![]() ![]() Heroism like his Americans dismiss How dare any slave rise to attack That deserves no reward And is better ignored Curt Flood made his point but Curt was Black He took Baseball to court For the good of all sport Challenged the "reserve clause" on its face He delivered a blow That let all athletes go Curt Flood, though did not win in this case ![]() He confronted the power Of rich men of the hour Owners of baseball teams and much more Heroism the same As made him playing fame Curt Flood stepped up determined to score Yet he seemed not to fear For his brilliant career As a major league champion, all starred His cause he would pursue Though if he lost he knew Curt Flood would then from baseball be barred To abolishing laws Like baseball's "reserve clause" That kept major league players enslaved He made freedom his cause Without fanfare or pause Curt Flood knew the dangers he braved With the courage to stand Under his own command And to do battle for what he felt was right All alone in the land Taking matters in hand Curt Flood started a principled fight.Īlthough he was maligned By the timid who whined And complained he was "rocking the boat" As he summoned his strength to do battle at length Curt Flood vowed all he had he'd devote With that as a preface, here is that poem, enjoy! Moreover, Oscar attended every New York Federal Court session with Curt to provide moral support during this precarious time. He was married to Judy's sister Jean Pace. In Chicago they've even named a street after him. The following poem was written by Curt Flood's brother in Law, Oscar Brown, Jr., Born in 1926 in Chicago, Illinois, He became a songwriter, lyricist, playwright, poet, civil rights activist and actor. I appreciate her a great deal, because whenever I see this vibrant lady, the actor, speaker and ambassador for the Major League Baseball Players Association she is always positive, upbeat, well spoken and a joy to be around. ![]() Curt's wife of many years, Judy Pace Flood recently shared it with me, and let me know I'm welcome to do so with others. ![]() With that as a backdrop, I want to share with you a poem about Curt that heretofore never been shared with the public. Later on I was privileged enough to to speak with Curt personally, and thank him (late in his life) because his choices made a huge difference to me and my career. Simply for the purpose of disclosure, before I faced my first free agent option later in the 70's I had to read his book for my own knowledge and strength, because even then both employers and the public were not quite ready for this newly won right for players. His career statement was made (in hindsight before its time), and his career was cut short. He challenged that law all the way up to the Supreme Court of America. Louis Cardinals, he had to unceremoniously walk away from his stellar career because he challenged the "Baseball Reserve Clause", the baseball law that bound a player to a team until he was either traded or released. Despite being a three time NL All Star, a seven time Gold Glover, and a two time World Champion with the St. This is quite timely, as Free Agency is the primary topic of discussion today between Major League Baseball Players, the MLBPA and Major League Baseball this 2018 Spring Training.Ĭurt Flood, born in Houston, Texas in 1938, became a professional baseball player in 1956, and played his last game in 1971. He paved the way for thousands of young players in Major League Baseball, who have since have received the benefits from his career decisions related to the right called Free Agency. The takeaway of this story was that this professional baseball player took the first steps towards achieving fairness, and freedom of choice for the workplace in all sports. Time Magazine named him one of the 10 Most Influential Athletes of the 20th Century. With that recognition and before I head to Spring Training I wanted to share with you a poem about Curt Flood, a historic, multifaceted figure that Major League Baseball wasn't very good to. We are now in late February, Black History Month. Dave Winfield presenting a work by Oscar Brown, Jr. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |