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Sports

‘We’re doing a disservice to an entire generation’: How Chicago athletes and teams reacted to Roe being overturned

On Thursday, the sports world celebrated the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or educational program that receives funding from the government.Fans, athletes, politicians and celebrities took part in celebrating the last 50 years of empowered female athletes. Title IX gave girls and women an opportunity to participate in sports that had long been available to men, though it did not necessarily level the playing field. The day was filled with remembrances of influential women in sports and promises for the future.AdvertisementThen on Friday, the Supreme Court stifled that joy when it overturned Roe v. Wade. The timing was likely coincidental but impactful nonetheless. The right for women to make decisions for their own bodies, as they see fit, was taken away.Abortion is a matter of both personal choice and healthcare, and for athletes, regardless of gender, Roe being struck down will have an impact on where they choose to play and live and the type of healthcare they are able to receive.AdvertisementIn Illinois, where a law remains in place to keep abortion legal, Gov. J.B. Pritzker promised the state would remain a “safe haven” for women’s reproductive rights.Two-time WNBA MVP and Chicago-area native Candace Parker expressed her dismay, telling WGN-TV: “I have a 13-year-old daughter. For me personally, for us in this generation to mess this up for her and the decisions that she can make and the ownership of her own body — I feel like we’re doing a disservice to an entire generation.“I get emotional because I feel like as women in this country every time we take two or three steps forward — is it by chance that it was close to Title IX and the 50th anniversary? I feel like we have a way in this country of handling things in that way. I’m just disappointed.”Her Chicago Sky teammate Courtney Vandersloot added: “To me, it’s just heartbreaking that we’re in 2022 and women are still fighting for their right for their own bodies. I don’t agree with it. For people that are standing up and being the voice — I think it’s really important. The fight’s not over. People need voices and I think the WNBA and the Chicago Sky is a great platform.”White Sox closer Liam Hendriks, in an appearance on WSCR-670 AM’s “Parkins & Spiegel Show,” voiced his displeasure with the decision.“Obviously, today is a terrible, terrible day for women’s rights,” Hendriks said. “I mean, what’s next? Are they going to take voting for women as well now? It’s just something that is absurd in the fact that they thought that this is their thing.“If this had anything to do with men, there’d be no chance that this would be overturned. And that’s something that’s disgraceful in this day and age.”Hendriks also served as the “voice” of Pride Night for the Sox on Thursday.Advertisement“The fact is the hate I get for being an ally is very limited compared to what some other people may be getting if they’re in the spotlight or in the limelight going through this ordeal of going out and being true to themselves,” he said.Other Chicago athletes took to social media to voice their displeasure with the ruling or express solidarity with those affected by it.“The strength of our women is unmatched. We must protect them at all costs,” Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman tweeted. “Unimaginable to see their rights taken away. Men should never be allowed to make laws about women’s bodies. Those of you who disagree need to realize you’re a direct part of the problem. Change is needed!”The strength of our women is unmatched. We must protect them all at costs. Unimaginable to see their rights taken away. Men should never be allowed to make laws about women’s bodies. Those of you who disagree need to realize you’re a direct part of the problem. Change is needed!— Marcus Stroman (@STR0) June 25, 2022

Stroman also retweeted Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price and former NBA coach Stan van Gundy.Several athletes, including the Cubs’ Adbert Alzolay and the Bears’ Jaquan Brisker and Thomas Graham Jr., opted to retweet posts.The Chicago Sky shared a statement that read: “The Chicago Sky stand for all women and their rights to have autonomy over their own bodies and decide their own futures. We will be a voice for all those impacted by today’s Supreme Court decision and continue to fight for women’s freedom, health equity, and social justice.”AdvertisementThe commissioners of the NBA and WNBA released a joint statement: “The NBA and WNBA believe that women should be able to make their own decisions concerning their health and future, and we believe that freedom should be protected. We will continue to advocate for gender and health equity, including ensuring our employees have access to reproductive health care, regardless of their location.”NBA AND WNBA STATEMENT REGARDING ROE V. WADE DECISION NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert issued the following statement regarding today’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization: pic.twitter.com/P13MSouB5A— NBA (@NBA) June 24, 2022

The WNBA firmly believes people have the right to make their own personal decisions regarding their health. We stand in solidarity with those who fear for the repercussions of the Supreme Court decision today and remain committed to our 2022 WNBA season focus on civic engagement. pic.twitter.com/RtuBdjbozP— WNBA (@WNBA) June 24, 2022

Sports

Column: Tony La Russa and David Ross are trying to change the script during Chicago’s summer of discontent

