NASHVILLE, Tenn. — 2023 felt like the first year of the rest of our lives, in many ways. For Black baseball, it was a season like none other. As the winter meetings come to a close, we’ll take a look at the year that was for hardball in our community, a way to take stock of what we saw and how it impacted us, in sports.
Mind you, this is not a lifetime of reckoning that we’re going to tackle here, but more so a snapshot of these last few months on the calendar. To better tackle this task, I just asked around. For all the ballparks and dugouts I might get to in my travels, I’m only one human and everywhere I go, there are counterparts who have different jobs and handle different tasks in the business with a variety of life experiences.
The year started with the World Baseball Classic, the crown jewel event of our sport, and the Americans had quite the roster. We saw a coming together of blackness from coaches to the roster, all headed up by the mastermind Tony Reagins, chief baseball development officer of the MLB.
“I think for Black players, start out with the Team USA, you have Mookie Betts and Tim Anderson, two guys that, leading up to this season, Tim Anderson was having a really good run,” said Jerry Hairston Jr., former big leaguer and Los Angeles Dodgers analyst fo Spectrum SportsNet LA. “I know injury was a part of his past season, but I remember Mark DeRosa and Michael Young telling me that they just loved Tim Anderson, the way he went about his business, the kind of ballplayer he has been up until that point, and obviously he had an injury-plagued season. And then Mookie Betts, for Mookie to recruit Mike Trout, and him and Trout going after players, getting them to play, I thought that was huge because usually a lot of the American guys don’t play a whole lot of winter ball like they do in Venezuela, in the Dominican Republic, and so on and so forth, but I think it was a great showing. It just goes to show how baseball is a tremendous global game.”
Rob Tringali/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images
Although the Americans didn’t win, the experience was an undeniable success in terms of the names and faces we got to see in high leverage moments donning the red, white and blue, which can be a touchy subject related to what it means to represent your country.
“The interesting thing about the WBC was, and it might’ve been in your piece, it overindexed Black American players on that team and Black American coaches on that team, with a Black American GM, and overindexed what the reality of what Major League Baseball is, but that helped us. I think that made it cooler to say Tim Anderson, Cedric Mullins, you know what I mean? Devin Williams,” Marc Cheatham, creator and host of the Black Baseball Mixtape podcast, pointed out. “I think the next couple of years will tell because there’s a lot of challenges that we still really do have to talk about when you talk about the state of Black baseball, especially the concerns on the veterans’ side. But the young exciting players, like Lawrence Butler and CJ Abrams, these [are] guys that not only are they going to show up, but they’re going to show up with their full selves, are going to make it cooler for our high school kids, our college kids, those guys.”
We don’t even need to point out the Afro Latino and Caribbean element of the tournament, which had Black folks of all types playing for nations across the globe due to lineage and heritage that made it one of the best tournaments we’ve seen.
“I just totally forgot how fun it was. And it was, just generally speaking, nice to see guys having a good time, making connections with people who they might not necessarily have made connections within other contexts, and then the baseball was also good,” Kamila Hinkson, an editor for The Athletic who lives in Montreal, pointed out. “From a Black perspective, honestly, the World Baseball Classic, just so many Black faces, so many colonizer countries. It’s just like, woo. Don’t know how to feel about that. What are you going to do?”
For the Americans, the tournament was immortalized with one of the best pictures that USA Baseball has ever produced.
USA Baseball
Then, the MLB season began with gusto.
“The opening series was Astros/White Sox, and there’s Megan Thee Stallion throwing out the first pitch.” Laurence Holmes, who is midday host at 670 The Score in Chicago and a Chicago Sun-Times columnist recalled. “You’re talking about Black baseball, there it is.”
But for Holmes, living where he lives, one story was particularly top of mind for the 2023 season. While Alabama took our breath away in August when white boaters were filmed hitting a Black riverboat co-captain, one player was really going through it, on and off the field.
