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Award-winning columnist Tom Archdeacon — an old-school storyteller in a brand-new venue — writes about sports, the city, southwest Ohio and anything else that catches his fancy… or yours.Home > Blogs > Through the Arch > Archives > 2007 > October > 14 > Entry
Dusty Baker, the Reds and Race
Well, Cincinnati Reds fans wanted a big-name manager and now they have one.
Turns out, plenty of them seem to have wanted a big-name WHITE manager.
Or, at least, not this black manager.
Saturday night the Reds signed Dusty Baker to a three-year deal — making him the first black manager in the history of baseball’s oldest franchise — and by Sunday morning the move was being met with some very nasty venom on internet web sites and call-ins to talk radio shows.
Baker — who’s had 10 winning seasons in his 14 years as a big league manager in San Francisco and with the Chicago Cubs, who three times was named National League Manager of the Year — was being painted as a racist by several callers to Ken Broo’s Sunday morning show on WLW.
They kept pointing out his 2003 comment about — and I’m paraphrasing here — whites not playing as well in the sunshine and heat, not like blacks and Latin players, so he’d like more night games at Wrigley Field.
One caller — who kept saying Reds management was condoning a racist by this hiring — said although he was a longtime fan, he would no longer come to games, bring his business clients there or spend any money on the team until Baker was gone.
“I don’t support racists,” he kept saying.
I don’t seem to remember this outcry from most Reds fans when owner Marge Schott made some of her infamous comments.
That race so quickly jumped into the thought process here makes me question what’s really going on here.
If you want to rip Baker for the way he handled pitching phenoms like Kerry Wood and Mark Prior, I’ll buy it. Or knock him for his teams coming up short in the post-season.
I’ll even give a nod to anyone who believes Pete Mackanin deserved a shot at somehow getting this under-achieving Reds’ bunch to finally perform after seven straight losing seasons.
But to turn the whole argument on race, makes me wonder just who the bigot is here.
Comments
By William Miller
October 18, 2007 6:15 AM | Link to this
Skin color shouldn’t matter;anyone with half a brain these days knows that ALL people come from a common gene pool so,in essence,there is only one race:the human race! And that is exactly the point.Men such as Dusty see things in ‘black and white’-literally!As Dr. martin Luther King so eloquently said ‘A man should be judged not by the color of his skin,but the content of his character’.And,going by that,Dusty fails miserably!I see very little character or integrity in him. If Dusty had the integrity of,let’s say, a Joe Morgan,then this wouldn’t be an issue!
By Anthony
October 17, 2007 3:59 PM | Link to this
Considering the history of Cincinnati, I figured the move would be a good thing, but I have never seen so many people up in arms over a hiring. Well, Marge Schott owned the team for a generation, and she was racist and a horrible person to the core. It shows that the organization has moved past her regime and into a new day. Let the guy manage a game before judging him and perhaps he’s learned a thing or two from his past stops.
By Mike W
October 16, 2007 12:40 PM | Link to this
Tom’s Rule of thumb: Increase readers by playing the race card! I am dead set against Baker and it has nothing to do with race. Brian Sabean and others should get a little credit for giving Baker good teams. Good thing the Red Sox (Franconna), Rockies (Hurdle) and Indians (Wedge) didn’t subscribe to the “big name” theory to manage their teams. Even Ozzie Guillen was a high energy manager without managerial experience who led his team to a WS win. Another player-coddler here we don’t need. No matter what color of skin.
By rick
October 16, 2007 11:35 AM | Link to this
dusty baker is the wrong guy for this club..he does not work well with young players….also he is the one who is the racist….he tom bad article i think you missed the point…
By Jack
October 16, 2007 11:00 AM | Link to this
As long as he wears his pants up around his waist and doesn’t wear his ball cap pointed over his ear …..he should do O.K.
By OldCleat
October 16, 2007 10:12 AM | Link to this
I’m a Reds fan living in Chicago. The reaction against Dusty mostly has to do with his managing. There aren’t hardly any real baseball fans worried about his pigmentation. They worry more about him ruining Homer Bailey. I don’t think Dusty is the right kind of manager for this ballclub. I think that’s what worries almost all of the Reds fans. I certainly would have taken Frank Robinson, or Lloyd McClendon, or a whole host of other available managers, white, black, Latino, Japanese, whatever, other than Dusty. I really don’t think it’s a race issue.
