Just think about hitting it on the floor. We first met him a couple of weeks before the game, while he was working at a baseball training gym in Queens, N.Y., not far from where he's lived his whole life. SUMMERS: The 22-year-old was a catcher at Coppin State University in Baltimore for the last four years. MIKE DORCEAN: Stepping on that field is going to be a surreal experience, and I just want to take it all in and enjoy the moment. The Swingman Classic is pro baseball's latest attempt to try to change the way pro baseball looks by bringing 50 players from 17 historically Black colleges and universities to All-Star Week. It was the first series without a single American-born Black player. And last year's World Series was a sobering moment for the sport. SUMMERS: It's been 76 years since Jackie Robinson integrated the National League, but Black American representation in the sport has been declining in recent decades for a number of reasons that are economic, structural and cultural. And so, you know, to see this, hopefully one or two guys can go on and do it. GRIFFEY: You know, nowadays, it's only one, two, three. was playing, Black American players made up 18% of MLB rosters. SUMMERS: That's Ken Griffey Jr., the swingman himself, a legendary Hall of Famer and former Seattle Mariner. So, you know, there was only, I think, one year where I was the only Black ballplayer on my team. KEN GRIFFEY JR: When I played, it was like 17, 18%. The decline in Black representation has been sharp. SUMMERS: The first annual HBCU Swingman Classic, an opportunity for players from historically Black colleges and universities to play in front of scouts and executives on a national stage and on national TV. UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER #1: This historic, first-ever Swingman Classic. All-Star Week kicked off this past weekend in Seattle, putting a new generation of diverse talent in the national spotlight. This year, the MLB did something to try and change that. Baseball was once known for breaking racial barriers in the U.S., but now Black representation in the major leagues is at its lowest in decades.
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