Former MLB pitcher Marvin Freeman toted the mound for 10 MLB seasons (1986-1996) in various capacities and threw for almost 600 innings.
He works closely with the youth as an important pitching guru for MLB’s Diversity and Development programs, lending his expertise to the next generation of Black and brown pitchers.
The Players Alliance continues to impact inner-city communities in numerous ways. This month, the organization kicked off Jackie Robinson weekend with the launch of their six-city Coaches Intensive.
This Coaches Intensive features MLBbro greats Marquis Grissom, Lou Collier, Lenny Webster, and Marvin Freeman.
These former MLB players are providing local coaches with a great opportunity to absorb information they’ve learned from their playing days and develop their skills and knowledge as coaches.
NEXT Weekend! April 27-28 @FSCJBaseball from 11am-2pm (Sat & Sun), we are partnering with @PlayersAlliance for a 2-day Coaches Intensive for Jax area coaches to learn from Marquis Grissom, Marvin Freeman, Lou Collier, and Lenny Webster!
Register here: https://t.co/M8h2y6ngMo pic.twitter.com/XPrhZvo6DW
— WalkOffCharities (@WalkOffJax) April 18, 2024
An opportunity like this certainly doesn’t come every day and the fact that the Players’ Alliance is doing this, just shows how much they care about growing the game of baseball in Black communities.
The six-city tour started in Detroit during the weekend of April 19-21 and made a stop in Baltimore this past weekend.
They’ll also visit Jacksonville, Chicago, New Orleans, and Memphis.
Let’s take a look at the careers these former MLBbro’s had when they were playing in the big leagues.
Grissom played in the majors for 17 seasons and accomplished a lot during his tenure. He finished his career with a .272 batting average with 2,251 hits, 227 home runs, 967 RBI, and 429 stolen bases.
Happy 57th birthday to Marquis Grissom, who called game with this walk-off inside-the-park homer in 1994. 🎉 pic.twitter.com/WotEI44TjF
— MLB Vault (@MLBVault) April 17, 2024
The former outfielder is a two-time all-star selection, a four-time Gold Glove winner, and a two-time National League stolen base leader.
Grissom also won a World Series title in 1995 with the Atlanta Braves and was named the 1997 ALCS MVP with the Cleveland Indians. The numbers and awards speak for themselves–Grissom was a flat-out baller and was a player you wanted to have on your team.
Collier appeared in 315 major league games from 1997 to 2004. During that span, he played for five different teams.
During his career, he was considered a utility player and could play multiple positions. He hit .248 with eight home runs and 78 RBI. Collier also spent time playing in the Korean Baseball Organization League from 2005 to 2006, where he hit 22 home runs and had 86 RBI.
What should you know about turning two at shortstop?
Lou Collier weighs in. #EDIbaseball pic.twitter.com/OXrQf7g33v
— MLBDevelops (@MLBDevelops) July 26, 2018
Collier’s son, Cam, is currently playing in the Cincinnati Reds organization and is playing for the High-A affiliate Dayton Dragons.
After three seasons at Grambling State University, Lenny Webster would go on to have a successful 12-year MLB career!
📺 HBCU Swingman Classic presented by @TMobile – July 7th on MLB Network pic.twitter.com/Whfbzvlzya
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) June 27, 2023
Webster was a catcher and played in the league from 1989 to 2000. You don’t see many Black catchers at the Major League level, but Webster was one of the most talented in the game during his playing days. He began his career with the Minnesota Twins and played with four other teams before ending his career with the Montreal Expos.
Webster has a .254 career batting average with 33 home runs and 176 RBI.
Freeman pitched in the big leagues from 1986 to 1996 for four different teams. Listed at 6-foot-7, Freeman was a dominating presence on the mound.
He finished his career with a 35-28 record with a 4.64 ERA.
His best season came in 1994 with the Colorado Rockies. Freeman finished that season with a 10-2 record with a 2.80 ERA. That season he finished fourth in the Cy Young Award voting.
These former players have a lot of experience and it’s great to see them giving back to the community.
The Players Alliance Rep & Former MLBbro All-Star Adam Jones At 2022 MLB All-Star Game
The mission of the Players Alliance is to “Address baseball’s systemic barriers to equity and inclusion by creating pathways to opportunities on and off the field for an undeniable pipeline of black talent.”
By doing clinics and events like this, the Players Alliance is successfully achieving its mission and is a key contributor to helping baseball become more accessible in Black communities.
MLBbro.com is always on the watch for the next Aaron Judge, Mookie Betts or Marcus Stroman to wow us with their superstar abilities.
And the next chance to peek into the future is during the All-Star festivities in Seattle at the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game on July 8th.
The All-Star Futures Game, which started in 2019 to replace the U.S. vs. The World game, will feature the top minor league players in a National League vs. American League format.
The respective rosters went public earlier this week and were announced on various Major League Baseball media platforms such as MLB Network Radio and MLB TV.
MLBbro and Seattle Mariners Icon, Harold Reynolds who will manage the American League Futures team, discussed the upcoming game on MLB TV.