“On a personal level in Chicago, I’ve been dealing with the decline of Tim Anderson,” Holmes said of Anderson becoming a free agent after his $14 million club option was declined by the Chicago White Sox on Nov. 4. The shortstop was suspended for five games in August for fighting and experienced a scandal in June over an extramarital affair that produced a child. Anderson slashed .245/.286/.296 with one home run and 25 RBIs in 493 at-bats.
“And it’s sad. Him no longer being a White Sox is a death blow, man,” Holmes lamented. “He means so much to the White Sox and the South Side in particular. I pray that this guy from Tuscaloosa found a home on the South Side. He represented so much and seeing him struggle the way that he struggled over the last year, it’s hard, because I know that he wants it.”
Plenty of guys had quality years, however. Most importantly, this felt like a season where not everyone was a proverbial unicorn. While there are still myriad issues to be resolved in front office hiring and creating pipelines to management, on the field, the success was clear. Starting with the World Series champion Texas Rangers, and their shortstop Marcus Semien.
“There were I think three guys this year that I enjoyed watching for various reasons, but all stemming back to redemption stories,” Hinkson said. “There was Marcus Semien, who was unceremoniously cast afloat by the A’s a couple years ago when they floated him that contract, that weird contract with the installments or whatever, $1 million installments. He was like, no thank you. Goes to the Jays, has a monster year, great, but they don’t make the playoffs. Parlays that monster year into the monster contract with the Rangers and fast-forward to this year and he’s a World Series champion. Just a nice arc for someone who by all accounts is a nice guy and a great teammate.”
Devin Williams, a Team USA member and closer for the Milwaukee Brewers, had the year of his life. World Baseball Classic, All-Star, playoff participant and the winner of the 2023 National League Reliever of the Year award, his second in his career. Jason Heyward had another quality campaign as a veteran outfielder for the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Ke’Bryan Hayes — perhaps the most forgotten brother in baseball — third baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates, was rewarded for his play with a Gold Glove.
You might recall his father Charlie’s work from when he caught the final out of the 1996 World Series, also playing third base. A Black third basemen just being a regular thing? In this economy? Fantastic.
“I know his father Charlie very well, and the way he played defensively third base this year, he’s been awesome since he’s come up,” Hairston said of the 26-year-old Hayes. “But for him to win a Gold Glove at third base, to beat out Nolan Arenado, that’s in itself a huge statement and well-deserved. Ke’Bryan plays third base like an old-school third baseman: diving, making incredible plays, athletic. Mike Schmidt was a great athletic third baseman, George Brett as well, and then obviously this generation of [Matt] Chapman and Arenado. But Ke’Bryan’s just taken his game to the next level, and he’s been extremely fun to watch.
“He has everything you want in a third baseman, not just a great athlete, great range. He’s got tremendous hands, he makes the routine play, and he makes the difficult play look routine. I think third base would be awesome to see more Black players play that position because it is a demanding position [of] first-step quickness. So, hopefully kids see Ke’Bryan out there doing his thing at third base and say, ‘You know what? I want to be just like Hayes out there on third base because he is definitely special.’ “
The mere existence of Minority Baseball Prospects, the thriving network designed for amateur players to get more shine, speaks to the normalization of our advancement.
“Alex Wyche, who runs MBP, [is] another part of this that’s killing the game,” said Cheatham, who is currently in the Bahamas covering the Don’t Blink Home Run Derby. “They have figured it out. They’re doing great work, and they’re going to have a Boo Williams-type effect on Black players. And it’s already started. [Oakland Athletics outfielder] Lawrence Butler is a Wyche kid. [Tampa Bay Rays pitcher] Taj Bradley’s a Wyche kid. Well, that Atlanta region, [Atlanta Braves outfielder] Michael Harris, they’re all there. A Black city like Atlanta is a Black baseball hotbed now because there’s only a handful of pockets of them.
