![]() “A well-paid slave is nonetheless a slave,” Flood told Cosell. In a January 1970 interview, the sports broadcaster Howard Cosell asked Flood how he could compare his rift with professional baseball to slavery when he was making $90,000 a year. It also became the foundation on which generational wealth for Black athletes was built.įlood’s reasoning was logical: He was extraordinarily good at his job, and he deserved to have a say in his career. His fight for worth and choice was hugely controversial at the time. Flood, however, was unwilling to accept financial success in exchange for his silence. All that was needed to tame a revolution was to give enslaved people just enough occasional privileges. He was creating an important narrative: If Black athletes were distracted by sports, then fighting for equal treatment, liberation from bondage, dignity, and respect would become less of a priority. ![]() Douglass was keenly aware that if enslaved people were rewarded with “holidays” to play ball, wrestle, and run, they would be discouraged from rebelling against their inhumane conditions. ![]() Frederick Douglass wrote in his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, that enslavers often used sports to manipulate enslaved people. Flood wasted no time in registering his objection with MLB’s commissioner, Bowie Kuhn, writing, “I do not feel that I am a piece of property to be bought and sold irrespective of my wishes.”Īs uncomfortable as Flood’s allusion to slavery may have made some people feel, the comparison was apt. ![]() Louis Cardinals, balked when he learned that he’d been traded to Philly. So it was no wonder that Curt Flood, a superstar center fielder for the St. The team’s fan base also had a reputation for being hostile and racist. The year was 1969, and not only were the Phillies next-level terrible, but they had signed their first African American player only 12 years ago, in 1957. Louis Cardinals have had eight players with two-or-more back-to-back 200-hit seasons: Lou Brock (1970-1971), Jesse Burkett (1899-1900-1901), Taylor Douthit (1929-1930), Rogers Hornsby (1920-1921-1922 & 1924-1925), Curt Flood (1963-1964), Joe Medwick (1935-1936-1937), Stan Musial (1948-1949), and Joe Torre (1970-1971).One of the most consequential episodes in the history of American sports began with an All-Star Major Leaguer’s simple wish to avoid the Philadelphia Phillies. Read more about " Curt Flood v Bowie Kuhn, et al". Major League Baseball's counsel countered that Commissioner Kuhn had acted "for the good of the game." On June 19, 1972, the Supreme Court, invoking the principle of stare decisis ("to stand by things decided"), ruled 5-3 in favor of Major League Baseball, citing as precedent a 1922 ruling in Federal Baseball Club v. Flood's attorney, former Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg, asserted that the reserve clause depressed wages and limited players to one team for life. 258) was argued before the Supreme Court on March 20, 1972. Flood was making $90,000 that season and likened the reserve clause to slavery. On January 16, 1970, Flood filed a $1 million lawsuit against Kuhn and Major League Baseball, alleging violation of federal antitrust laws. KuhnBaseball Almanac Research LibraryĬommissioner Kuhn denied Flood's request for free agency, citing the propriety of the reserve clause and its inclusion in Flood's 1969 contract. Curt Flood Letter to Commissioner Bowie K.
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