ARLINGTON (1080 KRLD)- The City of Arlington and Globe Life Field will be the center of the baseball world for the MLB All-Star Game and surrounding events over the next week. And it all starts with the HBCU Swingman Classic on Friday, July 12 at 7.
The Classic invites 50 Division I student athletes and is underwritten by the Youth Development Foundation, which is a cooperative endeavor of Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association.
Jean Lee Batrus is passionate about providing opportunities and access to underrepresented communities in baseball. As executive director of the MLB-MLBPA Youth Development Foundation, Batrus plays an important role in several programs aimed at youth development, including the HBCU Swingman Classic.
"We're excited to come to Texas to celebrate The Swingman Classic and All-Star Week," Batrus said. "Aside from the on field showcase, there's also other programming that includes community service and youth clinics."
Participants in the game will perform community service with Foster Love, facilitate a youth clinic at All-Star Village, and have a very special day with the Suit Up Experience in partnership with Mark Cuban's Heroes Basketball Center.
"Programs like the Suit Up Experience offer the opportunity for these young men to learn about life skills, how to put on a suit, how to groom themselves, being mentored around etiquette, public speaking, and that's so important whether you're a professional athlete or not," Batrus shared.
Batrus said that athletes from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) often get overlooked, but possess great talent.
"There's great talent and alone last year when we had our inaugural showcase game and philanthropic event, we had several players actually make it into the draft," she noted.
For baseball fans and supporters of youth development, the HBCU Swingman Classic represents much more than a game. It's an opportunity to celebrate HBCU culture and the sport itself.
"It is a public event. Tickets are affordable, and this provides an amazing experience to celebrate HBCU culture and to share this wonderful game of baseball that we love so much," Batrus said.
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