“Now I need to see more young Black pitchers. When Taj hit that first time, Taj came up and was balling out for those first three, five games. [Cincinnati Reds pitcher] Hunter [Greene] got paid this year. Taj hopefully will solidify himself in the rotation. [Chicago Cubs pitcher Marcus] Stroman is a free agent, so we’re going to figure out where he lands. It’s not must-see TV like Doc [Dwight Gooden] was in the ’80s, but it’s something. It’s something better than what we’ve seen.”
By the end of the season’s proceedings, a Black manager finally told the world about his latest opportunity. Along with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, Ron Washington is the only other one in MLB. Overdue? Certainly. Appreciated? Definitely. Worried? No.
“Well, I’ve been this type of leader all my career and all my life in the game of baseball. Right now, the buck stops with me. Whether the buck is big or whether the buck is small or whether the buck is indifferent, it stops with me,” Washington said Monday, rocking a button-down and sweater ensemble that appeared to be lifted directly from my father’s collection. “I’m ready for that. I’m not afraid of failure because I’m not a failure. My players aren’t going to be afraid of failure because they’re not failures. Failing is temporary.”
George Walker IV/AP Photo
On the first floor of the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Room B3, there are about 15 booths set up and spread out over the concrete floor at MLB’s Baseball Technology Expo. As part of the multitude of things that occur over this week of events, companies are selling their wares, hoping to make inroads with the baseball community.
What is baseball technology, you ask? In 2023, it’s more than pitchcoms and fancy fungo bats. The kiosks feature such items as motion capture programs with data visualization charts to help hitters log pitching data. Phrases such s “astute biomechanical analysis” and “dynamic vision excellence” appear on boards and if it weren’t for all the graphical representation, you might not even know any of these products related to baseball.
One such product is Pocket Radar. A tool that ostensibly looks sort of like a digital umpire’s counter, it tracks not just throwing speed but also has an app functionality that can sync with other programs to help compile data all the way down to the types of pitches thrown. According to its promotional video featuring Oakland A’s manager Mark Kotsay, it’s clearly a multipurpose tool. I learned all this from the one brotha in the room.
“Over there you see more video of high school and how those guys are being trained and developed. But it’s really to give you a snapshot of where you are. And it’s quick and easy. And you’ll see here too, you have the ability … we have slo-mo ability,” the salesman explained. “We have tracking ability, like if you’re tracking bullpens or even a game. You’re able to track location and pitch type along with the velocity, too, so it gives you context with that. And then with that, it can take that information and then when you make video clips, or if you’re recording video, once it exports those video clips, it will import that into or embed that in your video clips so that you can see where it was, too.”
But this isn’t just any salesman. His name is Ethan Faggett and he used to play ball. A touch reluctant to relive his playing days, once he started, he reminded himself that his particular path to this room is one that many have not taken.
He’s an app engineer who used to be a pro ballplayer. From Fort Worth, Texas, he ended up playing in the Red Sox system and bounced around the minors and independent ball for a decade. Not knowing what to do with his life, he went back to school to become an engineer.
That’s when he got a call from Ben Cherington, who is now the general manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Then, he was the director of player personnel for the Red Sox. When talking about the chance he was given, Faggett becomes emotional.
“There’s very few people that have been on the field, whether it be Major League or minor league, and there’s very few people that have been developers that understand it, that can contribute and create things for it,” Faggett noted. “You have a lot more of those in those individual columns, but those that come together and do both of those, I’m not saying it’s a unicorn, but it’s closer to a unicorn than those two silos that we talked about.”
So, now he’s trying to get his app in more places, particularly in the youth game. He’s been a part of the front offices of the Red Sox and the Rangers, but understands how much adaptability matters.
“When I first got involved, I said, ‘I’m in player development and I will do player development because that’s what I love.’ I love the game. I love being around. But being around it, being honest, I needed to look out for myself because I’m an engineer and I’m in player development,” Faggett said. “But that was a good decision because, in essence, I could do this anywhere because this is about the data. This is about the technology. This is not about a label. This is not about a name on a jersey. This is about your understanding, your information, your experience, your ability. So that’s why I wanted to do that, because it’s more important about being able to work for whoever you want to work for, but also being able to be a contributing factor on that team.”
