Sports fans have a way of rallying around the assholes on their team. I'm still rankled by the "We love you Bertuzzi" rally that Vancouver's notorious skilled good got a few years ago. And look at how New Orleans is uniting behind the headhunting Saints.
Without diminishing the obvious injustice of segregation, I hardly think that Baseball was forced entirely by racial prejudice to exhaust the possibilities of two-armed racially permissible athletes, and thus to give a shot to Mr. Gray. Given that the game was played in 1945, how much of a factor was it that the one-armed man in question was ineligible to serve in the armed forces?
Coinicidentally, Jim Abbott, the one handed pitcher who threw a no-hitter for the Yankees in 1993, was on ESPN this morning promoting his new autobiography.
@4 The wartime shortage of players was one key reason why Gray made the bigs, and he was not a bad athlete--but there were plenty of African-American players available who were passed over for Gray.
@8 Yeah. I know. If only we had the draft now! Between Iraq and Afghanistan, the Cubs would be on their sixth or seventh title by now. Damn all-volunteer military.
How come no two armed players ever just bat with one arm? You wouldn't get the same power and accuracy with one arm swinging but it seems like it could be easier to make contact with a quickly moving ball if you were taking a one armed forehand swing.