Perhaps MLB got what they wanted....for fans to debate this issue and bring back the spotlight to stats and players who for the most part are long gone and not frequently talked about. We are talking about a time when baseball was still a classically perfect game played by people of all races, religions and all ages. At the same time it was no where near the perfect game as it kept a large part of the population away based solely on their skin color. Baseball NEEDS this discussion and there is no doubt debates such as the one we see here on these boards are happening everywhere.
I guess I look at the inclusion of the stats from the Negro leagues as more of a comparison and celebration of baseball during a complicated time in our history and not a rewriting of history. In my opinion there really is no right or wrong here and the best of the best deserve to be recognized regardless if their stardom was gained through the Negro leagues or MLB itself.
After all...in 100 years will any of this really matter anyway?
Somewhere I see in my minds eye ol' Buck O'Neil smiling proudly.
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