After reading the unimaginable report in The Athletic about Mickey Callaway and his penchant for being a predator, which comes directly on the heels of Jared Porter being dismissed for the exact same barbaric behavior, I can’t help but think there is room to have a dialog about the situation of powerful men in baseball abusing female (and almost certainly male) journalists clearly without any fear of being exposed for the monsters they are. Much like with drug doping, I suspect this is much more widespread than a couple of misunderstood wayward “man-boys.” What do you think the MLB can do overcome this dark situation?
Brian – It’s sad that the question, “Are you a sexual predator?” now has to be part of the standard job interview questions. But the only way the situation gets better is if we admit that it exists and that it exists to a much greater extent than a lot of people – myself at the front of the line – thought that it did. Maybe this is naïve of me, or an example of caveman thinking. But the Callaway thing just really shocked me.
You look at Harvey Weinstein and you look at Jared Porter and it’s easy to imagine that those are two people who maybe didn’t start life with women being attracted to them and – in my little mind – maybe they felt somehow justified using their positions of power to their advantage. It’s just hard for me to imagine that Callaway had those same early rejections and the need to compensate in this manner.
I guess the equivalent would be – it makes sense for Neifi Perez to take steroids but why Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire? But getting back to your question, perhaps MLB needs to set up some type of hotline where people can anonymously report harassment issues. But reporting isn’t enough – there has to be actual investigations and penalties handed out and enforced.
Chris – I think this is less about “looks” and entirely about power and abuse. Ted Bundy was good looking – and a monster. Surely “are you a predator” would have to be a mandated question during an interview, but look at Callaway’s comment to this: all these relationships were consensual; total denial. Obviously, his abusive advances were not welcome or consensual in any way. Instead of asking the applicant about their behavior, it strikes me that the path needs to be talking to more than just baseball folks in the interview process.
This past week, Sandy Alderson was asked by a female reporter whether he had spoken to any women about Porter during the interview process. His response was a sheepish, but accepting, “no” – followed by the statement that there simply are no women in positions of power that would know this. Such a statement clearly indicates that, despite baseball being a fundamentally human relations business, there is a distinct separation between the clubs and the people that cover them. We all know beat writers spend vast amounts of time in close contact with players and managers. Victim statements follow a common theme too: “it’s the worst kept secret in the game so-and-so is a predator.” Input from reporters in the hiring process and making things easy for journalists to confidentially reach out for help within the Commissioner’s office without compromising their jobs or identity is necessary.
The fact is, every single time something like this madness surfaces like the cancer it is, we also hear ignorance from teams and from the MLB: “we never heard about or ever had any complaints filed about so-and-so for improper behavior.” For how long will this be a believable position? In my opinion, that has now ended. Racism, doping, and misogyny are a bad look.
Brian – It’s difficult for me to imagine reporters being involved in the hiring process as a good thing. They have a hard enough time doing the job they’ve actually been (sort of) trained to do.
I’m a big believer in actions have consequences. I’m curious to see what the consequences for Callaway actually are. We know he’s been suspended and right now it’s hard to imagine he won’t be fired in the near future. That seems appropriate. His actions should have consequences and not a “slap on the wrist” type of consequence.
But I also believe that there should be a path for offenders to take to reemerge as productive members of society. It shouldn’t be an easy path but it shouldn’t be non-existent, either. I think about Al Campanis, whose lifetime achievements in the game – and Dusty Baker and Manny Mota spoke up for his character – were tossed out the window and he was never allowed back in MLB ever again because he was a jackass for five minutes on national television.
Callaway should be punished and everyone should see him as an example of how not to behave. But there should be a road for him to take where, if everything goes right, people can also see him as someone who made mistakes and acknowledged the hurt that he caused. This road should allow Callaway, and others, the opportunity for penance for thier transgressions.
If we can convict him in the court of public opinion – and he should be convicted there – we should also be able to give him something other than a life sentence without parole.
Chris – I hear you about adding journalists to the hiring process. I’ll say one thing, I’d surely make phone calls and see if there is anything lurking in the tall grass. I struggle with the dichotomy of “we’ve never heard anything” and “it’s the worst kept secret in the game.” We need a bridge to connect those statements, so that this behavior has no place to hide. I agree that there should be a rehabilitation pathway, but I endorse that being in a different job. A bus driver reports to work having smoked. A joint two weeks before and is fired on the spot. If anyone in my work position did the same thing as Callaway and Porter did it would be immediate dismiss and a career change. I honestly don’t care what that would mean to baseball. Rehabilitate your life, get all the support needed to become a better person, but not in a visible position where actions influence so many people. I always side on the victim, their recovery, and future well-being.
I am happy to hear that Alderson said that the Mets are in the process of modifying their hiring process. Among Porter, Callaway and Beltran, the team (and MLB) clearly needs to figure out how to identify and remove the trash on a much earlier timeline – and end the era of willful ignorance.
