Study: Gender hiring up, number of Black players fall in MLB

By AARON BEARD
AP Sports Writer

A study examining diversity hiring practices finds Major League Baseball with rising gender scores but also a three-decade low for Black players on opening day rosters. The latest report card from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport issued an overall grade of B-minus, with a B for racial hiring and a C-plus for gender hiring. The report examined positions at MLB’s headquarters and within franchises for the 2022 season. Gender milestones included the first women to manage the affiliate of an MLB team and to take an on-field coaching role in a regular-season game. Lead report author Richard Lapchick was concerned by Black players representing 7.2% of opening day rosters. That’s the lowest since the study data began being collected in 1991.