Chicago team in league of their own
Fred Jeter | 8/29/2014, 6 a.m.
![Jackie Robinson West baseball stands out for two glaring reasons: Because it is so good and because it is all … Jackie Robinson West baseball stands out for two glaring reasons: Because it is so good and because it is all …](https://epmgaa.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/photos/2014/08/28/Jackie_Robinson_TeamCROP_t580.jpg?8f1b5874916776826eb17d7e67de7278c987ca33)
Jackie Robinson West baseball stands out for two glaring reasons: Because it is so good and because it is all black.
That rare combo made the Chicago South Side squad a national darling at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.
Coach Darold Butler’s talented collection of 11- and 12-year-olds reached the 16-team final, losing 8-4 to South Korea, before a crowd of 28,671 and an ABC national TV audience.
Robinson West was 5-2 overall and won the U.S. title, 6-4, over Las Vegas, avenging an earlier 13-2 loss to the West champs.
The Chicagoans also eliminated Taney/Philadelphia and its superstar diva, Sports Illustrated cover girl Mo’Ne Davis, with her waist-length braids and 70 mph fastball.
Mo’Ne is well-nigh impossible to upstage, but Robinson West managed with a blend of speed, power, pitching and nifty glove work, seemingly unfazed by all the attention.
“I’ve seen (news) clips of people running into the street, celebrating … like it was the ’96 Chicago Bulls,” said Butler of the former NBA champs.
At least in the black community, some say it was the biggest thing to spark baseball attention in the Windy City since Ernie Banks and Minnie Minoso.
Named after iconic Brooklyn Dodger Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball’s color line in 1947, the Chicago organization became the first all-black contingent to reach a Little League final since Tampa, Fla., in 1980 and 1981.
The Tampa teams featured future big leaguers Gary Sheffield, in ’80, and Derek Bell, ’80 and ’81.
The only other all-black team advancing to the finals was 1971 Gary, Ind., led by another future major leaguer, Lloyd McClendon.
Who knows what sporting future lies ahead for these Robinson West athletes? Will they continue playing baseball or go the direction of more popular sports in today’s black culture, basketball and football?
Robinson West’s jaw-dropping success comes at a time when baseball interest in the U.S. seems to be lagging — even disappearing in some areas — among young African-Americans.
Major League Baseball is just 8.5 percent African-American. Few African-Americans are seen on high school and college levels.
Little League baseball, nationwide, is overwhelmingly white for numerous reasons, starting with the cost of equipment. Bats can run close to $400.
There are reasons aplenty why young African-Americans never field a grounder or swing a bat. But those barriers, no matter how difficult, were all hurdled by the spirited Chicagoans.
This was no overnight sensation story.
Robinson West came within one victory of reaching the World Series a year ago when it lost in the Great Lakes Region final.
This year, it won the Chicago area, Illinois State and Great Lakes to stamp its ticket to Williamsport.
For supporters, you can start at the very top.
President Obama, formerly of Chicago, is pictured on the Robinson West webpage, posing with children during the league’s annual parade.
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn declared “Robinson West Little League Day” across the state.
Carl Crawford of the Los Angeles Dodgers helped sponsor the team, paying out-of-town lodging expenses for the team’s growing legion of family, friends and fans.
Crawford also gave the team a long-distance pep talk, via Skype.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, calling the team the “Pride of Chicago,” helped organize city “watch parties,” including one downtown.
Robinson West’s quarterfinal win over Taney (and Mo’Ne) drew 34,128, more than the Chicago White Sox or Cubs drew the same day.
TV ratings spiked throughout the event, largely due to curiosity over Robinson West and Mo’Ne, the 5-foot-4, 111-pound daughter of Lakeisha McLean, a nurse’s aid.
Mo’Ne commutes 20 minutes each day from her home in South Philly to prestigious Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, where she plays soccer (boys’ team) and girls’ basketball.
Her goal is to someday be starting point guard for the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team.
Let the record show, South Korea won the 2014 Little League World Series. But Mo’Ne and Robinson West provided lasting memories for people in this country.
Internationally, all-black teams from the Caribbean island country of Curacao qualified for Williamsport in 2001, ‘02 and ‘12, while a team from Lugozi, Uganda, qualified in 2013.