In recalling how he ever made it from the field to the world of application engineering, the tears came quickly, even surprising himself.
“[Cherington] extended the olive branch to me to give me an opportunity,” Faggett said, wiping his eyes. “The thing is, you can impact people’s lives. You can do a lot. It’s not what you’re supposed to do, it’s what you choose to do, how you help people that need help.”
“We can keep on going as far as there’s opportunity in this game. There’s a hundred different avenues to be in the game, [and] do something you love to do.”
— Billy Owens, Oakland Athletics assistant general manager
Later that night, at the reception for MLB’s Advancing the Bases program, about 100 people listened to Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown give his opening remarks. The New Jersey native is explaining how he made it to his position in life, throwing in great anecdotes about his wife, who helped him maintain his work ethic and drive. Brown considers himself a direct result of then-commissioner Bud Selig’s plan to help diversify front offices. Omar Minaya, former general manager of the New York Mets and Montreal Expos, was his mentor.
“It’s about being yourself adding to what the organization is doing, following the chain of command and just trying to impact the organization the best way you know how,” Brown said to the group of professionals, who averaged about 25 years old in age. “I stand here before you, and anybody, they’ll tell you I’m definitely not the smartest one in the room, but I work hard. I have an ear to listen because I think you have to have a teachable spirit in this game, and you have to continue to grow. And if you do those things, before you know it, you’ll be in a leadership position.”
Recently, MLB has made an ostensible effort to diversify its product on more fronts by creating opportunities for minority professionals to bring their talents to the game.
According to the league, the Advancing the Bases initiative is designed “to provide a platform for diverse talent across the spectrum of baseball operations to receive continuing education and engagement with Club and League personnel through panels, breakout sessions, and professional development workshops. Building on the success of the Take the Field program, which serves women looking to build careers in baseball, Advancing Bases is meant to provide similar programming and opportunities to diverse individuals.”
Participants got to break bread and build with employees from all over the league. There was a panel after the opening remarks that featured Washington, as well as Cubs manager Craig Counsell, Cubs assistant general manager Jared Banner, and Cleveland Guardians assistant general manager James Harris.
One of the OG’s in the game, broke it down perfectly, regarding the purpose of this event.
“We’re getting more minorities, getting more women into baseball, a lot of times, entry-level, with the chance to work their way up,” A’s assistant general manager Billy Owens said. “But it’s a positive experience. It’s something that I’ve been a beneficiary of. I played eight years in the minors. I started off as an area scout, worked my way up to director of player personnel. Now I’m assistant GM, but it’s just that at 52 years old, [I’ve] been in baseball my whole life. But you’ve been able to create paths, have seen the diversity that’s expanded throughout the game, and the opportunities everywhere in a fun profession.
“Whether it’s scouting, it’s coaching, it’s video, it’s executive level, there’s probably a hundred jobs that … It’s almost like if you’re going to build a car, or an airplane, or run a TV production, that there’s a hundred steps behind the scenes, writing, technology, analytics. We can keep on going as far as there’s opportunity in this game, and to have that airplane, to have it built correctly, there’s a hundred different avenues to be in the game, [and] do something you love to do.”
Eric Espada/Getty Images
Along the way, there were quite a few high points during the campaign. For one, the All-Star Game proved to be quite the culture experience, between the city of Seattle and the events. The HBCU Swingman Classic was an incredible homecoming from the field to the broadcast booth.
When it comes down to the reality of excellence however, there is one player who stands above the rest for obvious reasons.
Coincidentally, Markus Lynn Betts is from Tennessee. He went to high school 15 miles from where the winter meetings were held. Despite a disappointing playoff performance that saw him go 0-for-everything and the Dodgers crash precipitously out of the playoffs following a 100-win season, Betts is undoubtedly the story of the Black baseball season.
