The second I read Dexter Fowler’s comment on President Trump’s proposed travel ban, I knew he would get his first real taste of his new town.
Fowler’s wife, Aliya, is from Iran and moved here with her parents at the age of 5. She is an American citizen, just as American as Trump.
Fowler was asked about a travel ban on select nations by ESPN’s Mark Saxon, who knew Fowler’s wife is from Iran.
His answer was honest and gentle – and met with many racist, ridiculous remarks from Cardinals fans.
“It’s huge. Especially any time you’re not able to see family, it’s unfortunate,” he said of the ban.
After the disgusting reaction from more than a few fans, Fowler told Post-Dispatch sports columnist Jose de Jesus Ortiz on Monday, “The question was asked out of empathy toward my family. I appreciate that. If anybody is asking about my family, then I’m going to let them know. Obviously, it affected my family. My wife’s Iranian.”
“I can’t go over there. My daughter is half Iranian and half black. She wouldn’t be able to see her cousins or whatever. They’re still over there.”
Ortiz mentions that some of the worst comments were on the “St. Louis Cardinals True Fans” Facebook page.
He included a post from Linda Bausch that read, “Just play ball and do your best on and off the field. We don’t want political protesting from our Cardinals, regardless of our personal politics. You won’t be a good fit or be here long in St Louis.”
My guess is that Linda had no problem with former manager Tony La Russa and Albert Pujols attending a Glenn Beck rally on August 28, 2010. You can save the “it wasn’t a political rally” nonsense.
I also assume that Linda and others critical of Fowler had no problem with fellow Cardinal fans taunting protesters outside of Busch Stadium in September 2014 following the police shooting death of unarmed Michael Brown Jr. in Ferguson.
“Dar-ren Wil-son. Clap, clap, clap-clap-clap.”
I’ll lend Linda a pick-ax so she can dig up the President George W. Bush honor embedded in the ground outside Busch Stadium, too.
Fowler now knows how fickle – and flat-out hypocritical – some members of Cardinal Nation can be. St. Louis likes to say it has baseball’s best fans. It sure didn’t display it to Fowler.
Braves honoring Bill Lucas
Ted Turner, former owner of the Atlanta Braves and founder of CNN and Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), never shied away from what he thought was right for his business interests and his National League franchise.
In fact, he named himself manager of the team for one game in May 1977 – without the blessing of Major League Baseball, which forbid anyone who owned stock in a team from managing it,
Of his many success stories, one of Turner’s greatest came in spring of 1976 when he named Bill Lucas as the Braves’ vice president of player personnel. Lucas became the first black man to run a MLB franchise player-personnel department, making him the game’s first black GM.
Lucas worked for the team for more than 20 years, beginning in 1956 when he played minor league baseball with the franchise. After his playing career ended, Lucas served in several roles, including being a key member of the transition staff that oversaw the team’s move from Milwaukee to Atlanta in 1966.
A decade later, Turner broke yet another color barrier in baseball by naming Lucas as the man in charge of player development, acquisitions and contracts. In other words, the GM.
Tragically, on May 5, 1979, Lucas suffered a cerebral hemorrhage that took his life.
Forty years after his historic promotion, the Braves are honoring Lucas at their new SunTrust Park in suburban Atlanta.
The state-of-art conference center in the baseball operations department is named the Bill Lucas Conference Room, and the street from which Braves players and executives will enter the stadium is Bill Lucas Way.
The Braves have also created the Bill Lucas Apprenticeship program, which will offer year-long apprentice positions in baseball operations to candidates of diverse backgrounds.
The Braves unveiled the Lucas Conference Room earlier this month and it features a photo of Lucas with the caption, “In recognition of his contributions to the Atlanta Braves and pioneering the transformation of Baseball’s front office.”
“Let me tell you, there are not many organizations in this country who would take a family and continue to take care of them and to love them and make them a part of their life for (almost) 40-something years after someone passes,” Lucas’ widow Rubye Lucas said. “The Atlanta Braves have been our life.”
His daughter, Wonya Lucas, said the apprenticeship program is the greatest honor the Braves have bestowed on her late father.
“I want to thank you all for remembering him and for carrying on his legacy through the apprenticeship. That would have meant so much to him. It’s about reaching back and helping others and paying it forward,” she said.
The Braves will open SunTrust Park on April 14 against the San Diego Padres, and Lucas’ legacy will again be honored during pregame ceremonies.
Aaron Donald impressive
The one player fans of the L.A. Rams should miss here in St. Louis is defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
Donald graded out as the 2nd-best NFL player in 2016, according to the respected Pro Football Focus. The lone player that was better? Tom Brady of the New England Patriots.
Donald registered 36 tackles, 31 hits on the quarterback, two forced fumbles and a league-leading 17 tackles-for-loss.
He had 82 quarterback pressures, which was five more than any other interior defensive lineman
The 24-year-old Donald was earlier named the Defensive Player of the Year and best pass rusher by Pro Football Focus, topping Oakland’s Khalil Mack and Denver’s Von Miller.
Alvin A. Reid is a panelist on the Nine Network program, Donnybrook and appears on ABC’s The Allman Report and several sports radio shows, including Frank Cusumano’s “The Press Box” on KFNS. His Twitter handle is @aareid1.
