Category: That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker meets with the press before game 1 of the 2022 World Series has expressed deep concerns as to why there are no US born black players for the first time in 72 years (AP News photo)

2022 World Series: No US-born Black Players – First time in 72 Years

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

In 1947 Jackie Robinson’s first year in Major League Baseball, his team, the Brooklyn Dodgers faced the New York Yankees in the World Series. Since then, the 1950 match-up between the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies has been the only World Series without US-born Black players.

Until this year when the Houston Astros face the Philadelphia Phillies. Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker, a black man born in the US says he is “deeply disturbed” there will be no US-born Black players taking part in this year’s World Series.

In 2022 the majority of players in MLB are white, while Latino players make up around 30-33% of all talent in the Major Leagues, and black players born in the US 6.8%. Dusty Baker has a reason to be deeply disturbed. In the NFL 70% of all players are black-US-born, while in the NBA is 73% of all players.

The NHL is predominantly white, by 97%, the other 3% is made of different ethnicity. Of that 3%, twenty-six players are black. However, twenty of the twenty-six black players in the NHL are from Canada and only 6 are from the US. Mike Grier the general manager of the San José Sharks, is the first Black General Manager in National Hockey League history.

In the MLS 25.6% are black players, but not all from the US, they come from 36 other countries and four Continents. This is the most racially balanced professional sports league in the United States. But it makes sense because Fútbol (called Soccer in the English-speaking world) is played in more countries than other sports.

Major League Baseball continues to spend a lot of money as well as developed many programs in inner-cities all over the country for African-American communities, Major League Baseball through its affiliates is trying. But the black youth continues to gravitate towards basketball and football and one of the main reasons is pure convenience. In basketball, you do not require a lot of equipment for multiple players.

All you need is a ball and a basket/hoop. You can play by yourself, one-on-one, or just a few friends up to 5 vs. 5. There are basketball courts in most high-density neighborhoods in the US. You do not need a lot of money for basketball equipment, elementary and high schools have basketball floors to play and kids take it early and develop much faster than in other sports. While baseball and football are much more complicated, they require several pieces of equipment, several players, and large places to play.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez for That’s Amaury News and Commentary podcasts Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sixto Zapata, right, and Mike Lidecker paint the field at Minute Maid Park ahead of Game 1 of baseball’s American League Division Series, Monday, Oct. 10, 2022, in Houston. The Houston Astros host the Philadelphia Phillies for Game 1 of the 2022 World Series on Fri Oct 28, 2022 in Houston (AP News file photo)

World Series: Best team Houston vs Hottest team Philadelphia

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

With all respect to the Los Aneles Dodgers, the Houston Astros are the best team in baseball this year. Does that mean they should win the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies? Hold on! Not necessarily. For a while I stopped making predictions in the World Series during the 1988 classic between the A’s and Dodgers.

We all know what happened, the Athletics were the very best, and the Dodgers did not matched ‘player by player’ with Tony LaRussa’s team. I was there with the A’s for the three consecutive series appearances and I thought the A’s should have won all three, they were that good, but they could only beat the Giants in 1989.

To predict a World Series is like to predict a hurricane; you can track it from the moment it becomes a hurricane and then you predict it is going to land in one place, and all of a sudden it changes course and goes where you never thought. That is my best analogy about predicting World Series. Remember the recent Hurricane Ian? All the experts in meteorology predicted it was going to hit the Tampa area, but it never did, it went inland miles to the south in Ft. Myers, Florida.

Houston has a better bullpen, better pitching and All-Star lineup, they won 106 games during the regular season. The Philadelphia Phillies won 87 games and they have last year’s NL MVP Bryce Harper. They know they’re good, but nobody expected them to be where they are today.

The 2022 World Series begins this Friday at Minute Maid Park, Houston. The Phillies are on a roll, they have great momentum and they have played with passion and great confidence, but that could be stopped tomorrow when they face Justin Verlander in the first game of the classic. Verlander will be named American League Cy Young Award winner.

Houston has the home field advantage. Games one and two at Houston, games three, four and five (if necessary in Philadelphia) games six and seven back at Minute Maid Park, Houston.

