The Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative recently released its National State of Play 2023 report. In its eighth edition, the report identified the latest trends in participation, health, coaching and costs to play. It also confirmed what many have observed regarding participation in youth baseball thanks to data provided by the Sports & Fitness Industry Association. Core participation in baseball among children ages 6-12 has seen a 20.1% decline over the course of four years (2019-2022). In terms of core participation in baseball among teenagers ages 13-17, a 16.1% decline has occurred over the same period.
Escalating prices for necessities have families confronting difficult decisions, especially when it comes to their children’s participation in youth sports. Even though there is a greater awareness of the power of sports, access and opportunities in underserved communities are still hindered by economic barriers. Through collaborations with USA Baseball, Major League Baseball has planted seeds for future prosperity with low to cost-free initiatives under its MLB Develops umbrella such as the DREAM Series, Hank Aaron Invitational, Breakthrough Series, MLB Youth Academies, and Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) program with Nike
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Voices of reason and advocates for underserved communities are desperately needed when it comes to youth sports. Don’t be surprised if one of those voices comes from the showcase world that personifies the pay-to-play model. This past September, Perfect Game announced that Dennis Gilbert would become the organization’s second commissioner. Under the new leadership team of Rob Ponger and Rick Thurman who acquired Perfect Game in August 2022, Gilbert is a perfect blend of passion and philanthropy.
As its origins date back to 1995, Perfect Game is the world’s largest youth baseball and softball scouting service. It boasts an impressive group of alumni with some who are living impossible dreams as major league ball players. A few have even ascended to unprecedented heights as Cy Young and Most Valuable Player Award winners.
Success breeds contempt as Perfect Game always seems to be in the center of the storm when it comes to criticisms regarding the pay-to-play model and its return on investment. Perfect Game is not a golden ticket to college scholarships or a future in Major League Baseball. It is a costly endeavor that provides exposure to showcases, tournaments, coaches and scouts with mentorship opportunities led by former major league ball players. Youth sports is a $30 billion industry according to Erik Spanberg of Sports Business Journal and Perfect Game is far from being the only organization flourishing in the pay-for-play model.
Gilbert’s love affair with baseball spans seven decades. He has gone from catching fly balls hit by Ted Williams as a Boston Red Sox minor leaguer to a successful career developing life insurance policies and creating wealth protection for high-net-worth individuals. In 1980, Gilbert became an agent and represented an impressive list of all-stars with some who would become Hall of Famers. By 1984, he co-founded the Beverly Hills Sports Council alongside Perfect Game Chairman, Rick Thurman. He sold his interest in 1999 and joined the Chicago White Sox in November 2000 as a special assistant to chairman Jerry Reinsdorf.
Dennis Gilbert (left) stands next to Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf (right) behind home … [+]
A trusted confidant, Gilbert’s philanthropic spirit is evident throughout baseball. In 1989, he wrote the first personal check in support of John Young’s vision to create the RBI program in Los Angeles to increase African American participation in youth baseball. Young was the first African American director of scouting in 1981 when he was hired by the Detroit Tigers. Gilbert was instrumental in the construction of a baseball field at Southwest College that bears his name and is used by the RBI program. His generosity has touched the lives of many who have fallen on hard times as evident in Gilbert’s work with the Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.) and as a co-founder of the Professional Scouts Foundation.
As Gilbert begins his new leadership role in youth sports, he is becoming familiar with Perfect Game’s business model: events, showcases, digital media, statistics, technology, merchandising, and content platforms. His enthusiasm is evident when it comes to discussing philanthropic opportunities. Perfect Game is collaborating with a group in Arkansas called Beyond Sports Lab to assist in providing instruction and resources to underserved youth. They are acquiring a softball league with aspirations of opening new doors for female athletes in the business of sports. Scholarship opportunities are provided by Perfect Game and the generosity of its alumni network.
Like the research presented in the National State of Play 2023 report, Gilbert is a proponent of collaborating with the United States government when it comes to identifying best practices for funding youth sports. Funding could come in the form of corporate sponsorships, grants, lottery funds and even taxes from sports betting. “We would love to have the government involved and I would love to have as many people involved in helping youth sports as possible,” said Gilbert.
Gilbert wants to see the government rise above selfishness and political rancor. Youth sports needs financial support, and it begins with the movers and shakers on Capitol Hill. “They talk about too many things that are important to them instead of what’s important to the public. If they focus more on sports, I think you would see less crime and less problems in this country,” said Gilbert.
As someone who has spent his life around baseball, Gilbert was blown away at what he had seen this past October at the 2023 World Wood Bat Association (WWBA) World Championship in Jupiter, Florida. Besides thousands of parents and athletes running around the Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium complex for nearly a week, Gilbert observed how teamwork and collegiality laid the foundation for a wonderful youth sports experience. He summarized his observations in six words, “no politics, no baloney, just baseball!”
Perfect Game will always have its critics when it comes to the pay-for-play model in the business of youth sports, but Dennis Gilbert hopes to silence a few with his philanthropic spirit. Gilbert has lofty aspirations of one day seeing Perfect Game in every state of the country while creating an inclusive environment fueled by a love of baseball. As Major League Baseball searches for new ways to break down the economic barriers in underserved communities, don’t be surprised if Gilbert and Perfect Game become valued collaborators in their pursuit of access and opportunities.