Josh Gibson - Now All-Time Batting Average Leader - Replacing Ty Cobb

[ArizonaTank]

The MLB just officially recognized Negro League stats. Josh Gibson, has now replaced Ty Cobb as the lifetime batting leader. 

https://apnews.com/article/mlb-negro-leagues-statistics-changes-39321b1e2566f94e15359e65da96b34d

[ArizonaTank]

Sadly, over the last day, the addition of Negro League statistics has fallen to the political tribalism of our times.

Clearly this is the most sweeping change to official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistics ever. That is not hyperbole...EVER! So I can see that these changes rock the boat.

But when folks start equating these changes to "culture war" hot buttons...like "wokeism" (whatever that is), it really makes me sad.

The beauty of baseball is that in the end, players are only evaluated by their statistics. Pee Wee Reese, who was a southerner, and Dodger short stop as Jackie Robinson was coming in to the Major Leagues, encapsulated this idea. It was a time when some players were threatening to boycott Robinson's presence. Pee Wee said something like, 'if Robinson is a better player than me, he deserves my job.' Robinson probably was a better athlete, so fortunately for Reese, Robinson played first and second base and Reese got to keep his job. As a side note, Reese and Robinson famously became good friends.