This is the best chance for Dusty Baker to win his first World Series. He lost to the LA Angels the 2002 as skipper for the Giants and took the Astros to the 2021 World Series only to lose to the Atlanta Braves. Now Dusty takes this Houston team (very similar to last season, minus Justin Verlander, who was rehabbing from Tommy John surgery) to this Fall Classic. Dusty is the ninth manager in history to win pennants in both leagues, he is the oldest manager in baseball and the one with the most wins (2,093) who has never won a World Series.

This is his best shot. Last time Houston visited Oakland I asked Dusty, “is this the best team you ever managed? He did not answer but paused and then grin and said it was “one of the best”. Dusty’s Astros won the AL West 16 games over second place Seattle.

The Philadelphia Phillies fired their veteran manager Joe Girardi early in the season when his team had a 22-29 record and replaced him with Rob Thomson who won the pennant and took them to the World Series.

Prediction: Astros have the experience and they have been here recently, but I would not be shocked if the Philadelphia Phillies upset the Astros. The Houston Astros will win in six (6) games.

The Phillies have to win one of the first two games at Houston, if they do not, the Astros could continue the ‘sweep express train’, they swept the Seattle Mariners in three games during the ALDS and swept the New York Yankees in four games to win their fourth American League pennant in six years.

Dusty’s team is undefeated during the postseason. Last time the Astros lost a game, was at the end of the regular season on September 30, when they lost to Tampa Bay. So here comes the World Series, no Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, Braves, Red Sox or White Sox. It is the Astros and Phillies! Definitely not the dream series the FOX Network envisioned. That was Yankees vs. Dodgers, a coast-to-coast spectacular.

Houston has won one World Series, 2017 over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Houston’s win was tainted by MLB for stealing signs. A.J Hinch was the Astros manager. Phillies have won two World Series, 1980, 2008.

Mascots? Not even close, Philadelphia’s Phillie Phanatic has a huge lead over Astros Orbit.

The World Series will be exclusively on FOX Sports, which will call its 25th Fall Classic in its 27th season as the official network broadcaster of MLB.

Game 1: Friday, Oct. 28 in Houston at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game2: Saturday, Oct. 29 in Houston at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game 3: Monday, Oct. 31 in Philadelphia at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game 4: Tuesday, Nov. 1 in Philadelphia at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday, Nov. 2 in Philadelphia at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game 6 (if necessary): Friday, Nov. 4 in Houston at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Game 7 (if necessary): Saturday, Nov. 5 in Houston at 8:03 p.m. ET on Fox

Amuary Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred addresses the media from MLB headquarters on Fri Sep 9, 2022. Manfred earlier this season moved the 2022 MLB Draft as well as the 2021 All Star Game out of Atlanta due to what Manfred termed voter suppression that would impede voters ability to cast votes in the State of Georgia. Manfred then moved both events out of Georgia. (AP News file photo)

MLB Dropped the ball during this year’s 2022 All Star Game

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

The 2022 summer’s Major League Baseball Draft and the 2021 All-Star Game was not held in Atlanta, as it was originally scheduled. The withdrawal of the events that were to take place in July of this year was in response to Georgia’s enacted voting restrictions, which many in Washington, (including the President) called “Jim Crow in the 21st century. Because they say the legislation will disproportionately affect communities of color.

“I have decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB Draft,” Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr. said in a statement at the time. “Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.”

However, today we know that Major League Baseball overreacted. As of today with roughly two weeks before the national mid-term elections close to one million people have voted in Georgia, during the early voting, in person or via email. All polls regarding this matter are predicting that this mid-term election, coming in November 8th, will break all the voting records in the history of the State of Georgia. Because it is already on the way to a record.

Now we know, that the leadership of Major League Baseball made a big error, by removing the 2021 All Star Game from Atlanta to Denver, Colorado. Atlanta, Georgia prepared for this event yearns in advance. For Georgia it represented great lost of revenues, estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars to the Georgia economy, specially to the city of Atlanta among their local businesses that were poised to celebrate the mid-summer classic with thousands of tourist and baseball fans during the celebration of the All Star Week, which would have culminated with the All Star Game July 19, 2021.