This is a serious topic for sure, and everyone, not just the Mets, needs to re-assess their hiring processes. However, there is no easy fix here. There are and have always been “bad apples” out there. Carousing has always been part of “the show” and I’ve witnessed it first hand myself. But “calling around” to get input on a person’s “character” gets real sketchy. I think the biggest way to help the issue is to empower the victim to speak up immediately. Be it a hotline or some other means, if this stuff is unwelcome and causes someone to be uncomfortable, it needs to be called out. I understand it’s very tough for victims, but it needs to be made easier. Putting it in print years later is a start but it’s not the a solution. I mean, if a major league manager/coach is sending a reporter or fellow employee unwanted pictures or texts, why is that not an immediate issue?
This is a tough piece to write about because on one hand everything is cut and dried. Porter and Callaway are the villains and the villains should be made to pay for their actions.
Where it gets tricky is that there seems to be an obvious things that should have been done sooner and yet they almost never are. And how do you mention these things without coming across like you’re blaming the victim?
It’s easy for me as a white male far removed from the situation to say that the women should have done X, Y and Z.
I’m trying hard not to do that. But one thing I can’t wrap my head around is that journalists, writers – didn’t write about this. If nowhere else, how about a personal blog? They wouldn’t have to name any names – just detail that on such and such a date – Man X said and did this to me.
If nothing else, it should have been cathartic.
This is well studied ground.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-compassion-chronicles/201711/why-dont-victims-sexual-harassment-come-forward-sooner
And is there a link to show why writers don’t write about it – at all?
To clarify, in no way am I blaming the recipient. These type of situations can impact person X and person Y differently, and can even impact person X differently based on the passage of time. What I am questioning me, or what is perplexing to me, is that there doesn’t seem to be any structure in MLB for this type of stuff to be addressed. Over the years, in different businesses, I have been to multiple sexual harassment seminars. As a manager I have dealt with accusations of sexual harassment in the workplace (not against me). There is protocol, structure, and methodology. Is everything reported and addressed? Certainly not. But something like “the worst kept secret in the sport” to linger in the shadows for multiple years with multiple victims? Something doesn’t add up there. These victims are employees and have bosses as well. Aside from the morality (not to minimize that aspect), it is starting to sound like both MLB and the employers of these victims have a lot of liability.
Regarding the hiring process, and not defending the Mets, its just hard to fathom how this type of stuff can be flushed out before the hire. There are now tons of digital interactions, many private and not accessible. Without some type of documented record, it is hard to disqualify someone based on innuendo or undefended accusations. We have had presidents, more than one, with long records of similar behaviors. It does seem like the workplace sets a pretty clear boundary, but that workplace needs mechanisms in place in order to minimize the occurrences and deal with those that occur promptly.
If Callaway did this, then he is a pig. How would anyone feel if they found out their wife, daughter, sister or mother was abused in this fashion.
I think there could be a path forward to help those who were abused to have it addressed. MLB should have an agreement with the media companies, that if a reporter or anyone else was abused by a MLB player, manager, etc…then they could report it to their employer and have addressed between the employer and MLB. It would help protect the victim and provide a path to have it addressed in a timely fashion without the fear of retribution.
Great column and spot on. The lack of proper vetting would have eliminated all the poor hires that were made, but that would have just patched the wound without treating the cause. It’s hard when you feel you are becoming an endangered species, while still considering yourself one of the good guys. We all can do so much more to stop it.
Problem with workplace sensitivity training is that its real goal is limiting liability, and not forcing people to be better humans.
On another note, Billy Martin once said, “All Latins¹ are 1st ball, high ball, fastball hitters”. How would that fly in 2021? Martin was a lunatic, but not a bigot, I’ll warrant. His favorite players were the scrappy, hard-nosed, all-out types, not blessed with great talent, but with a burning desire to win², regardless of skin color.
1. I’m pretty sure he said “Latins”, not “Latinos”. Things have changed
2. Kind of reminds you of someone
José
Little made of this in the press, but more of the same thing in Queens. In addition to Porter another member of the Major League staff was released for sexual harassment.
I think it is safe to say that under the Wilpon’s watch, the number of cases of women being harassed was indicative of major internal rot within the organization. Let’s hope Cohen and Alderson can weed out anyone left and try to clean sweep the organization with a new culture.
This cannot be dismissed as a single occurrence (as horrific as that would be alone), but clearly a sign of a much bigger team problem, and likely MLB wide with the shuttling of players and coaches around the league. So while Selig was pushing doping to save the game and Manfred is concerned about shaving 12 minutes off time of play and botching high-school level cheating in Houston, both failed to see the obvious problem in front of them – with virtually zero interest in it whatsoever.
Not sure I agree that little has been made of it, as my wife asked me about it and she doesn’t follow sports. Think she saw it on CNN.