The Grandstand is a Grand Waste

In 2004, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig had an idea. He wanted to honor the first black man to play in on a Major League team. And so on April 15th, which was opening day in 1947 when Robinson made his debut, MLB held the very first Jackie Robinson Day. 

In 2007, the beloved Ken Griffey, Jr. called Selig to ask if, for just one day, he could wear the number 42 on his jersey. Selig thought it was such a good idea he encouraged every team to have at least one player wear the number 42 on April 15th every year. In 2009 it became standard practice for every uniformed person to wear the number 42, including the umpires. Today, which is Jackie Robinson Day due to COVID postponing the season, you will see this practice is still done.

Except this year, it’s different. 

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I want to step back for a moment from this little history lesson, to which I owe a great deal of debt to Wikipedia, and talk about justice. People who study systemic injustices and societal inequalities, who document responses to these injustices and inequalities, talk about justice in two different categories – performative and transformative.

Performative justice, known colloquially as “slacktivism,” puts on a “show” that is intended to demonstrate care for those whom the injustice or inequality is harming. Entire teams donning the number 42, while doing little else to address the racial inequalities found in MLB (which are becoming more and more well-documented) might be considered performative justice. It creates an appearance of caring – a savvy marketing opportunity – but when the game is over the jerseys are washed and stored in their boxes for the next year, and nothing changes. 

But transformative justice goes one step further, saying that the real work of addressing injustice and inequality is followed with actions that seek to break down the barriers inhibiting equality for all people. 

The events of the last two nights – in which MLB teams (in addition to the WNBA, NBA, MLS, USTA, and NHL) boycotted playing in their scheduled games – seem to me to be a pivotal moment in the history of the league.

First, it is a pivotal moment because players are realizing that they do not merely exist to entertain the public. For so long players have been, in essence, pawns in the industrial athletic complex. Billionaire owners get richer off the product created by the players. Any dissent, especially dissent connected to “political events,” has been met with public scrutiny at best and at worst being overlooked for future job opportunities.

Second, there is an awakening among white players recognizing that things are not as they should be, and instead of just continuing to embrace performative measures to address what they see, are handing over leadership to black players in unprecedented ways.  

So much could be written about this current moment in MLB – black players like Mookie Betts, Lorenzo Cain, Tim Anderson, Dee Gordon, and Marcus Stroman using their voices to call for change; and white players like Clayton Kershaw, Jack Flaherty, Sean Doolittle, and Josh Hader admitting their complicity in unjust systems and stepping back to allow black players to take the lead – and I would encourage to check out some of the articles written on Baseball Prospectus and the Athletic in the past few days.

So, yes – today is officially Jackie Robinson Day in Major League Baseball. But today is so much more than a commemoration of what Jackie did in 1947 and in subsequent years as a player and leader in MLB and in our country.

Today is, I hope, a marker of an awakening among this game we love, these players we follow, these teams for which we root. An awakening that relinquishes the hold inequitable systems have on not just the game but upon society at large. An awakening that finds all players linking arms together, empowering the overlooked voices, embracing the opportunity they have as cultural influencers to create transformation. Because the performance is no longer acceptable, and is finally being exposed for what it is – an empty, whitewashed tomb.

And in the immortal words of Jackie Robinson, “”Life is not a spectator sport. If you’re going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you’re wasting your life.”

The grandstand is a grand waste, and it is time for change. Lead the way, players, lead the way. Do it for Jackie, for all the owners of the Negro League teams who lost their businesses when integration fully happened in MLB, for all the players who have not been given fair, equitable opportunities because of the color of their skin, for an entire country who needs to see that there is a way forward, but it requires one to get out of the seat, off of the field, standing side by side, arms linked together in solidarity – marching together towards a better future. 

EFL
TEAM	WINS	LOSSES	PCT.	GB	RS	RA
Kaline Drive	19	13	.607	—	158.9	127.5
Haviland Dragons	18	14	.575	1	181.1	155.6
D.C. Balk	15	15	.495	3.6	149.4	150.5
Bellingham Cascades	16	16	.487	3.8	163.5	180.3
Flint Hill Tornadoes	15	17	.454	4.9	167.6	189.4
Canberra Kangaroos	13	17	.448	5	157.1	174.0
Cottage Cheese	13	17	.432	5.5	141.0	162.6
Pittsburgh Alleghenys	13	19	.406	6.4	150.2	179.6
Peshastin Pears	13	20	.407	6.5	146.4	176.8
Portland Rosebuds	12	21	.361	8	173.2	230.3
Old Detroit Wolverines	8	24	.263	11	122.7	203.5

Kaline: W(-1), L1 3-8 (36 PA; 5.7IP)

AVG: 0.375

OBP: 0.444

SLG: 0.750

OPS: 1.194

ERA: 12.63

WHIP: 2.105

The Drive have stalled! Call AAA (the motor company, not the minor league affiliate, though that might also help). The Dragons are perched just one game behind the Drive, and things are getting hot (that’s because of the Dragons fire-breathing ways). Kaline led the EFL in PAs with 36 – the majority of teams had fewer than 10 – and they were good PAs, led by Jesse Winker’s monster day (5 for 7 with 1 2B and 2 HRs).