Here at MLBbro.com, we’ll be keeping a close eye on two pitchers who will be part of the festivities.
J.P. Massey will be representing the Pittsburgh Pirates while Tink Hence puts his talents on display wearing the St. Louis Cardinals colors.
J.P. Massey:
Seven of the players playing in the game have participated in MLB and USA Baseball development programs. MLBbro pitcher J.P. Massey played in the Breakthrough and the DREAM series.
J.P. Massey has been named the FSL Pitcher of the Month! Massey went 1-0 with a 0.72 ERA in 5 starts as he began the month with a 17.0 innings scoreless streak. Massey did not allow more than 1 run in a start in May and had three starts with two or fewer hits allowed. Congrats! pic.twitter.com/ygBdAKRFtl
— Bradenton Marauders (@The_Marauders) June 5, 2023
Massey dominated the month allowing only two earned runs in 25 innings (0.72 ERA) while tallying 29 strikeouts for Single-A Bradenton. If you stretch his production out over the last two months, J.P. has become one of his team’s best starters with a 2.84 ERA over 44.1 innings with 52 strikeouts.
Working with former MLBbro pitcher, Marvin Freeman, Massey has changed the mechanics in his leg kick while working on five featured pitches… a four seamer, a two seamer, a curveball and a changeup. It’s a mentorship that J.P. is very excited about, he told MLB.com.
“We’re still trying to figure out the ideal repertoire and usage rate each and every outing, but [five pitches] allows me to have something that I can use against hitters,” he said. “ If I see them trying to lean towards one pitch, I can throw something that goes in the other direction. It gives me a lot of versatility while I’m on the mound.”
Couple that with wisdom from current MLBbro players Hunter Greene of the Cincinnati Reds and Triston McKenzie of the Cleveland Guardians and J.P. Massey should use the Futures game as a launching pad.
This MLBbro is considered one of the biggest prospects for the St. Louis Cardinals… period.
At #63 in the 2020 Draft, Tink Hence is the highest selection out of the state of Arkansas since 2005.
Despite getting the “Byron Buxton” treatment in 2021 and being limited to eight appearances in the Florida Complex League and a pitch limit with Single A Palm Beach, Tink emerged as a superstar when he finally got his chance on the mound.
This season, the MLBbro is 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA and a 46-to-12 strikeout to walk ratio in 11 starts as of Friday (June 30) for the High-A Peoria Chiefs.
Like Massey, Hence has a cache of pitches to showcase in this event. He has a mid-90s fastball, a vicious curve, a changeup and a slider that gives batters three off-speed pitches to figure out in less than two seconds.
Hopefully the Futures game will allow the Cardinals to give this guy more time on the mound to perfect his craft. Right now, that’s the only thing holding him back. MLB.com believes that this guy can be an ace pitcher in the majors based on their review…
“The stuff needs to hold up into the fifth and the sixth innings — and over 100-plus frames overall — before Hence could be considered a potential ace, but the individual pieces are there.”
Check out these two MLBbros in training in the Futures Game on Saturday, July 8th at 7pm EST.
Mark Gray goes Black in the Day with former MLB pitcher Marvin Freeman who is also very active in MLB’s diversity and youth development programs.
Freeman pitched in 221 MLB games and for four teams (Braves, Phillies, Rockies, White Sox) over a 10-year career.
Black starting pitchers are rare in baseball. Marv had 78 career starts, which has led to a wealth of major league knowledge.
Marv played with the Braves in the 90s when they had the Soul Patrol, Back when a Black face on the field and in the dugout and int he stands in the ATL was common.
The Hank Aaron Invitational is a two-week baseball extravaganza camp held from July 17- 30 at Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Florida. It’s operated by MLB, the MLBPA and USA Baseball. Approximately 250 Black and brown players (ages 13-18) from across the United States receive elite-level training from former Major League players and coaches.
Instructors include former Major League manager Jerry Manuel and former All-Stars such as Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr., his dad Ken Griffey Sr, Hall of Famer Dave Winfield, Tom “Flash” Gordon, Marquis Grissom, Reggie Smith, Luis Alicea, Willie Banks, Lou Collier, Eric Davis, Marvin Freeman, Charles Johnson, Pat Mahomes Sr, among others.
Bo Porter, a former MLB player, manager, coach, executive, and Washington Nationals announcer is also one of the instructors. Porter currently serves as MLB’s Director of Coaching Development.
In the spirit of the Hank Aaron Invitational and its commitment to leveling out the playing field for minority athletes, Porter has an academy that opened out of Texas in 2021 called Bo Porter’s Future All-Stars Sports Development Academy. Former Olympic gold medalist and 15-year minor league pro, John Cotton, is Director of Baseball Operations for the academy.
The goal of the facility is to inspire student-athletes and future MLBbros to achieve whole-person development, educating and advising parents, and empowering educators and coaches to become transformational leaders.
Da Gambler caught up with these baseball lifers as they evaluated talent at the Hank Aaron Invitational this past week.
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