Recently the Jim Evans Academy for Professional Umpiring has hosted an annual company bowling celebration. Often the occasion goes off like you could visualize a company bowling occasion would with a little excitement. But, not this time!
Every year, teams are constructed as well as fun names are chosen. Even so, this year one team went too far by picking a team name that attracted a resemblance to the Ku Klux Klan. Then, shockingly, team members arrived in costumes which were similar to clothing the racist group is well known for and also reportedly using well known slurs! While this kind of behaviour will make many people uncomfortable the school's only black employee experienced a good deal of unease (Which I'm sure is a mild means of putting it). Right after, photographs were circulated and news started to get out about what transpired that night. It didn't take long for Minor League Baseball (and also MLB by extension) to take notice.
"We carried out an investigation, made our queries, and that we discovered behavior that people discovered to be reprehensible." stated Pat O'Conner, President of MiLB. And the reprehension? MiLB won't longer take students coming from the Evans Academy which a year ago produced 14 recruits who have been officially evaluated simply by Professional Baseball Umpire Corp, a subsidiary of MiLB.
The consequence seems fitting. After all, why would the MiLB and MLB desire to be linked to group who believes this type of action is simply "... a bad joke that was not meant to hurt anyone" (Jim Evans). To complicate the matter somewhat is definitely the proven fact that Minor League Baseball opened its own competing Umpire School this coming year, that has been fodder for Evans and others, allowing them to point to that as a concealed motive.
MiLB doesn't have any contract with the Evan's Academy or any Umpire School so I do not see this decision being changed at any point even if it becomes a legitimate matter. In the meantime, take the Jim Evans Academy off the listing of potential Umpire Schools.
Every year, teams are constructed as well as fun names are chosen. Even so, this year one team went too far by picking a team name that attracted a resemblance to the Ku Klux Klan. Then, shockingly, team members arrived in costumes which were similar to clothing the racist group is well known for and also reportedly using well known slurs! While this kind of behaviour will make many people uncomfortable the school's only black employee experienced a good deal of unease (Which I'm sure is a mild means of putting it). Right after, photographs were circulated and news started to get out about what transpired that night. It didn't take long for Minor League Baseball (and also MLB by extension) to take notice.
"We carried out an investigation, made our queries, and that we discovered behavior that people discovered to be reprehensible." stated Pat O'Conner, President of MiLB. And the reprehension? MiLB won't longer take students coming from the Evans Academy which a year ago produced 14 recruits who have been officially evaluated simply by Professional Baseball Umpire Corp, a subsidiary of MiLB.
The consequence seems fitting. After all, why would the MiLB and MLB desire to be linked to group who believes this type of action is simply "... a bad joke that was not meant to hurt anyone" (Jim Evans). To complicate the matter somewhat is definitely the proven fact that Minor League Baseball opened its own competing Umpire School this coming year, that has been fodder for Evans and others, allowing them to point to that as a concealed motive.
MiLB doesn't have any contract with the Evan's Academy or any Umpire School so I do not see this decision being changed at any point even if it becomes a legitimate matter. In the meantime, take the Jim Evans Academy off the listing of potential Umpire Schools.
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