By Brendan O’Connell
Jackie Robinson is among baseball’s most famous pioneers. (Courtesy of Wikimedia).
On Friday, every player across Major League Baseball sported the number 42 on the back of their uniform, a tradition the MLB has practiced for years as a way of honoring and celebrating Jackie Robinson and the demolition of the color barrier.
Some seven decades ago, Robinson became the first African-American player in the MLB, despite the fact that there were other professional leagues that allowed black ballplayers during the time. Not only was Robinson a great player, but he was also an icon and a legend for his demeanor on and off the field and for acting as a pioneer for equality.
Nowadays, it is common to wonder which barrier is next to fall in the MLB. The racial barrier is down and has been for quite some time. Players from America, Asia, South America, the Caribbean and elsewhere, regardless of their skin color, have been a part of the MLB for a long time now.
Similarly, players of all different religious backgrounds have seen action at the professional level, and many have been candid and unguarded in showcasing their beliefs on the field in their apparel and routines. Despite the fact that there have not been any openly homosexual players in the majors as of yet, it is completely feasible and even probable that there have been one or more in the century-plus that baseball has been the national pastime.
Of the remaining barriers that are present in the MLB, perhaps the most glaring and important is that of gender. This is not solely a baseball issue, of course. Of the four major American sports – baseball, basketball, football, and hockey – no league has had a very progressive approach in implementing women into their game. Excluding owners and lower-level employees, such as trainers and equipment and coaching assistants, let’s examine what women have done in the major professional leagues.
The National Hockey League has not had a woman at the coach, player or official position at any time, but there is a National Women’s Hockey League that formed in 2015 and just finished its inaugural season.
The National Football League has had very little female influence, as no player or coach position has ever been held by a woman. However, Shannon Eastin and Sarah Thomas have each served as officials in NFL games.
The most progressive league of the four, the National Basketball Association, has had several female officials, including 1997 pioneers Violet Palmer and Dee Kantner, and the San Antonio Spurs hired the first female assistant coach in history in 2014 (Becky Hammon). There have not been any female NBA players, but there is a professional women’s league – the WNBA – that has existed for nearly twenty years.
So what about the MLB?
It is interesting to note that baseball is a bit different from other sports in that there is a complementary sport designed especially for females – softball. Football does not really have a corresponding sport, but hockey and basketball both have separate leagues for women at the youth, college and professional levels.
Because baseball and softball separate boys and girls at quite an early age, it adds an extra obstacle for females in their efforts to play with the men later on. However, the sports are extremely similar, so coaching or umpiring would not be out of the question necessarily.
Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle, with regards to last Friday’s festivities, said, “This isn’t just an African-American celebration. This is about the opening of doors for everybody…I still believe firmly there is going to be a day where there is a female player in the big leagues…Where it goes, I don’t know. I don’t believe I’ll be in the dugout to see it.”
Maybe Hurdle will be retired from coaching by the time a female actually plays in the MLB, but how long will it be before a female takes up the role of umpire or assistant coach? Perhaps not too long if professional sports continue to embrace progress and equality.
If she’s qualified, why not let a woman play, coach or officiate in the MLB? It’s time to for another Jackie Robinson, this time representing an entirely new cohort of potential players.