By sloopy
October 16, 2007 9:54 AM | Link to this
I don’t think this article was meant to be taken as a damning of all Reds fans, as some seem to have taken it. Rather, it questions those who immediately jump to some issue of race when Baker’s name comes up and use it to decry him. And yes, I have to say I wish WLW would cool it in that regard. They’re not exactly being part of the solution.
By Kyle
October 16, 2007 9:12 AM | Link to this
Tom, Reds fans could less about Race or the Race of a player or Manager. Supid article, just stupid.
By Byron P.
October 16, 2007 9:06 AM | Link to this
Tom, was it really race that caused the Chicago Cubs fans to want him to leave after his last two seasons? Or, did it have something to do with the lack of winning. Also, i s it good to have a manager with a history of making antagonizing comments? Doesn’t that hurt what the Reds are trying to build? Still, I’ll give him the benifit of the doubt and hope things go well. I wish him the best.
By nullJEFF
October 16, 2007 7:26 AM | Link to this
HOW MUCH WORSE CAN HE DO THAN THE OTHER MANAGERS WE HAVE HAD
By nullJEFF
October 16, 2007 7:26 AM | Link to this
HOW MUCH WORSE CAN HE DO THAN THE OTHER MANAGERS WE HAVE HAD
By George
October 16, 2007 5:58 AM | Link to this
Nonsense on the racism. Give me Frank Robinson and I would have been thrilled.
By Lee
October 15, 2007 7:41 PM | Link to this
Man, James you really feel that way about Marvin Lewis? Only still there beacause he’s black. Tho his record is still better then the handful of Bengal coaches.
By D. Greene
October 15, 2007 7:22 PM | Link to this
Cincinnati is most certainly a racist town. Of course, Dayton is one of the most segregated cities in the country as well. The sad fact is Southwestern Ohio is full of some of the worst racists, fascists, and busybodies in the whole country. D. Greene, audendi.com
By Paul S.
October 15, 2007 6:26 PM | Link to this
I think the idiots who are turning this into a race issue (and I’m including Paul Daugherty in Cincy among the idiots) are a vocal minority. I believe most knowledgeable fans who are against the hire of Dusty, like myself, see him as a veteran-loving walk-hating, pitchers’ arm-shredding product of the good ol boy network that dominates baseball. He’s a “big-name” to appease a casual fan, but he’s not the right fit here.
By James
October 15, 2007 4:37 PM | Link to this
I do not think highly of Marvin Lewis. He is a terrible coach and the only reason he still has his job is because he is black, plus the Brown family is too cheap to eat the remainder of his contract by justifiably firing him.
By Gordon
October 15, 2007 4:02 PM | Link to this
I wrote county, not country. Learn how to read, hillbilly.
By Paul
October 15, 2007 3:59 PM | Link to this
I think it’s a great thing for the Cincinnati community to hire another black manager, especially with all the racial tension that’s been present in the last few years. Marvin Lewis has been a rallying point for Cincinnati sports the last few years, I believe we need to give Dusty a chance to bring the same professionalism and enthusiasm for Red’s fans that Marvin has generated. Marvin has transcended the race issue by just being a great leader, lets see if Dusty can do the same.
By Jim5
October 15, 2007 2:20 PM | Link to this
Gordon, you are not even a citizen of this country, and you are weighing in about a hiring by a local sports team? Get a job.
By Gordon
October 15, 2007 1:44 PM | Link to this
Nice track record. First it’s the 2004 Presidential election that your county single-handedly SCREWED UP. Now it’s these outlandishly stupid racist views of alleged racism by a black manager. What the heck is in the water that makes you guys so **ing stupid? Sheesh.
By Matt
October 15, 2007 1:38 PM | Link to this
I am happy about this hiring. To think that racism is a problem for Cincinnati fans is kinda dumb mostly because most people think very very highly of Marvin Lewis even with the way the Bengals are struggling. As long as the Reds are competitive everyone will support and appreciate Dusty.
By DREW
October 15, 2007 12:16 PM | Link to this
The more I read about Baker the more I like this guy. He could again be a successful manager if the Reds give him the resources he needs. He definitely needs better pitching. Race will have nothing to do with his success.
By Fazz 45
October 15, 2007 12:03 PM | Link to this
Good piece. But what did you expect from a “red” state?
