Quote:
Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS
That may hold some truth because all athletes have to be able to be controlled. Given the race ratio in MLB, you would have to understand what stake the athletes have in conforming to the demands and see of those different stakes are what make the race ratio what it is.
There are more Latinos in MLB and some of them are of the African Diaspora.
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This is fairly obviously true on at least some level (the level of coaching or willingness to be coached, first of all) - however, I think it's demonstrably false to say that there are 'better' black athletes 'sitting at home' while lower-caliber latinos take their spots.
I say this is demonstrable because baseball, partly due to its roster sizes and extensive minor league system, has long shown willingness to take on any player problems as long as production attends. In fact, Sheffield himself might be one of the best indicators of this phenomenon - in that way, MLB is much closer to football than other sports (see: TO).
We can name any number of similar scenarios, ranging from Julio Lugo's exile from Houston to Elijah Duke's voice mail proclivities - no matter how uncoachable or clubhouse-cancerous you're considered, someone will take a chance.
I love Sheff (now that he's off the NYY), but I think he's grasping here, looking for a simple explanation to a complex cultural phenomenon (ie what motivates people to play/improve in different parts of the world?).