I used to have a black girlfriend in college. She said that the Latin players aren't black because they are Hispanic and it is culture not skin color or some such. I was hard pressed to understand the distinction at times. But what do I know I am a card carrying American Indian with Chinese citizenship? :}

I believe it was Sports Illustrated who several years back did a big story on the vanishing black baseball players. At the time it mentioned that there were very few, and a distinction was made between the Latin and African-American ball players. I don't really care, or understand what difference it makes, but if someone is counting I guess it matters to someone.

Hey Ktown!
Yep it's me from MLB.com. same guy. Sorry, I just got tired of all
the trolling there. Many names, same person. I assume that wetfeet works for
the blog, as many do. I miss it and do go over there sometimes. I don't spend
much time here either. No cancer. Not dead. Still take an hour or two a day of INF.
Ha, nobody listens to my old man schtick here either, but...

Just ask Torii Hunter which players are black. Hunter is the self-appointed expert on this topic.

Josh Hamilton had black tendencies. But we can't claim those anymore. Thanks a lot Josh.

The black congregation drafted Tiger Woods, once. The Asian delegation was pissed. I'll never forget that press conference. Tiger was so happy, like he'd been resurrected just as if Christ himself.

He stepped to the podium, flash bulbs popping all around him. A smile illuminated his face. He quietly got in front of the microphone, chuckled to himself, and said, "I've always wanted to say this ... 'Forshizzle."

Oh yes, good times.

@min468
LOL really duuude get serious - NOT - Grow some. History lesson on blacks. Hilarious - NOT

We have no players that are considered "black" as we would think of as African American. All of the players mentioned, feliz, andrus, profar, martin, etc....are latin american. Black players to me would be people like Tori Hunter, Barry Bonds, Carl Crawford, the Uptons, etc.....

Should have saved this topic for Black History Month. Almost made it to February.

Most of the names mentioned, Hispanic or not, are actually brown, not black. I mean, if you're judging skin color and all.

Pitchers and catchers report in 13 days.!

Seriously, guys? You people are seriously going to discuss the semantics of race?

I think most of us can agree, if the dude can play, it doesn't matter if he's white like Casper, black like Wesley Snipes, or anything in between. Therefore, this thread is meaningless.

I know we're still a couple weeks from pitchers and catchers reporting, but this topic is trolling.

is Darvish yellow?

Manute Bol.....black.

Bud Black.

Modern genetics has conclusively proved the near entirety of the human population to be a mixture of people from throughout the world, the few exceptions being long isolated populations. Cosmos girlfriend is correct, it is a culture issue. We assign labels based upon our own meanings, reasons, and preferences, but these assignments are arbitrary and ungrounded in fact. In the end, we are all pink on the inside.

I'm black and gay!

Great, and if you can hit a baseball well enough to carry the middle of a line up, the Texas Rangers would like to speak with you.

Black players to me would be people like Tori Hunter, Barry Bonds, Carl Crawford, the Uptons, etc.....

January 30, 2013 at 9:30 AM | Jacob

Ibnorant people to me would be people like Jacob.

John Wiley Price will be ranting and raving once he realizes there aren't any blacks on the rosters. Probably start his baby steps marching around the ballpark.

This is stupid. I've got an uncle who's skin color is black-er than you can imagine. He's pure Anglo-Irish, and no African ancestry. He's the prototypical "black Irish" - Basque, Iberian, Portuguese traits. And, who really gives a shit about your question anyway?

The term African-American is not an accurate term either. I have 2 friends and a Professor at college who are all white, but were born in Africa and who are all U.S. Citizens. They are African-American, but have no dark skins tone. Someone (whoever it was in an attempt to be more PC) didn't think this designation out very thoroughly.

I have always preferred the terms that are country of origin or parents origin instead for that reason. So using my logic that makes Bakary Sagna a Sengalese French person and Hakeem Olajuowon a Nigerian American person and so on.

Using a continent is bad enough such as "African-American", they really mean black, and Africa is a huge and diverse place. What about a Morocco? Egyptian? Eritrean? Algerian? Tunisian? a white resident of Durban? Cape Town? Sub-Saharan African usually means black in a politically correct usage but many Portuguese descendants are in Angola, many Dutch and English in South Africa etc. Even in Sub Saharan Africa there are huge cultural and ethnic differences between a Yoruba in Nigeria and an Ovambo in Namibia and an Oromo in Ethiopia etc. I am Irish and would never use European American as a term, but the one that is truly weird to me is Latin American, that is so vague as to be useless and is more a linguistic tie than a cultural or ethnic one. The ethnic groups in Latin America are so varied and does them a disservice to use the term. Elvis Andrus and Miguel Cabrera are both Venezuelan but I assume different ethnic groups, for example since Elvis has obviously more West African/Caribbean ties by skin colour and hair type than the more mulatto indigenous Amerindian + European ancestry Cabrera displays. They both would identify more with Venezuelan than anything else however.

Finally,we are all humans, and that's all that matters. Its about how well can you perform your task to help your team win games and your companies make money. In summary, political correctness is idiotic and disrespects heritage in its blandness. From what I know most of the blacks in America who do not immediately identify with their parentage or grandparents who immigrated from a specific country in the 20th century identify with Ghana or the Ashanti people before Ghana since most slaves descend from the Gold Coast region of West Africa. I don't the current Rangers roster has any who fit the politicorrect term "African-American" and have not had one since Darren Oliver and Arthur Rhodes, or Milton Bradley and Brandon Boggs and Marlon Byrd before them. Ethic makeup of a team is a strange topic, its mostly just happenstance rather than choice or anything else.

You know that it's still not time for Spring Training when...

Im going to "go f*** myself now"

Wow another post by Romro the Homro wishing he were me. I seriously don't know why he/she must use such incendiary language.Maybe he/she is addicted to profanity. The use of profanity-studies have shown-is evidence of a weak mind. In his case-DUH!