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SPORTS Thursday 15 February 2018

Baseball tourney with HBCUs ‘foot in the door’ for players

By BRETT MARTEL play. among young black ath-
AP Sports Writer Last week, the tourna- letes, Burl said.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Hall ment formally known as “If you’re not seeing peo-
of Famer Andre Dawson the Urban Invitational was ple who look like you play-
sees elements of his own renamed the Andre Daw- ing, it’s not something that
story in the black college son Classic. This weekend, you’re going to gravitate
players converging in New it’ll feature six HBCUs: Ala- to,” Burl said.
Orleans this week for a bama State, Alcorn State, “It gives you that miscon-
tournament sponsored, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Gram- ception that it’s not for
promoted and broadcast bling State, Prairie View you.”
nationally by Major League A&M and Southern. The Similarly, Prairie View coach
Baseball. University of New Orleans, Auntwan Riggins said MLB’s
Before Dawson’s two-de- which is helping to host the ability to promote the tour-
cade career with the Mon- event with the New Orleans nament its youth acade-
treal Expos and Chicago MLB Youth Academy, also mies provides young black
Cubs, he was a walk-on at will play, along with Illinois- athletes role models and
Florida A&M. Chicago. examples of people who
Scouts who’d been watch- For now, the tournament’s parlayed youth baseball
ing Dawson “disappeared” legacy is embodied by for- into full or partial college
after his knee injury in high mer HBCU players such as scholarships.
school, he recalled, but Earl Burl, who played for “Baseball is a very, very
enrolling at a Historically Alcorn State and did some hard sport to market to
Black College or University of his training at the New kids of color because you
helped him keep playing. Orleans MLB Youth Acad- see a LeBron James, or see
“That’s what these pro- emy. He was a 30th-round football players on TV and
grams do,” Dawson said, draft choice by the Toronto shoe deals and commer-
adding that HBCUs like his Blue Jays in 2015. He spent cials,” Riggins said, noting
alma mater “were the ones two years in Toronto’s minor that football was his favor-
that really extended me league system, followed by ite sport growing up. But
that opportunity.” a short stint in an indepen- Riggins played baseball,
There’s one considerable dent league. Now, he’s in- too, and found out he was
difference between now volved in a MLB fellowship rather good at it.
and the early 1970s, how- program training him for a He play baseball for Texas
ever. potential front-office ca- Southern, was drafted by This Jan. 7, 2010, file photo shows Andre Dawson during a news
The talent pool from which reer. Toronto and later wound conference in New York. Associated Press
black college programs Burl asserts that the tourna- up within San Diego’s minor
primarily recruit has shrunk ment changed his life. league system, making it as “It would be great to see will succeed as long as it
as football and basketball “If you have a great game, far as Triple-A with the Port- more of these kids reach inspires greater participa-
have grown in popularity, it’s going to be seen by land Beavers. the majors, but it is just as tion by young blacks in
particularly in urban areas. somebody,” Burl said. Riggins said he also sees an gratifying to help them get MLB academies or youth
As part of an effort the ad- “A lot of scouts now-a-days additional opportunity for an education,” Reagins leagues around the coun-
dress that, MLB has spon- do a lot of video analyzing. baseball to make inroads said. try.
sored a now decade-old So being put on the radar with children of parents “There’s no doubt that we Performing in baseball re-
tournament designed to that way is a good corner- who are concerned about have seen the decline in quires refining skills over
highlight HBCU baseball stone” for building a repu- concussion data surround- participation of black play- time, which is why it can be
programs, hoping to lure tation with scouts. ing football. ers at the collegiate level, hard to take up cold in high
young black athletes back “It hasn’t produced a ma- “The percentage (of blacks but I think our sport is doing school with much success.
to the sport of Jackie Rob- jor league baseball player, playing baseball) will go a better job of getting more “As blacks, we’ve got to be
inson, Willie Mays and Hank but my thing is, someone’s up,” Riggins predicted. “I talented players recruited embraced again — and it
Aaron. always keeping their foot don’t think it’ll go up as fast and signed to (HBCU) pro- starts from early on,” Daw-
The tournament has yet in the door,” Burl added. as we want, but in due time grams. son said.
to feature a single player “So I feel like the more you it’ll go up.” “Where this exposure takes “You’ve got to start at an
who wound up in the big have this, the further you’ll Tony Reagins, MLB’s senior the individual players is up early age and be encour-
leagues, but MLB shows no have people going in the vice president of youth to them, but we are proud aged. ... You don’t want
signs of reducing its invest- game.” programs and the Angels’ to make the investment in to put yourself in a poten-
ment in the event — or in Meanwhile, MLB’s efforts former general manager, creating opportunities like tially embarrassing situation
the urban youth acad- to raise the profile of the contends that the Andre this.” where you’re set up to fail.
emies around the country tournament on MLB Net- Dawson Classic doesn’t For Dawson, who played in It’s not going to be fun,
that are meant to provide work and online attempts necessarily have to pro- a youth league organized and if you’re not enjoying
inner-city youth with year- to address some of base- duce big leaguers to help by his uncle, the college it, you’re not going to want
round places to train and ball’s perception problems the game. tournament named for him to do it.”q