From a team standpoint, he effectively saved the Dodgers’ season by moving to the infield when presumed starter Gavin Lux went down in spring training with a season-ending injury. It wasn’t entirely out of proverbial left (right) field, but to call it impressive sells the feat short.
“I thought without question it was his best season. I know he’s won MVPs, I understand there’s been World Series champion twice, but I think this was his best season,” Hairston said. “I just remember the play he made, the first play he got in Chicago, it looked like Ozzie Smith making that double play, you know what I’m saying? And then we asked him to play a lot of second base, and I know he came up as a second baseman, but if you go away from that position for a number of years, you would think there’ll be some rust, but not for Mookie. He made that transition flawlessly. He was a lead defender everywhere you put him. And then, oh, by the way, he was incredible as a leadoff hitter, 107 RBIs, setting the tone with the power as well, 39 homers.”
If it weren’t for truly one of the wildest offensive seasons we’ve ever seen in the game from Ronald Acuna Jr., more people would be marveling at Betts’ season. He’s truly embraced the role of being one of the most prominent faces in baseball, period.
“I feel like what Mookie has become is something significant in terms of both Major League Baseball in general, where you can make the case he’s the second-, third-best player in the game and been that for a better part of a decade now,” said Russ Dorsey, a national baseball insider for Bally Sports. “But also the idea that he is the only Black superstar in baseball … I think that’s something significant, because if you look at years past, the greatest players in the history of the game, a ton of them are Black. I feel like for Mookie, he might feel like he has to be the Black superstar and I don’t feel that’s the role he should have to play.”
Separately, the digital airwaves are flooded with podcasts and shows from a slew of stops around the sports world, some more necessary to our intellectual existence than others. Many of them make news just to keep the beast of the cycle of clicks moving with players making outrageous comments about their opponents.
Mookie’s podcast On Base is none of that. It’s just fun to watch him and his friends talk about life and baseball, with no more pretense to it than that. A particular highlight was when Betts broke down how he eats on the road. This man is playing on a $30 million a year deal, and he travels with a suitcase full of kitchen tools and gadgets to cook for himself when he’s not at home. Dude is locked in on a level few could understand in life, never mind baseball.
“I think he made it a huge effort, last couple of years, but more so this year, to be more of not just the face of the Dodgers, but face of baseball,” Hairston said as a reminder. “You saw him compete in the Home Run Derby. For him to do that, even though knowing he probably wouldn’t win, but he wanted his face to be there, making sure he represented us and had representation. You saw him at the All-Star Game interviewing Aaron Judge, him taking the mic, talking to All-Stars, and he had his own podcast as well. He’s really putting stuff out there because he knows that we need role models. We need to be faces of the game, and he wanted to do that.”
Sometimes it just takes a push from a loving home to do the world a whole heap of good.
“His wife said, ‘You’ve done everything in this game except for that. Go be in that. Go be a part of it,’ ” Holmes said. “And I thought it was this really cool thing for him to realize, ‘Yeah, I am one of those players. This is something that I’m probably not going to win, but I’m going to go out there and I’m going to be representative.’ And I think that’s one of the best things about Mookie, he gets it.”
Quite plainly, Mookie Betts is a household name.
For whatever reason, Black baseball has taken the sensible and desired step of simply growing as best it can, not just trying to capture the eyes of consumers. Not every brotha on every big league ball club is a hot shot with speed talking trash all over the place. A kid like starting pitcher Josiah Gray in Washington comes to mind. After coincidentally underperforming in the Dodgers system, he was an All-Star this season.
No longer do you have to squint to truly see the impact of African American players in the game. The SEC even hired the first Black coach in the conference’s history, Kerrick Jackson for Missouri. Once buried, now growing, it’s about more than just numbers and awards.
For the first time in my adult life, this many of our own faces around the game feels, well, normal. At the close of the winter meetings in 2023, the state of Black baseball is: skrong.
