LaTroy Hawkins, now in his first season as the Minnesota Twins’ bullpen coach, is the franchise’s first Black bullpen coach in history and the first Black pitching coach since 2018, bringing a 21-year playing career and a hard-earned college degree to his new role.
Sports
Local and national sports reporting and commentary by the state’s leading African American sportswriters, including award-winning columnists Charles Hallman and Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald, with a special emphasis on the local prep scene and disparities in sports administration and media coverage.
Posted inBlack College Sports Report
HBCU baseball makes history at Wrigley Field
MSR sports columnist Charles Hallman reports from Chicago’s historic Wrigley Field, where Prairie View A&M and Alabama A&M made history as the first HBCU teams to play baseball at the iconic ballpark during the Chicago HBCU Baseball Classic.
Posted inOdds and Ends
Softball in color
MSR sports columnist Charles Hallman covers the 2026 Summit League Softball Championship at the University of Minnesota, spotlighting the Black players who stood out, including Omaha’s Bailey Sample and St. Thomas sophomores Zoe Trotter and Miley Wichman.
Posted inAnother View, Twins/MLB
Two Black aces, one rotation: Taj Bradley and Simeon Woods Richardson make history in Minnesota
Twins pitchers Taj Bradley and Simeon Woods Richardson are one of the rarest sights in MLB, two Black starting pitchers on the same team, and both say the bond they have built is making them better.
Posted inOdds and Ends
WNBA season 30 tips off Friday with a revamped Lynx roster and a new TV deal
The 2026 WNBA season tips off Friday, May 8, with two new teams, a new CBA and a Minnesota Lynx roster that looks drastically different after key departures and new additions including rookie Olivia Miles.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
Minnehaha Academy, Apple Valley back among the elite
Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald looks back at the legacy of Apple Valley and Minnehaha Academy boys basketball, from NBA-bound alumni to their impressive 2026 state tournament runs.
Posted inSports
Me in KC: A Lynx preseason game and a city on the rise
Charles Hallman travels to Kansas City to cover the Minnesota Lynx preseason game against the Nigerian National Team and finds a growing city where Black entrepreneurs and community voices are thriving.
Posted inTwins/MLB
For Josh Bell, it all started in the backyard
Twins first baseman Josh Bell reflects on baseball, fatherhood and what it means to be part of a Minnesota roster leading the majors in U.S.-born Black players.
Posted inTimberwolves/NBA
‘Slow Mo’ Anderson proves the NBA’s smartest player doesn’t have to be the fastest
Kyle Anderson Slow Mo Timberwolves profile explores how the deliberate, high-IQ veteran has built a 12-year NBA career on instincts, smart play and contributions that rarely show up on the stat sheet.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
From the metro to the NBA: Twin Cities products making their mark in 2025-26
Twin Cities NBA players 2025-26 season includes 11 former metro boys basketball standouts on NBA rosters from Hopkins, Minnehaha Academy, Apple Valley and more.
Posted inSports
Spring ball: Gophers and Tommies use the offseason to build depth, identity and confidence
Gophers and Tommies spring ball 2026 brings football and volleyball teams together across the Mississippi as coaches focus on building depth, identity and confidence before fall.
Posted inGophers/College
Record-breaker Nabwe has her sights set on the Olympics
Anthonett Nabwe Minnesota Gophers thrower has earned her fourth Big Ten Field Athlete of the Week honor this season and holds the all-time Big Ten hammer throw record as she sets her sights on the 2028 Olympics.
Posted inTwins/MLB
Twins’ top prospect Culpepper ready for ‘the big stage’
Kaelen Culpepper, the St. Paul Saints infielder and 2024 first-round Twins draft pick, is ready to make his big league debut and is leading the Saints in hits, runs and total bases early in the 2026 season.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
One last shout out to Hopkins
Fab Five Hopkins girls basketball photo feature celebrates the Royals’ 27-3 season and runner-up finish at the 2026 Class 4A state tournament under head coach Tara Starks.
Posted inWNBA
Season 30: WNBA’s new CBA ushers in a new era
Olivia Miles Minnesota Lynx rookie and second overall WNBA Draft pick is ready to make her mark on and off the court as a three-time All-American with a passion for social justice and community impact.
Posted inAnother View
What would Jackie see?
Jackie Robinson Day 2026 raises the question of what Robinson would see in MLB today, as Black players hover around 7 percent of rosters and the Minnesota Twins lead with five Black players on their team.
Posted inSports
Where have all the Black voices in sports radio gone?
Black voices in sports radio are disappearing from national airwaves as veteran broadcasters Mark Gray and Kevin Stanfield reflect on decades of exclusion and the platforms keeping Black sports talk alive today.
Posted inThe Prep Scene
Fab Five Moments
Fab Five Moments covers Ashley Ellis-Milan’s resignation at East Ridge, Hopkins finishing runner-up at state, the Hallman father-son connection, St. Paul Central’s 50th anniversary and Omar McMillan’s John R. Wooden Award.
Posted inOdds and Ends
First-year coaches Terry, Smith named ACE’s Best in Black College Basketball
ACE Black basketball coaching honor roll 2026 recognizes Tierra Terry and Nolan Smith as Heads of the Class alongside Howard and Prairie View A&M head coaches.
Posted inOdds and Ends
Illinois Head Softball Coach Tyra Perry on 700 Career Wins, Big Ten Diversity and Building a Family
Tyra Perry Illinois softball coach reflects on 700 career wins, Big Ten diversity and the people who make coaching worth every moment in an MSR interview.