Greg Goodwin Had A Point To Prove

MVP Tournament improves visibility for young black players.

- Tracy Ringolsby

Greg Goodwin was tired of watching the number of African-Americans in the big leagues dwindle annually. He was fed up with hearing people talk about the declining interest African-Americans had in the national pastime.

Instead of moaning and groaning, though, Goodwin, the long-time baseball coach at Redan High, outside Atlanta, decided to do something about it.

“We started hearing about how black kids were not playing baseball, and we knew that wasn’t true,” Goodwin said. “A few of us decided, ‘Let’s put a tournament together.’ We thought we would do it a couple of years and be through with it.”

So much for that idea. The 15th annual MVP Tournament took place in mid-July on the campus of Georgia State in Atlanta. Tournament organizers hold out hope for the future, encouraged by interest from college coaches and professional scouts from the Southeast.

“That’s MVP—Mentoring Viable Prospects,” Goodwin said. “It kept growing and growing. We had so much support. It is truly a grassroots effort.”