Column: The MLB Disrespected Jackie Robinson’s Legacy in an Act of Cowardice

Back in 2018, FOX News host Laura Ingraham coined the phrase “shut up and dribble” amidst a back-and-forth with NBA All-Star Lebron James, igniting a long debate about the presence of politics in sports.

This also occurred when former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick found himself at the center of attention after kneeling during the national anthem, igniting a political feud and generating activist advertising campaigns.

Racial tension in sports has long been a historical issue, but personally it feels its been greatly escalated — especially in today’s hyper-political landscape and emboldened with the presence of social media.

No matter how much it’s argued or protested, American sports have and always will be tied to activist efforts of trailblazers and the recognition of equality both in gender and race, which makes recent news all the more concerning.

The U.S. Department of Defense, according to multiple sources, recently removed an article detailing the military history of baseball legend Jackie Robinson after the tagword “DEI” was included in an updated URL. 

The removal of Robinson’s article, along with other notable references to the Tuskegee Airmen, Navajo code talkers and the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima, were immediately highlighted by numerous outlets before the Pentagon responded.

One source was ESPN baseball correspondent Jeff Passan, who challenged the Pentagon through multiple posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, March 18-19. 

“The ghouls who did this should be ashamed,” Passan wrote. “Jackie Robinson was the embodiment of an American hero. Fix this now.”

Passan posted two additional statements from DOD Press Secretary John Ullyot in response to ESPN, testifying to the department’s respect for Robinson and other previously noted individuals. 

What was concerning were several choice phrases used by Ullyot, including “DEI – Discriminatory Equity Ideology,” “a form of Woke cultural Marxism” and asserting the framework is a source of division more than anything.

After public backlash, choice articles were reinstated without “DEI” included in the URLs, with the DOD also conceding March 1 it had made a mistake in archiving content which “should not have been.”

Even though the Defense Department declared the deletion to be an inadvertent accident, it was well in line with the Trump administration’s determination to eliminate any DEI-related work on a federal level, with efforts made clear as early as Jan. 20 in a White House statement titled, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing.”

While enacted primarily at a federal level amidst a series of other cuts, cutting initiatives have also been extended to the education sphere, affecting universities’ access to federal funding, amongst other things.

Despite the argument to “shut up and dribble,” political efforts related to DEI removal have made their way into the sports sphere. The University of Pennsylvania, in a recent example, had $175 million in federal funding suspended after the university remained committed to its stance on transgender athletes.

Less than a week after the fiasco surrounding Robinson’s article, the MLB, per initial reports from writer Craig Calcaterra, removed the title of its previously named “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” homepage, with the word “diversity” entirely removed from the same page.

Also removed were references to the MLB’s Diversity Pipeline Program in 2016, designed to extend the applicant pools for various key positions within the organization. 

Done as an effort to remain “compliant with federal law,” according to an MLB statement to The Athletic, the decision to shrink back is, frankly, a major strikeout.

The MLB already has a severe lack of representation for minorities — only a year ago, The Associated Press reported Black players make up just 6.3% of MLB rosters, a historic low.

“That’s also the lowest percentage of African American participation among four of the five major professional sports — NBA, NFL, MLB, MLS — outside of the National Hockey League, where more than 90% of its players are white,” writer Alamis Thames said after comparing data across professional sports.

As a reminder, only a year ago, the MLB expressed confidence in raising those levels through its minor league and young player pipelines, and only officially designated the Negro Leagues as “Major League” five years ago.

Despite its half-assed responses, I don’t doubt the MLB will continue to push for a more diverse product and improve the league’s diversity. 

The problem we should recognize is the immediate cowardice and “complicity” from a league that struggles with attracting the youth, defines itself as the champion of “America’s Pastime” and is the biggest proponent of Robinson’s trailblazing efforts through league-wide jersey retirement and annual remembrance efforts.

“A life is not important except in the impact it has in other lives,” Robinson once said.

Attempts to censor facts about a life as prevalent and impactful as Robinson’s — whether accidental or malicious — should be fought against with the highest level of passion. Ignoring the possible consequences and battling for what is truly equitable is only a fraction of what made him the figure he is today and should inspire similar efforts.