To Ken Griffey Jr., the picture – and the goal – is simple. “If you look at what’s going on in baseball, (there are) a lot of kids of color who are not playing baseball even though they may love the game of baseball,” Griffey told USA TODAY Sports by phone. “They’re not getting the recognition that they would like to advance to the next level.”

Smiles abounded all around at the 2025 HBCU Swingman Classic presented by T-Mobile on Friday. Hosted at Atlanta’s Truist Park, the Classic brought together 50 top players across the HBCU landscape for a night of baseball,