By Lee
October 15, 2007 11:29 AM | Link to this
Thats what im saying, the Reds havn’t had a decent manager since Davey Johnson, and how long ago was that? This MIGHT be one of their best decisions in a long time.
By bsg
October 15, 2007 10:33 AM | Link to this
cincinnati has its problems, but they are not on par with new orleans when it comes to racism the sportstalk call-in crowd is a bad barometer. only the most vocal people call those shows. these people tend to be crazy, but race isnt the number one motivation of their craze, a lot them want Adam Dunn out of town, and clamoured Linder to overpay for Barry Larkin for his last few years. im pretty sure if you took a poll asking cincinnatians who they would rather have as manager, and listed Dave Miley, Jerry Narron and Dusty Baker, Baker would win in a landslide.
By big mike
October 15, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
Why is Dusty a bad person bill,this does’nt shock me at all I have been a reds fan all of my life,but stopped going to games Eric davis last year with the reds and the turn coat red fans were booing him to no end and I made a comment that these people are just mad because they have to get up and go to their 9to5,and someone didn’t like my comment and went and got a guard and I was asked to walk around and when I protested was ask to leave,so basically I was thrown out for cheering for eric davis,so I’m not surprised by the racist cincy fans dusty get ready.
By big mike
October 15, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
Why is Dusty a bad person bill,this does’nt shock me at all I have been a reds fan all of my life,but stopped going to games Eric davis last year with the reds and the turn coat red fans were booing him to no end and I made a comment that these people are just mad because they have to get up and go to their 9to5,and someone didn’t like my comment and went and got a guard and I was asked to walk around and when I protested was ask to leave,so basically I was thrown out for cheering for eric davis,so I’m not surprised by the racist cincy fans dusty get ready.
By big mike
October 15, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
Why is Dusty a bad person bill,this does’nt shock me at all I have been a reds fan all of my life,but stopped going to games Eric davis last year with the reds and the turn coat red fans were booing him to no end and I made a comment that these people are just mad because they have to get up and go to their 9to5,and someone didn’t like my comment and went and got a guard and I was asked to walk around and when I protested was ask to leave,so basically I was thrown out for cheering for eric davis,so I’m not surprised by the racist cincy fans dusty get ready.
By big mike
October 15, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
Why is Dusty a bad person bill,this does’nt shock me at all I have been a reds fan all of my life,but stopped going to games Eric davis last year with the reds and the turn coat red fans were booing him to no end and I made a comment that these people are just mad because they have to get up and go to their 9to5,and someone didn’t like my comment and went and got a guard and I was asked to walk around and when I protested was ask to leave,so basically I was thrown out for cheering for eric davis,so I’m not surprised by the racist cincy fans dusty get ready.
By Jim5
October 15, 2007 9:31 AM | Link to this
Tom Archdeacon is the only one spewing racial venom, here. Websites and talk radio quips are no real barometer of what the average Reds fan thinks or feels about Baker. Bigger issues are whether or not he “enabled” Barry Bond’s drug use and his World Series experience. Let’s given him a chance and keep race out of the dialogue, please.
By Lee
October 15, 2007 8:32 AM | Link to this
I dont understand, all the no names who have been manager for the Reds the past few seasons. YOu would think its an improvment to get someone with big time experience and success. Sure hes had his ups an downs, but thats the business.
By Lee
October 15, 2007 8:31 AM | Link to this
I dont understand, all the no names who have been manager for the Reds the past few seasons. YOu would think its an improvment to get someone with big time experience and success. Sure hes had his ups an downs, but thats the business.
By G
October 15, 2007 8:05 AM | Link to this
WLW continues to blow on the hot coals of racism in Cincinnati. Congrats for again giving the City a black eye nationally. When are the good people down there going to stand up and stop the nonsense? Thanks to the call in jocks, Cincinnati will remain the most overtly racist city in the USA. What an embarrassment to Ohio.
By sam
October 15, 2007 8:01 AM | Link to this
Lynda, how can you call Cincy a fine racist town when we now have Marvin Lewis and Dusty Baker?
By bill
October 15, 2007 7:57 AM | Link to this
Dusty Baker is also a bad person, not just a bad baseball manager.
By Lynda
October 15, 2007 5:59 AM | Link to this
Remember, this is Cincinnati, a fine, racist town I am NOT surprised.