The Commissioner of Baseball made a decision, that was more political than about baseball and it backfired on him big time. He wanted to be ‘politically correct’, overreacted and it blew up in his face. If Mr. Manfred ever had aspirations, once his reign as Commissioner expires to go into the political arena, this “move” probably killed those possibilities and he will have to live with it the rest of his life.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

No doubt about it Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker (12) is a players manager and they have responded by advancing to the 2022 World Series. It could be Dusty’s first World Series win of his managing career (AP News photo)

On That’s Amaury’s podcast:

#1 Amaury, Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker has managed in the World Series before but never has won one. This Friday he will get another turn in game 1 of the Fall Classic can Dusty’s Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies?

#2 It was quite a ALCS with the New York Yankees for the Astros sweeping them in four games they were not distracted by all the booing at Yankee Stadium and focused on keeping the Yankees out of the run.

#3 Amaury game 5 was a razor close game for the Astros winning it by one run 6-5. The Astros scored their runs in bulk four times in the top of the third and twice in the top of the seventh enough to hold onto win.

#4 Talk about Dusty’s chance to get the ring if he can win this World Series against the Phillies.

#5 You’ve had many opportunities to speak with Dusty over the years in talking with him the coveted ring has to be on the top of his list.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez does News and Commentary podcasts Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Al Capone bobblehead photo from Amaury Pi Gonzalez

Las Vegas is not just for Gambling anymore

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

The moment you mention Las Vegas, gambling comes to mind, of course. But that is becoming less and less the case. Las Vegas Tourism reports that millions of people are coming to their city each year from all over the world for pure entertainment, and not just for the slot machines or the tables, poker, baccarat or sports betting.

It is a total family destination. The biggest entertainers in the world, perform at the Las Vegas strip. It is not only the Las Vegas (once Oakland) Raiders of the NFL or the NHL Golden Knights. The Las Vegas Grand Prix, Formula 1 is taking place November 2023, there is information and tickets are selling already over a year from the popular racing event. Basically, Las Vegas is the ultimate “event oriented” city.

This is far from the Las Vegas of the 1960’s at the Sands with Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr., and Shirley McLaine, yes, she was also part of the “Rat Pack”. The 1970’s when Elvis make his big comeback as “The King” and opened the International Hotel, which later became the Las Vegas Hilton and since then now it is the Westgate.

The names might have changed, but Sin City is growing in stature every year. If you visit Las Vegas you will see tour guides with groups of people from France to China, from Japan to Germany to Australia.

There was a time in the young history of the City of Las Vegas (Founded in 1905) when the biggest businesses were gambling and legal prostitution. But today a watering hole in the middle of the desert founded by mafia characters, very much depicted in Hollywood movies, like Casino, and Bugsy is growing in many ways. Construction is everywhere.

Las Vegas has the most hotel rooms of any city in the United States, as of January 2016, 167,730 rooms; today close to 200,000 rooms. Is Las Vegas a city without problems? No, not by any means. Water is a very important commodity and an obvious necessity, after all, it is a city in the middle of the desert.

The US government issued a water shortage declaration on Colorado’s river in January 2022 and Southern Nevada’s water allocation was reduced to 7 billion gallons.

How about the A’s? I have talked to a lot of regular fans, and a lot of bay area people. The majority believe the A’s are moving to Las Vegas, some say they will not, some tell me “move already!” others still have faith in Oakland, and the rest are Sharks and 49ers fans and some are Giants fans, but not that many this year.

LAS VEGAS INFORMATION: Around 1 million residents between Las Vegas 644,594 and Henderson 309,955. It is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, a State with approximately 3 million people. City of Las Vegas is the number 40 designated media market in the US. STATE OF NEVADA: Does not have an individual income tax. Does not have a corporate tax but a gross receipt tax.

IF YOU VISIT LAS VEGAS: Although is not recognized as a city of museums, I recommend you visit the Mob Museum and pick up the ultimate bobble-head. My favorite, the Al Capone Bobble-head, a must!

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Baseball Hall of Fame Museum and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com