All 30 Major League Baseball (MLB) teams have received notice that they all must have full-time Spanish translators on staff for the 2016 season, according to a tweet from ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick.
#MLB clubs have received memo telling them they need to have full-time Latin translators for 2016. Joint effort between MLB and union.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) January 12, 2016
Simply put, it’s about time. All too often prospects from Central and South America have had to come to the United States to play ball and have zero grasp of the language, only to be given a coach or teammate who speaks their language to serve as a translator. Sure, the argument can be made that they should learn English, but that takes time.
On top of that, Japanese prospects get full-time translators from the get-go, so why shouldn’t Latin American prospects receive the same perk?
With baseball’s influence growing around the world more and more each year, teams having full-time Spanish translators on their staffs will only help continue that growth while also making the transition to MLB easier for any and all Latin American prospects.
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
