Opinion: Let's play ball, and keep game free from politics

Major League Baseball has decided it won’t play its annual all-star game in Atlanta this summer. That’s because, it alleges, Georgia lawmakers are engaged in voter suppression.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott planned to throw out a ceremonial first pitch last week, but changed his mind when he heard the news.

“I was looking forward to throwing out the first pitch at the Texas Rangers’ home opening game until @MLB adopted what has turned out to be a false narrative about Georgia’s election law reforms,” Abbott tweeted. “It is shameful that America’s pastime is being influenced by partisan politics.”

Everything seems to be influenced by partisan politics these days. That’s not a good thing.

Sports, for example, are supposed to help us temporarily escape unpleasant realities around us. Now it seems red and blue are more likely to represent our positions on “morality” rather than reflect our allegiance to a favorite team by sporting its uniform colors.

It wasn’t so bad when individual athletes were just speaking out on social issues. That’s their right as Americans, and we could turn down the sound or get a snack during the National Anthem if we didn’t like what they were saying.

But pro baseball seems intent on forcing its players and fans to pick political sides.

For sports fans who don’t care about politics, it’s probably important to try and summarize why MLB last week moved its mid-summer all-star game from Atlanta to Denver.

Georgia lawmakers recently rewrote some of their voting guidelines. The most contentious issue involves drinking water.

Republicans wanted it clear that politicians should not be buying votes by handing out gifts. Democrats are good with that, but they don’t think giving cold water to voters in long lines in Hot-lanta can be classified as a gift. Republicans say water can be made available, it just can’t be handed to voters by those who may have political agendas.

The issue goes deeper, but that’s one example of how ridiculous politics have become.

As a result, baseball has decided it must move its all-star game outside Georgia.

The skeptical among us suspect this has a lot to do with baseball trying to help fans forget its own shameful history of banning Black players from the field, its continuing failure to employ minorities in management positions and the inconsistent messages it sends about domestic violence.

Somehow we’re supposed to forget all of that because the game has decided to champion minorities and poor people in Georgia. Never mind the action will have an economic impact of about $100 million lost, which means fewer jobs for minorities and poor people in Atlanta.

It’s good to shine a spotlight on social issues, and voter suppression — real or imagined — is a serious topic we all need to consider.

But we also need a break from the world’s serious problems sometimes. That’s why we need baseball’s public relations machine to focus on the game’s less- serious topics, such as the mush ball, seven-inning doubleheaders and that ridiculous rule that allows a man on second to start each half of each extra inning.

— David Stevens

Publisher