake knowledge on tools, electrical, and even paint. I couldn’t fake it with plumbing and lawn care and screen repair. I had to learn and ultimately become good in those areas to ultimately earn a manager role. Unfortunately, you don’t have these expectations in the sports world and for the most part, the audience doesn’t care. As long as you make content they can make off of, that is the new model.

[@lafan4801]

Perhaps they just don’t want to play that sport anymore. What you will see is more black folks excelling in many Olympic or other sports that they never had access to before. And these generations seek sports for its pure enjoyment first. Tennis , swimming, etc.