Yesterday, in that piece I wrote about women playing major league baseball one day, I linked to a story from a couple of years ago in which an espnW writer couldn’t get anyone from a major league team to go on record to even speculate or talk about the idea of women playing baseball.
Kevin Goldstein, the pro scouting director for the Houston Astros was a bit irked by that, so he went on record:
Upset to read a three-year old piece linked by @craigcalcaterra in which MLB people wouldn’t comment, so here goes.
— Kevin Goldstein (@Kevin_Goldstein) August 28, 2014
If there was a woman playing college or indy ball somewhere and succeeding, we’d scout her like we would any other player.
— Kevin Goldstein (@Kevin_Goldstein) August 28, 2014
Nice to hear. And, his old counterparts’ silence notwithstanding, I assume that’s the majority view among MLB talent evaluators. Talent is talent. If a baby elephant were able to play, Looney Tunes-style, some scout would check him out because finding baseball players who will help you win more games is the entire bleedin’ point.
We may not see a woman who can compete at that level any time soon or maybe even ever. But it’s good to know that, if and when we do, someone will watch her and give her a fair shake.