Why Is The Number Of African Americans In Today's Baseball Decreasing?

So the movie 42: The Jackie Robinson Story came out this weekend and the the question may come up why is the number of African Americans in today's baseball decreasing? In 1970's, 27 percent of players in the Major League Baseball were African American now that number as drop to 8.5 percent. So why the decrease you ask well there some reasons why and here they are.

One reason is a big time athlete in basketball or football, which most African Americans are playing, then they aren't just playing the regular season. They are being inviting to all these camps sponsored by these big time shoe companies like Nike and Adidas looking for the next big star in basketball and football. When are these camps held mostly during summer baseball season and course the athletes are going to go because everyone is watching college and pro scouts, coaches, and the shoe companies.

Another reason is the AAU, American Athletic Union, because with the AAU especially with basketball players play year round starting at an early age so they develop the interest in baseball. Granted the AAU does have baseball leagues but lets be honest there's not many young Africans American that are seriously interested in baseball as their sports of choice.

With that being said young African American just aren't interested baseball like they are in football and basketball. With football and especially basketball you may have a faster track to success than baseball and baseball doesn't really have an African American superstar that can be on the same level as LeBron or RGII.  When get draft into the NBA or the NFL you go straight to that league unlike baseball you have to work your way up through the farm system.

Bud Selig, the commissioner of MLB, and Major League Baseball has tried to introduce baseball into urban areas, creating the RBI program (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) in 1989. Be honestly its not baseball's fault for the decrease of African Americans in baseball its just everything else around baseball. But Bud Selig seems determine to bring the number of African Americans up in the baseball and with the growing concern with concussions and head injures in football maybe more African American parents will push their kids towards baseball more only time will tell.