November 3, 2017      5:45 PM

Smith: A National Anthem in Mime

QR’s Liberal Columnist Glenn W. Smith notes that a moment in the 2017 World Series contained an important lesson for all of us. You don’t have to be a baseball fan to get it.

There was an inspiring American moment in the first inning of the seventh game of the 2017 World Series. Well, to this fan there were many. But, one stands out.

Before stepping to the plate for his first at bat, Astro Yuli Gurriel paused, and with a look of contrition in his eyes, tipped his helmet to Dodger pitcher Yu Darvish. Darvish then stepped to the front of the mound and nodded in recognition of Gurriel’s gesture.

After hitting a home run off Darvish in game three of the series, Gurriel, who defected from Cuba in 2016, returned to the Astro dugout and made a racist gesture mocking Darvish. It was caught on camera. Gurriel has been suspended for the first five games of the 2018 season.

Dodger fans didn’t really notice Gurriel’s gesture of apology. They kept on booing his appearance at the plate. They will be booing Gurriel whenever the Cuban baseball star returns to LA. It’s understandable. Gurriel earned the boos. And, sports fans aren’t all that forgiving. In sports, once villains and heroes are chosen, they tend to stay in those roles. Think professional wrestling. Sadly, it can be true even in the purest of American sports, baseball, as it can be true away from the many fields of play.

Let’s return to that moment in the seventh game.

The full column by Glenn W. Smith is in the R&D Department.

By Glenn W. Smith

Copyright November 03, 2017, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved