Southpaw Gives Thanks
In our annual Thanksgiving edition, six things we're thankful for in the world of sports.
Dear readers,
We hope you all had a happy and festive Thanksgiving. Here at Southpaw, Thanksgiving provides us with a welcome opportunity to look back at the good things that have happened in the world of sports and politics in the past year. As we did last Thanksgiving, we’ve compiled a list of headlines from the year that gave us a little bit of hope—or at least gave us a little respite from the crushing despair. We hope they serve the same purpose for you, too.
-Calder & Ian
P.S. We’re also thankful for our wonderful readers—but that goes without saying.
Six Reasons Southpaw is Thankful This Year
Minor League Activism, Major League Wins
The past year witnessed the creation of two new advocacy groups dedicated to fighting for better labor conditions for minor league baseball players: Advocates for Minor Leaguers and More Than Baseball. Both groups have gotten straight to business—and they’re not messing around. Just this month, MLB announced that all major league teams would be responsible for providing furnished housing to minor league players who earn under $100,000 per year, a policy that covers over 90 percent of all minor league players. The new policy was a major win for the two advocacy groups, who had made housing a cornerstone of their recent advocacy campaigns. We’re excited to see what they turn to next. (Also, Advocates for Minor Leaguers is currently selling some pretty cool swag on their website, the proceeds of which help fund their advocacy, so check it out here if you’re doing some early holiday shopping. Alternatively, the Tipping Pitches podcast is selling also selling sweet merch that funds the same cause.)
The Washington Spirit
Last Saturday, the Washington Spirit claimed the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) title in a thrilling extra-time victory over the Chicago Red Stars. It was the Spirit’s path to the final, though, that was really made-for-Hollywood. The team has been through all sorts of shit in the past few months. In August, several Spirit players accused their coach, Richie Burke, of verbally and emotionally abusing his players, prompting the NWSL to launch an investigation into the team’s toxic workplace culture. Despite public outcry over the accusations, the team’s owner, Steve Baldwin, refused to fire Burke, forcing the league to step in and fire him over Baldwin’s objections. Angered by Baldwin’s handling of the situation, the Spirit’s players then publicly called on Baldwin to sell his controlling stake in the team, leading to a brief but nasty civil war between the team’s owners and its primary investors. Baldwin eventually announced that he was selling his stake in the team amid a broader, league-wide reckoning over systemic sexism and abuse. Then, to top it all off, the Spirit had to forfeit two important games late in the season due to a COVID outbreak. After all this, their victory on Saturday was a welcome reminder that endings are still sometimes happy.
The Women’s Tennis Association Walking Away From China
For years, American professional sports leagues, believing that China’s consumer market is the key for their long-term financial viability, have punished anyone who criticizes the authoritarian impulses of the Chinese government. But now, with China appearing to be holding Peng Shuai—the former number one ranked doubles player—hostage, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) is standing up to Beijing. The president of the WTA, Steve Simon, told CNN this month that the league is “definitely willing to pull our business and deal with the complications that come with it” if they don’t receive assurances that Shuai is safe, healthy, and able to move freely. Now, this might amount to a giant game of chicken between the two sides—and other organizations like the IOC has not been so assertive—but it’s very encouraging that at least one sports organization has decided to take a stand against the Chinese government rather than turn a blind eye to its abuses for the sake of profit.
The Guardians Worked It Out
After some negotiations with a Cleveland roller derby team that has the same name, Cleveland’s baseball team is now officially called the Guardians. They changed it after growing outrage over the former name, “Indians.” Activists (and many people with a pulse) have long noted that their “Chief Wahoo” mascot is an obviously racist caricature, and Cleveland’s owners have finally responded to concerns. Now, baseball has a long way to go on this front—the “tomahawk chop” was still a significant part of the World Series this year. But they’re moving in the right direction, and eventually those gratuitous symbols will be gone, along with tortured complaints about the sanctity of “tradition.”
Basketball is Really, Truly, Fun Right Now
Maybe it’s just Knicks and Wizards fever, but we don’t think it is. The WNBA (which is currently in its offseason) and NBA are a lot of fun right now. The WNBA continues to enjoy a renaissance, as stalwarts like Breanna Stewart and Brittany Griner have been joined by a new crop of stars including A’ja Wilson and Arike Ogunbowale to create a dynamic viewing experience. Sports fans agree, as the league continues to see a ratings bump.
On the NBA side, rule changes (which are not perfect yet) have cut down on cheap foul calls and created a dynamic opening to the season. The NBA is also a constant source of enjoyable drama—Ben Simmons practicing with his phone in his pocket and leaving again, Kyrie’s vaccine hesitancy potential sinking the Nets’ title hopes, Isaiah Stewart breaking tackles in an attempt to attack LeBron James after an elbow to the face. Both of these leagues, warts and all, are a lot of fun. And while we here at Southpaw try to understand the broader messages that sports can tell us, we also like to watch the games—and there have been some good ones lately.
The Demise of Professional Assholes
Surveying our newsletters from the past year, something like a leitmotif starts to emerge: the downfall of depraved, powerful men in sports. Call the cultural force behind this reckoning whatever you want: the aftershocks of the #MeToo movement, “cancel culture,” “woke capitalism,” etc. etc. etc. Whatever it is, we’re glad it’s making inroads in the sporting world, which is dominated at all levels—from pee-wee baseball to the Olympics—by monumental assholes. Here’s a brief, non-comprehensive list of the assholes who’ve come under scrutiny in the past year: Jon Gruden, a slew of NWSL coaches, Cam Newton, Jason Kidd, Stephen A. Smith, Trevor Bauer, NCAA Commissioner Mark Emmert, Barstool’s Dave Portnoy, and the New York Mets’ GM-for-five-minutes Jared Porter, just to name a few. (By the way, all of those hyperlinks go to other Southpaw stories. It’s been quite the year of chronicling this stuff.)
Of course, not all of these men committed the same tenor of fuck up and not all of them have met the same fate (rightfully so)—Jon Gruden will likely never see the inside of an NFL locker room ever again, while Stephen A. Smith continues to spew bullshit live on ESPN’s airwaves multiple times a week—but we’ll take what we can get. And even if you disagree with the specifics of the objections to any of these particular dudes, we hope we can all get behind the basic moral insight that’s driving this movement: that if sports were a little less organized around the cruel and cutthroat logic of asshole men, they would be a more pleasant place for all of us.
RODNEY’S ROUNDUP
Do you want to read about . . .
. . . allyship in the NFL? “After hearing a survivor’s story, this NFL player joined her efforts against sexual violence,” by Nicki Jhabvala in The Washington Post (November 24, 2021).
. . . the IOC’s gutless response to Peng Shuai’s disappearance (in contrast to the WTA)? “In I.O.C.’s ‘Quiet Diplomacy,’ Critics See Whitewash of China’s Actions,” by Tariq Panja and Steven Lee Myers in The New York Times (November 26, 2021).
. . . the lasting impact of the 1990 U.S. Women’s National Team? “When Women’s Soccer Started a Revolution,” by Dave Zirin in The Nation (November 23, 2021).
. . . the failed attempt to boycott “the Nazi Olympics”? “The Olympic boycott movement that failed,” by Frederic Frommer in The Washington Post (November 26, 2021).
. . . how the NCAA’s new name, image, and likeness rules are helping, rather than hurting, team’s chemistry?? “College NIL didn’t tear our team apart. It’s helping us win,” by Kaiden Smith in Sportico (November 24, 2021).