Rangers All-Star Milton Bradley
According to a story that was published on the New York Times' web site today, Milton Bradley is being unfairly depicted as "volatile" for his numerous antics and is following in the footsteps of Barry Bonds as the game's next bad boy.
He has become the heir to Dick Allen, Albert Belle and Barry Bonds as baseball’s brooding Public Enemy No. 1.
And racism could be part of the reason.
It is not lost on several Rangers that players like the former Yankees star Paul O’Neill and managers like Earl Weaver, Billy Martin and Lou Piniella — all of whom are white — were labeled “fiery” and “intense” and celebrated for their tempestuousness. ...Several Rangers noted that Bradley was generally described as “volatile,” a pejorative used primarily with black players, rather than “fiery,” a compliment often reserved for white men.
I'll be the first to admit that the New York Times doesn't have one of my favorite sports sections. But this story, which also goes into Josh Hamilton's past, did a great job of speaking about race and how it affects pro athletes in the modern era (not that I want to cast a shadow over their great piece of social commentary, but in the interest of full disclosure I have to point out that Bradley is guest blogging for the Times).
The reason this story was so good? The Times gets some of Bradley's teammates to comment on the issue.
“If it was a white guy in his situation, what would they be saying?” [Josh] Hamilton said. Reliever Eddie Guardado said, “We all know it’s there.”
Young added: “It’d be silly for anybody to say that race doesn’t play an issue. It would be a naïve outlook.”
Very well said. Hamilton is in a special situation to comment on this subject, since he was once a crack addict and nearly ruined his carrer, or maybe one day his life.
But Hamilton has been written about positively and is deservedly one of the best comeback stories of the year. Bradley, on the other hand, is continually criticized for his hot temper and his inability to filter what he says.
In fact, it's this concept that led to Bradley seeking out a confrontation with Royals TV announcer Ryan Lefebvre last month. After he was cut off before reaching the announcer's booth, Bradley talked to his teammates about some of the frustration he's been feeling about his reputation, according to ESPN.
"I'm tired of people bringing me down," Bradley said. "It wears on you. I love you guys, all you guys. I'm strong, but I'm not that strong. All I want to do is play baseball and make a better life for my kid than I had."
If the kind of racism described in this story continues, that's going to be a very hard goal to achieve.
Bradley, though, isn't crying foul. He realizes his past actions have been unacceptable and, if racism is contributing to people's perception of him, it's not the only reason people may not like him.
Bradley, never accused of holding back, resisted the notion that race was the primary factor in how his image has evolved. He noted that his actions were mostly violations of cherished baseball etiquette, cast forever on videotape, rather than the relatively private breaking of federal law.
His teammates don't seem to be as sure, though.
(Bradley did not say it, but several Rangers wondered what Hamilton’s image would be if videotape existed of him in a grimy tattoo parlor smoking a crack pipe.)
If we belive the Times story and the players quoted in it, probably very different, and better, than what Bradleys' would be in that same situation.
And that is a shame.
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