| On a May 28, 2006 Barry Bonds succeeded in hitting | | | | MLB got involved and assumed its administration. MLB |
| his 715th home run to pass Babe Ruth's homerun | | | | then teamed with the Sporting Goods Manufacturing |
| record and now second to Hank Aaron's Major | | | | Association from 1993-1996 in providing grants to |
| League Baseball (MLB) all-time home run record of | | | | various cities demonstrating financial need. After five |
| 755, it is representative in a number of ways of the | | | | years, Young went national and by 1997 RBI |
| present state of MLB. Specifically, the state of the | | | | collaborated with various chapters of the Boys & Girls |
| game's future in the African-American community | | | | Clubs of America. However, MLB and its individual |
| comes to mind. And it might be an appropriate time to | | | | teams have only provided $15 million for RBI since |
| reexamine the decline of participation of the black | | | | 1991.The RBI program now includes both boys and girls |
| athlete in baseball, which is a far more multi-faceted | | | | and its objective is to also include nurturing children's |
| problem than commonly expressed.While there is a | | | | interest in school along with baseball as the main |
| dearth of interest among young boys and teenagers in | | | | component. It claims that it has helped more than |
| the black community participating in organized baseball, | | | | 150,000 children in more than 200 cities worldwide play |
| the reasons most often provided are shortsighted and | | | | baseball. And its Quick SMART! Program addresses |
| often too easy to come by. Without an honest | | | | the issues of alcohol, tobacco and other harmful drugs |
| discourse between the leaders of the black | | | | with city youth. Says Roberto Clemente, Jr., who |
| communities throughout the United States, as well as | | | | founded the RBI program in Pittsburgh, "RBI keeps kids |
| some candor coming from the offices of MLB, what | | | | out of trouble and off the streets, while at the same |
| seems an insurmountable problem to attract blacks to | | | | time teaching them to stay in school. The educational |
| baseball, will forever remain.And although it is simply | | | | components help them realize their potential and worth |
| too easy to blame any one entity for all of the fall-off | | | | in receiving college scholarships based not only on |
| of black players in baseball, the primary beneficiary, of | | | | athletics, but academics." But one can question the |
| ignoring players from the U.S. including white players, | | | | program's expansion worldwide before the job is done |
| remains MLB. And it must be held accountable, | | | | in the U.S."Campos Las Palmas has set the standard |
| regardless of myriad cultural reasons attributed to | | | | for what a baseball academy should be and we're |
| children's lack of interest in baseball, predominantly in | | | | extremely proud of the work done here, not only on |
| the inner city neighborhoods, for its lack of investment | | | | the field, but in the community as well." No, this is not |
| in them.On February 28, 2006, MLB opened its first | | | | another baseball academy planned for the U.S. but a |
| Urban Youth Academy in the U.S. At a cost of $3 | | | | quote from Frank McCourt, owner of the Los Angeles |
| million which took three years to complete, with the | | | | Dodgers, upon his visit to the Dodger's Dominican |
| idea shopped around for six, MLB Commissioner Bud | | | | Republic baseball complex, in celebrating its 20th year |
| Selig clucked, "This is the first of what I hope is a | | | | anniversary, earlier in 2006. And while no one can find |
| series of academies all over America." The facility is | | | | fault with the individual efforts of the RBI program nor |
| located at the campus of Compton Community | | | | with the idea of Urban Youth Academies in the U.S., it |
| College on 10 acres of land in Compton, CA, south of | | | | is necessary to contrast those programs with over the |
| Los Angeles. It includes two regulation size baseball | | | | $60 million dollars each year which MLB and its |
| diamonds, a youth field and one for girl's softball and a | | | | individual teams pour into Latin American countries for |
| 12,000 square foot clubhouse with locker room, weight | | | | player development.Most MLB teams have more than |
| room and other training facilities. It is expected to be a | | | | one such facility in Latin America with the most located |
| prototype for other U.S. facilities, through the Urban | | | | in the Dominican Republic, followed by Venezuela. |
| Youth Initiative, which will serve not only as a catalyst | | | | When Camp Las Palmas opened in the 1987 season, it |
| for reviving baseball but a place for inner-city youth to | | | | was the first facility of its kind and became the |
| enjoy each summer and after school.Starting in June | | | | universal prototype for all MLB teams in Latin America. |
| 2006, 125 children each day are expected to | | | | It sits on 75 acres of land, equipped with two full and |
| participate and to be given instruction by professional | | | | two half baseball fields, a dining room, kitchen, |
| level coaches on playing the game. The monetary | | | | recreation room and two two-story dormitories |
| investment however was not solely supplied by MLB. | | | | accommodating 100 players. In addition, it provides |
| $70,000.00 was collectively donated by Enos Cabell, Jr. | | | | lessons in adapting to American culture, classes in |
| and Tim Purpura, GM of the Houston Astros for | | | | English, and nutritional counseling.Players stay up to 30 |
| batting cages and $500,000.00 was donated by L.A.'s | | | | days at a time and can be signed at age 16 unlike |
| Anaheim Angels. Access to classrooms and | | | | players in the U.S. where players must at least |
| computers are being made available by Compton | | | | complete high school or be 18 years of age. If they are |
| Community College. Compton was picked primarily as | | | | enrolled in college, U.S. players must wait until the age |
| so many African-Americans from MLB's past arose | | | | of 21 to be signed. But then they go into the draft, |
| from Compton, but also because the college donated | | | | which clubs claim deters them from investing in any |
| a number of its facilities. It takes on average three | | | | development of U.S. players, as another club could end |
| years to build a Major League stadium. It is stunning | | | | up as the beneficiary of such efforts. Also, Latin |
| how long it took to put in four ball fields and a | | | | America does not face competition from the sports of |
| clubhouse with so little financial investment from MLB | | | | basketball and football as baseball does in the U.S., |
| and whose idea largely came to the Commissioner's | | | | therefore giving MLB many more prospects to choose |
| Office as a grass roots effort.In 1989, former Major | | | | from.It is crucial to understand that offshoring of Latin |
| League player, John Young, developed a program | | | | American baseball players is arguably directly |
| called RBI or Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities in South | | | | proportional to the loss of African Americans being |
| Central Los Angeles for children ages 12-18. In 1991, | | | | developed in MLB. |