Teamsters Play A Part in the World Series

From Louisville Sluggers to Baseball Caps, Teamsters Star
in the Fall Classic

Teamsters are no strangers to baseball, and not just because they’ve manufactured Louisville Sluggers for decades.

With Game Five of the World Series scheduled for Monday, there are a few Teamster connections to the event that deserve highlighting—starting with the baseball caps the players wear.

New Era Cap Company, which has a contract with Major League Baseball, employs many Teamsters. Local 991 in Mobile, Alabama represents two groups of New Era workers.

At the Mobile location, workers select, pack and distribute caps, including the ones affiliated with Major League Baseball. Local 991 Teamsters at New Era in Jackson, Alabama assemble the caps worn by the players.

Getting to and from the games is another Teamster operation. Amtrak Teamsters carried 27.2 million passengers last year, and now that two East Coast teams are competing in the World Series, they expect to be a main mode of transportation from Philadelphia to New York.

When the Phillies and the Yankees met in the 1950 World Series, the teams traveled by train. For this year’s matchup, appropriately titled the Amtrak Series, the players are again shuttling back and forth between the two cities by train—this time riding along with Amtrak Teamsters.

The ballplayers are not only union members, but many of them are strong supporters of the labor movement. Last week, 12 members of the Major League Baseball Players Association declared their support of the Employee Free Choice Act.

The AFL-CIO’s blog recently reported that “World Series participants Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino and Mark Teixeira took part. They were joined by Heath Bell, Dave Bush, LaTroy Hawkins, Torii Hunter, John Lannan, Andrew Miller, J.J. Putz, Justin Verlander and Adam Wainwright.”

A joint statement put out by those players said, “All Americans should have the same opportunity we’ve had—to be able to join a union without being fired and to negotiate with their employers without being penalized. Today, our country is facing some tough times. Health care costs are skyrocketing. Families are losing homes. Savings and retirement income are disappearing overnight.

"Now more than ever, we need a strong union movement to protect our jobs, our pensions, and our future. The Employee Free Choice Act simply guarantees a level playing field for all workers. It makes sure everyone plays by the same rules. That’s as important in the workplace as it is in baseball.”

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