Coaching Unity Through Covid

With the country reeling from a global pandemic and tensions rising with protests against racial injustice, The Courier-Post covered Merchantville Little League Coach Vince Martinez as he looked for a way to bring his team of 8-, 9- and 10-year-olds together. “With everything that was happening in the world and with Black Lives Matter movement, I thought we needed to unify the team and we could do that with all of the kids wearing the same number,” Martinez said. And in baseball, where numbers mean everything, there’s only one numeral that could achieve his goal - Jackie Robinson's No. 42. Martinez, who played baseball at Pennsauken High School and Camden County College, was applauded by MLL parents for celebrating the life and values of a true sports hero.