It hasn’t exactly been the best of times for Tony La Russa and David Ross, the two baseball managers in a baseball town.Neither is a particularly good loser, yet losing has defined both of their 2022 seasons in the first three months.AdvertisementLa Russa’s Chicago White Sox were expected to be World Series contenders. It’s a team custom-built for a veteran manager to get it over the hump, which is why La Russa came out of retirement in 2020 to take the reins.But the Sox began their West Coast trip Monday in Anaheim with a losing record amid plenty of discord over whether La Russa carries most of the blame.AdvertisementOn the flip side, not much was expected from Ross’ Cubs after a 91-loss season and only two significant free-agent signings in Marcus Stroman and Seiya Suzuki.But the Cubs, being the Cubs, still have managed to play below those low expectations. They’ll take the fifth-worst record in the majors (28-45) into Tuesday’s opener of a three-game series with the bottom-feeding Cincinnati Reds.The collective angst among Chicago baseball fans is at near-historic levels, perhaps not seen since the summer of 2002, when the Cubs lost 95 games under Don Baylor, Rene Lachemann and Bruce Kimm and the Sox finished .500 under Jerry Manuel.No one is happy, except perhaps the beer cup stackers not watching the games at Wrigley Field and the gambling sites accepting wagers from the dwindling number of Sox fans who still believe they’ll make a run.White Sox manager Tony La Russa stands in the dugout during the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Guaranteed Rate Field on June 20, 2022. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)La Russa, 77, and Ross, 45, are quite different in age and personality. But they do share a few similarities, including a testiness on occasion after difficult losses. Both have been tested in 2022.La Russa has been confrontational with reporters, and Ross once walked out on a reporter’s question, which he later apologized for. Neither has spewed volcanic ash despite the minor eruptions.Unfortunately, the days of managers of losing teams venting at the main culprits — the players they manage — are seemingly part of a bygone era. As long as the effort is there, La Russa and Ross are OK, and as far as they’re concerned, the effort has been there all season.“It doesn’t benefit any manager, coach, even player to rant publicly,” Ross said Sunday morning at Busch Stadium. “There are things that happen in house that you have to take care of and you have to have a little bit of teeth every once in a while.Advertisement[ [Don’t miss] ‘Hot as a pistol’: 3 standout numbers that led to prospect Lenyn Sosa’s promotion to the White Sox ]“The key to that is understanding why you have those conversations, what those intentions are and the expectations for a manager, a coach, an organization that will never go away. When you keep those standards high and don’t waver, it’s really important.”Ross said he shows “emotions,” but flipping the food spread in the postgame clubhouse to show how you feel no longer is a viable way to send a message, unlike the days of Billy Martin and his peers.“When I got to A-ball, the spread was on a little bitty picnic table,” Ross recalled. “That thing’s easy to flip. Now it’s a buffet line. That would piss me off — I would probably be hungry in 30 minutes, right? “I played for some of those guys and you understand where they’re coming from. But I think now the conversations — and being able to hold in those emotions and be direct with the wording — is going to get you farther than (showing) emotion.”Cubs manager David Ross looks out from the dugout in the second inning against the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field on June 15, 2022. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune)Legend has it that Martin once flipped the clubhouse spread after a tough loss to the White Sox at old Comiskey Park, oblivious to a New York Yankees player sitting at the table munching on a sandwich.Those were the days when managers had much more control over players’ careers. That ended with the beginnings of free agency, the ubiquity of multiyear contracts going into eight and then nine figures and finally the intrusion of front offices into everyday decisions from lineups to bullpen usage.AdvertisementEven Lou Piniella conceded when he arrived in Chicago to manage the Cubs in 2007 that it was now a “player’s game.” Piniella was one of the last of the old-school managers, confident enough in his job security to call Cubs outfielder Milton Bradley a “piece of (expletive).” But his biggest confrontation in town wasn’t with a player but with Steve Stone after the Sox broadcaster criticized him in 2010 for not playing prospect Tyler Colvin.[ [Don’t miss] Column: Cubs aren’t the same as a decade ago — but they keep trotting out the same old narrative to fans ]“I think that means that Lou doesn’t have a great grasp on what to do with young players,” Stone told Comcast SportsNet, now NBC Chicago Sports.“What job has he had in baseball besides talking on television or radio?” Piniella fumed. “What has he done? Why isn’t he a farm director and bring some kids around? Why isn’t he a general manager? Why hasn’t he ever put the uniform on and (become) a pitching coach? Why hasn’t he been a field manager?“There are 30 teams out there that could use a guy’s expertise like that. I’m tired of some of these guys, I really am. That’s it. Let’s go to baseball.”Stone found himself in another free-for-all over the weekend when he trolled Sox fans for whining above and beyond the call of duty about La Russa and the struggling team. He seemed to endorse the idea of complaining fans jumping off the Sox bandwagon.We seem to have hit a nexus. I call it thinning out the herd. For those of you heading for the exits, adios. For those of you who want the coaches fired, the manager gone, the players traded and the owner replaced. That’s not practical. Welcome to a less bitter world all others— Steve Stone (@stevestone) June 25, 2022

“We seem to have hit a nexus,” Stone tweeted. “I call it thinning out the herd. For those of you heading for the exits, adios. For those of you who want the coaches fired, the manager gone, the players traded and the owner replaced. That’s not practical. Welcome to a less bitter world all others.”AdvertisementLa Russa, meanwhile, has been nothing but complimentary toward ticked-off Sox fans, repeating that they have the right to be upset about a team that has underachieved. He said he was OK with fans booing him rather than the players,“I’ve said it 100 times, man, I like that they’re here and they care,” La Russa said last week. “And if they’re displeased and it’s with me, I’d rather them be here and care than not care and not be here.”That was before the Sox lost three of four to the Baltimore Orioles, which simply added to the angst.So here were are again, potentially facing a long, hot summer without a winning baseball team on either side of town.The two embattled managers are trying to keep their heads, while all around them, everyone is losing theirs.