Southern, B-CU on center stage at MLB Invitational
Dennis J. Freeman
Special to the BCSP
Southern and Bethune-Cookman wanted to show a nationally televised audience that not only can they compete against the big-name schools such as Southern Cal and UCLA in baseball, but they can play them as tough as any team in the country. The two historically black colleges may have opened some eyes with their play this past weekend against the Trojans and Bruins in the first Major League Baseball Urban Invitational.
UCLA defeated Bethune-Cookman 2-0 in the first game of the tournament's double-header
on Saturday. USC needed to score eight runs in
their half of the eighth inning to come-from-behind
to hand Southern a 13-9 defeat in front of a large
and enthusiastic crowd at MLB Urban Youth Academy in Compton, California. Not only did fans get
a chance to see some good baseball, they also were treated to the sounds of Southern University's
band, "The Human Jukebox."
Boxed around the two showcase games there was plenty of good baseball on display. On the first day of the tournament, USC defeated Bethune-Cookman 2-0, while Southern fell to UCLA 11-2. UCLA clawed its way past USC 4-3 on the invitational's last day. Bethune-Cookman beat Southern 10-4 Saturday, the first time the two schools had ever played each other.
The six-game tournament, which was televised Saturday by ESPN 2, and sponsored by MLB, was put on to accomplish several things; increase the exposure of historically black colleges and universities and try to attract more young African Americans back into the sport of baseball.
"This is about dreaming big," said Darrell Miller, Urban Youth Academy director. "This is about having a positive image about Compton, having a positive image about Los Angeles and taking it to the next level. The gist of what we're trying to do is bring the exposurehistorical black colleges are very competitive, these are great schools. They can play against these guys. The idea is if you dream big, believe in yourself, then you can do it."
Southern coach Roger Cador said he was pretty excited when he first found out about the prospect of having his team play in the inaugural Urban Invitational. To Cador, playing against the like of Division I baseball powers UCLA and USC was something he couldn't resist. But Cador also realizes the tournament has greater meaning and significance.
"These games have implications and historical proportions when you look at what it means to kids that play baseball, specifically African-American kids who are getting the opportunity to play two powerhouses in UCLA and USC," Cador said. "It just means a great deal to them because now kids can dream even more now with the opportunities that lies ahead for them. I just think this so important. This will motivate them. They can go tell a story and get other people involved."
The three-day tournament was played at the MLB Urban Youth Academy, USC's Dedeaux Field and UCLA's Jackie Robinson Stadium. Longtime major league baseball player Kenny Lofton called the tournament "historic." "This is big," Lofton said. "This is an opportunity for a lot of kids and a lot of people to come to this academy."
Playing in the tournament was a big deal for Bethune-Cookman left fielder Patrick Jones. Jones said he and his teammates didn't get on a plane and fly to Los Angeles just to be playing. They were there to make a statement that African-Americans do play baseball. The message was delivered to tell young people, especially black children, that baseball doesn't have to be a foreign sport to them.
"We're role models for them," Jones said. "They see us playing and they see that we can still advance. There still are African-Americans playing baseball today. I think we give then motivation to continue to play baseball."
Bethune-Cookman right fielder Neal Jones echoed his teammate's thoughts about the exposure the tournament would give to black youths.
"We came here to show that Bethune-Cookman can compete with any team in the nation," Jones said. "The exposure on television will hopefully get more kids motivated to play baseball. I'm happy to be out here. It's been a wonderful experience. I'm enjoying myself."
© 2008 Azeez Communications, Inc.