Haviland: W(-1), L1 (-4)-0 (15PA; no pitching)

AVG: 0.083

OBP: 0.200

SLG: 0.083

OPS: 0.283

Haviland did nothing and still managed to gain on the Drive, something that has to feel somewhat good. Their hitting was atrocious. I can’t sugarcoat it. Thankfully it was only over 12 PAs. 

DC: DNP, 0-0 (14PA; no pitching)

AVG: 0.250

OBP: 0.357

SLG: 0.500

OPS: 0.857

The Balk were able to gain .7 games on the Drive while doing nothing – how wonderful for them! Shed Long (I’ve always wondered why someone named Shed Long isn’t on the Dragons…) had a great day, going 2 for 6 with a HR and a SB. 

Bellingham: W(-1), L1 2-(-2) (25IP; 1.7IP)

AVG: 0.211

OBP: 0.400

SLG: 0.368

OPS: 0.768

ERA: 0.00

WHIP: 1.765

The Cascades gained .9 games on the Drive, making a strong move even though they lost a win and gained a loss. Brad Miller hit a 3B and had a BB. And now the Cascades are swinging deals to fortify their team down the stretch. Look out, everyone above! Nothing rises higher than a Cascade. 

Flint Hill: W1, L(-1) (-1)-(-4) (7PA; 6.7IP)

AVG: 0.143

OBP: 0.143

SLG: 0.143

OPS: 0.286

ERA: 4.03

WHIP: 1.194

The Tornadoes spun their way .7 games closer to the Drive on the pitching that looks amazing compared to what they have been getting lately. Don’t look at the hitting though. Not as atrocious as the Dragons, but pretty darn close. 

Canberra: DNP, 1-(-1) (8PA; 1IP)

AVG: 0.500

OBP: 0.625

SLG: 0.500

OPS: 1.125

ERA: 0.00

WHIP: 0.000

The Kangaroos (feels good to use their whole name, sometimes) gained .8 games on the Drive, a few days after claiming their team was done for the year. Might the players have something else in mind? Austin Nola does, that’s for sure. He was the only batter, so all those gaudy stats are his – 2 for 4 with 3 BBs. 

Cottage: DNP, 0-0 (15PA; .3IP)

AVG: 0.385

OBP: 0.467

SLG: 0.385

OPS: 0.851

ERA: 0.00

WHIP: 6.667

The Cheese gained .6 games on the Drive, which has to feel good after yesterday’s dropping of the Cheese plate. The hitters were sparse but good, led by a Mariner (Crawford who went 3 for 7 with a SB) and a Mariners’ brother (Corey Seager who went 2 for 6 with a BB.

Pittsburgh: DNP (-1)-(-2) (22PA; 9.4IP)

AVG: 0.211

OBP: 0.318

SLG: 0.211

OPS: 0.529

ERA: 4.79

WHIP: 1.277

The Alleghenys also climbed closer to the top, even though the top is still a long ways away. Their goodness came on the mound, where Sonny Gray went 5 innings and gave up 0 runs. I heard a stat yesterday about Gray – he has gone 40 starts in a row without giving up more than 6 total hits. Amazing!

Peshastin: W0, L2 9-16 (7PA; 1IP)

AVG: 0.500

OBP: 0.571

SLG: 0.500

OPS: 1.071

ERA: 18.00

WHIP: 4.000

The Pears are the lone team who did not gain even a fraction of a game on the Drive yesterday – but they also were the only team not lose even a fraction of a game off the lead. That’s what you call a Pear being a Par, or so I’ve heard. Tommy Edman as the only hitter, so all of those fancy numbers are his. Impressive!

Portland: W1, L1 11-16 (7PA; 1IP)

AVG: 0.500

OBP: 0.571

SLG: 0.500

OPS: 1.071

ERA: 18.00

WHIP: 4.000

The Rosebuds only gained .2 games on the Drive. The also only had one hitter on the day, which is not a great double header strategy. However, Jake Cronenworth did his best, going 4 for 7 on the day. 

Old Detroit: W(-1), L1 (-1)-1 (30PA; no pitching)

AVG: 0.160

OBP: 0.300

SLG: 0.200

OPS: 0.500

The short 11.5 games out of first became a much more even 11 games out of first place, but their record went in the opposite direction, so it’s hard to say what Wolverine management is feeling today. Maybe we’ll find out later?