How can we encouage more minorities or economically disadvataged to play?

Agreed...

but the same can be said about the "glory" days at garinger when these schools were the headliners and predominantly white...still the issue remains why aren t we seeing minorities playing at ALL the schools! Again from my perspective the coaches do not go out and work very hard to get these kids on the baseball diamond , prior bad experiences or not, the talent and potential is THERE they just need to be redirected if not coaxed to come out and taught in a positive manner and you would in fact see a resurgence of within Charlotte...

 

good question. I've always wondered why there arent more black atheletes

 

No...in his case, it was about a coach committed to turning around a program and getting support from a community in a predominately minority area. I don't believe WC was very successful prior to Mike's arrival. Was his situation any different than Waddell or Garinger is now? There are players walking the halls of those two schools like Shanks and Fisher, but equally there are guys walking the halls like Daniel and Maybin.

 

Shildt did turn the baseball program around at WC, and everyone was sad to see him leave when the school board decided that coaches had to be teachers if they wanted to coach. When Shildt was forced to leave, a lot of the good players at WC then had the choice of staying at WC or transferring to Vance, which opened the year Shildt left. Many of them left for Vance because they lived in that district, and Vance had some good teams.
Nick Blackmon and Justin Perry were two very good black players at WC (both All-Conference) after Shildt left. Don't know about Justin, but I believe Nick's dad told me that Nick was dedicated to baseball and played the game year round. It showed, too. Nick went on to play sparingly at Charlotte after Hibbs got through jerking him around.

 

I have been directly involved with 2 inter-city Rec. leagues in Charlotte. We have recruited heavily in low income schools and neighborhoods. We not only do not charge "Enormous Fees", but we offer scholarships to ANYONE that wants to play and does not have the money. The problem is that most of these kids do not have a parent that cares enough or has the time to sign up or transport the kid to practice and games. Parents have to be involved for the kids to be able to participate. It's easier to go to the neighborhood park and shoot hoops!

 

i am sure its parental involvement at issue with this.........from the softballside, its the case.

Chin......keep up the work down there with the rec dept!! :applause:

 

Another good point taken

 

The post by chinmusic is probably as close to the answer as I've seen. Morganton recreation won't turn away anyone wanting to play if they don't have the money to pay whatever fees we need to operate the programs. Equipment needs would seem to be the major problem. Baseball requires balls, bats, gloves, cleats, and most of all . . . at the very least, one other person to play. The equipment isn't cheap, even inferior quality isn't cheap and if you can't find someone to have a catch with you, you're reduced to throwing the ball up in the air and catching it. While it is a good exercise, it isn't much fun. Football will always be big, but basketball seems to be where it is for African Americans. You only need a ball to develop your skills. You don't even necessarily need a hoop to develop ball handling skills. You don't need anyone to develop shooting skills. If you have a ball and a hoop, you can shoot all day and you have $15 or less in a ball. Same with soccer.

In baseball to succeed, you need a $300 bat, $100 shoes, $150 glove, a specialized field to play on, and you have to play all year. Plus, very little of that is provided by a sponsoring organization. Most teams have a couple of team bats, but they usually sit unused and they provide balls. Sometimes uniforms come with the territory and that is usually only a shirt. With basketball all that many players have to do is pick up a ball, walk out the door, and shoot. All they need is a ball and a good pair of sneaks. Football players have to provide even less for themselves.

It has to be economics and ease of playing. $500-$600 vs $100 for a ball and sneaks and you are poor? What is the realistic answer for you?

 

RJR---not sure why you deleted your post. You were making some great observations

 

I would love to coach baseball here in Charlotte and try to create an interest among the younger black athletes so that they may capitalize on their talent through experiencing the finer points of the game within the game.
Many do not take interest because they think it's a boring sport but if taught right, it's the most challenging sport for preparation.
Again I say, the single hardest athletic thing to do is take a round ball and a round bat and hit the ball square. And even if that happens you still have the possibility of getting out.
It's a big challenge, I mean how many other jobs do you know of that you can do well 33% of the time and be considered a success.
Young black kids today are caught up in the phenomenon of Lebron James and Michael Vick. You gotta be able to "break some ankles" or "tote the pill" in order to be considered da man in the hood but if you can bring some cheese bro. you can definitely make some serious cheddar.
A lot of work, a lot of patience and a lot of cerebral training is needed to develop a good ball player. Along with talent and opportunity.
From what I'm reading the opportunity is not here in Charlotte. What can we do to remedy it? If you come up with an idea I'm here to help.