As the world of baseball celebrated Jackie Robinson Day by donning No. 42 jerseys in honor of the man who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle believes that more barriers will be broken in the league’s future.
Prior to the start of the Pirates’ game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Hurdle stated that Jackie Robinson Day goes beyond shattering racial barriers, and can open up opportunities for others to be broken. One of those barriers he mentioned was the gender barrier.
“This isn’t just an African-American celebration. This is about the opening of doors for everybody,” Hurdle said, according to the Beaver County Times. “I still believe firmly there is going to be a day where there is a female player in the big leagues. I got that. Where it goes, I don’t know. I don’t believe I’ll be in the dugout to see it.”
Hurdle’s statement comes at an interesting time in sports when many are beginning to further delve into gender equality and representation in sports. In just this past year alone, the other major professional sports leagues have shattered gender barriers in various ways. The NFL hired its first full-time female official in Sarah Thomas prior to the 2015 regular season. The league also had its first assistant coach in Jen Welter, who coached inside linebackers for the Arizona Cardinals during the 2015 preseason. The NBA also shattered the gender barrier when San Antonio Spurs’ Becky Hammon became the first female head coach of the NBA Summer League, coaching the Spurs to the Las Vegas Summer League title. MLB has been the last league to begin breaking the gender mold in this regard, but based on the actions of other leagues, and while Hurdle believes he won’t be in the dugout when a female player is up to bat as a player, it could certainly be a possibility for him to still be there if a female coach or umpire is part of America’s Pastime.
