MLB All-Star Game: Tim Anderson Talks Baseball Culture, Inspiring Next Generation Of MLBbros

When you talk about the Chicago White Sox, it’s hard not to mention Tim Anderson. Anderson is a player who has impacted the game in a positive way and his passion for the game is legendary.

He has developed into one of the top MLB players and has brought a much-needed excitement and attitude to baseball.

 

This season Anderson was selected to his second consecutive All-Star Game and was named a starter for the first time.

The Alabama native has had a lot of success during his career and will continue to make magnificent things happen on the diamond.

For the younger generation, to see someone like Anderson having the success he’s had, that is motivation.

In the 2022 Major League Draft, three Black players were selected within the first five picks, a huge accomplishment. Anderson went on to speak about what that meant for the game during media day at the All-Star Game.

“It’s (baseball) growing, getting a lot of African Americans and culture in the game is definitely cool to see and definitely dope for sure,” he said.

And Anderson loves being a player and person, the younger kids can look up to.

“I just try to go out there and be that example and most importantly go out there and just be myself and be authentic, and it’s been a dream come true.”

 

This has definitely been an exciting time for Blacks in baseball. Eight Black players were selected to the All-Star Game and for the second time since 1996, three Black players will be starting in the outfield for the American League.

Just The Beginning 

But, there is still work to be done for Blacks in baseball. According to an article by Newsweek published in May of this year, Major Leage Baseball currently has the lowest percentage of Black players in three decades.

The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES) at the University of Central Florida released a report stating that Black players represented only 7.2 percent of all MLB players at the start of the current season.

That percentage is a slight decline from the 2021 season where it was at 7.6 percent.

This is why organizations like The Players Alliance and The Chicago White Sox ACE Program are essential to Black communities.

 

Anderson talked about how much of an impact the ACE Program has on the city of Chicago.

“It’s real important that programs like this are available to the kids because baseball can get real expensive and it’s just good to see the kids having fun and hopefully they can continue to go on to have success playing this sport,” he said.

A lot still needs to be done to see that percentage increase among Black players playing in the league.

But the good thing is that there are steps being taken to make this possible and with programs like the one Anderson talked about, more and more Blacks will be introduced to the game at a young age.

And with players in the league currently like Anderson continuing to have success at a high level, this will attract more and more young players and we’ll start to see more Blacks drafted and go on to have success in this league.