Had Jackie Robinson come into the majors in 2004, perhaps he would be known as J-Rob by now and just have been another All-Star being paid a ton of money for a job well done. However, Robinson came into the league when MLB and America needed him most. Racial segregation was near its peak in 1947 America, and African-American representation in our "favorite pastime" was a reflection of that. The question lingers on though, why 60 years later are fewer and fewer African-Americans playing/managing in MLB?
John Delcos at The Journal News asks the same question today.
Willie Randolph as quoted by Delcos:
"I don't think you can point to any one thing and say, 'That's the
reason.' There are a lot of reasons. Some carry more weight than
others, but they all contribute."
Moises Alou, Darryl Strawberry, and Lastings Milledge among others also chime in.I agree that the sport's popularity within inner cities has an effect on this. Seeing high school players becoming instant millionaires months after graduation is certainly alluring, but finding an answer to this question is not an easy one. Is it an example of racism, or is it just because baseball has become less popular?
In 1947 you would have thought that by now we as a country would have progressed much further with regards to racial equality, but issues of race are still very apparent everywhere (i.e; Don Imus and Duke Lacrosse case), but especially in MLB where African-Americans are still highly under-represented.
