Major League Baseball’s Changing Identity

Tuesday marked 67 years since Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier, and for the first time in the 50 years since commissioner Bud Selig retired Robinson’s number, there are no players in the major leagues wearing the No. 42 except on that day.  While athletes on the field donned the iconic number on their jerseys from Los Angeles to Miami, inside New York City’s Manhattan Center, thousands of fans, employees, and future business partners of Major League Baseball were on hand to celebrate at MLB’s 3^rd annual Diversity Summit.  

Major League Baseball has had a troubling past, one that hasn’t taken kindly to accepting and embracing the changing of American demographics, despite the label of America’s favorite pastime.  Racial diversity has long been a struggle, with team rosters severely lacking minority players taking to the field and entering many off the field discussions. However, few are privy to what goes on behind closed doors in the management of baseball and the diversity, or lack of, among employees that run the front offices.  Rev. Jesse Jackson traveled to baseball's 1992 winter meetings to criticize its lack of minorities in management, and push for change.  Yesterday he was on hand to commend the commissioner for strides the sport has taken in minority opportunities over the past twenty years.  In 1998, Selig created the Diverse Business Partners program and by 1999, started requiring clubs to consider at least one minority for each manager and major executive opening.  Today, just three years since its conception, the MLB Diversity Summit welcomes in women and ethnic minority groups that have for so long faced barriers to a career in, or working alongside MLB.  Participants are able to gain first hand knowledge of baseball operations, speak face to face with human resource and procurement representatives from all 30 teams, and have a voice in the business of the sport. 

As a female with a passion for sports, who has worked for major sports networks on baseball production and often found myself the only woman in the mix, MLB’s commitment to providing a forum for under represented groups to find career growth and meet top-level mentors is both empowering and captivating.  In just 48 hours I was able to speak with 15 ball clubs about the growth of digital marketing and social media, converse on the need for more women who understand the game working in the front offices, and connect with minority-owned companies that offer an assortment of goods and services to the sport I had never even considered.

Major League Baseball has evaluated its weaknesses in hiring, it’s deficiencies in employment, it’s lack of diverse minds, skillsets, and backgrounds in management and it has made a commitment to its fans that the diversity of those that attend its games will be reflected in those that put on its games.  While I at times questioned the large number of young, white men who chose to attend a diversity summit looking for work, and yearned to see still more women in attendance than appeared at the event, I know I was witnessing a transformation.  This yearly summit is not only an honorable dedication to a man who, despite the harsh criticism and seemingly insurmountable hurdles, brought a necessary change to the game, but also a chance for the future of baseball to host equal opportunities for all. 

"Baseball must continue to be more than just a game on the field," Selig said at the summit. "The game's remarkable ability to serve as a common bond should be used to create opportunities for all people regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender."  I hope the next commissioner continues moving forward along the path Selig has paved and recognizes the importance of a MLB brand that is truly indicative of the melting pot of America.   


A commitment must be made to every fan that baseball will never forget the man whose legacy changed the face of not only the sport, but also the country, and continue its progress to equip every person with the same opportunity to live out his or her baseball dream.