Despite what some Spanish teachers say, Spanish is a very difficult language to master for a native English speaker. The fact that it is almost phonetic doesn't help that much. Most Spanish speakers use synalepha in ordinary conversation which is analogous to a bad southern drawl where a sentence can sound like one long word. Also the multiplicity of dialects has no analogy in other common languages. And leaning the grammar, especially verbs and redundant prepositions is not a picnic. The RAE Madrid issues a 3800 page grammar the covers the grammar and syntax of all the many versions of the language. Even a smart Princeton/Harvard trained politician, Ted Cruz, despite having a father who is a native Spanish speaker, never learned Spanish beyond a few sometimes mangled phrases.
I remember an article in the magazine years ago when Pedro Martinez became a Met. I'm an ESL teacher, so I was interested in how and why he learned English. He said that the Dodgers had had a program, and that he took advantage of it. Some years ago, Oscar Minaya, former GM for the Mets, did a Learning Annex event, and I asked him who taught the Mets players English. He told me that the clubs offer lessons in the minor leagues but not in the majors. Although I'm all for learning other languages, I think there might be an advantage for some players if they learned a little more English. I was tired of watching Derek Jeter commercials during Mets game. I wanted to see José Reyes and some of our other stars, but I know that English is not easy to learn.
The story is akin to what happened to me. The maintenance men in my building are Hispanic. But when I needed work done, they would ignore me. Then I married a Peruvian (peruana) and the men were mi amigos. The difficulty for Americans is rolling the r; children in South America are taught a poem filled with words requiring rolling the tongue to create that r. The other problem is that Hispanics, like Southern Italians, begin to speak more and more rapidly, sometimes with that rolling r going on for minutes. Another issue is where a Hispanic is from because the local patois differs in each Hispanic country and island due to influence from French, British English, and, of course, the Spaniards. (Dali, for example, spoke a Spanish that others in Spain could barely understand.) But it is nice that the men are my close friends now, even though my Peruvian Spanish es un poco except for curse words.
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Nice article. I enjoyed Mr. Wagner's work with the Nationals. His Spanish proficiency certainly helped his coverage of the entire team.
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I am looking forward to the funny stories about Dominican players!
The first reporter I was aware of who was bilingual was Pedro Gomez of The Arizona Republic [now with ESPN.] I saw in his stories extensive commentary from Hispanic ballplayers, with insights about the games that could have come from no other source than two Spanish speakers in conversation. He made no big deal about it; there were no stories about how cool it was that sportswriters could talk with Hispanic players. He just did his job.
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the nyt forgot mr excitement, rickie riccardo of the phillies, a real lo9ver of sports and laqtin baseball
I'll never forget the disappointment I felt in the 1970s when legendary Latino ballplayer Chico Escuela never seemed to be able to master any English beyond "baseball has been very very good to me". Sad.
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As a news reporter nearly 30 years ago, one of my contributions to my Bay Area paper's coverage of the Bay Bridge series of 1989 was the ability to talk to Latino (including Spanish-speaking) players on both teams for a story on what their experience was like. It's disheartening if the Spanish-speaking baseball reporter is still a rarity.
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Wow. Kinda shocked at all the chauvinism here. Do Americans who work in Germany all become fluent in German? Hardly. Go to any expat function in any country and the Americans are the ones who've learned almost nothing of the local "lingo" as they often call it. There are many honorable exceptions.
But, I have to say the Times is a bit smug about its Johnny-come-lately Spanish-speaking reporter. There are lots more besides the few listed in the article. Jesus Ortiz, for example, long-time Houston Post sports reporter now in St. Louis. NYT finally gets with the program and then presents itself as a pioneer. Please!
But, I have to say the Times is a bit smug about its Johnny-come-lately Spanish-speaking reporter. There are lots more besides the few listed in the article. Jesus Ortiz, for example, long-time Houston Post sports reporter now in St. Louis. NYT finally gets with the program and then presents itself as a pioneer. Please!
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There I was, thinking this was a story about a reporter whose skills allow him to speak directly with 100 percent of his beat, instead of just 70. Guess I'm just not up to speed with the latest trends in immigration and assimilation blather.
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Some readers might be surprised that Mexicans and Latinos in general very much want to learn English. Here in Mexico, for instance, English-language courses are in high demand. It's understood that having English is an asset.
So, it's pretty safe to assume that the ballplayers wish they had command of English. The challenge is learning the language. Even the most adept at assimilating a new language take years to become fluent in English.
It's worth noting that in Mexico, a great many American expats speak "restaurant" Spanish only. They get by here because--surprise!--lots of Mexicans have good command of English.
In my experience, it's inconceivable that a Mexican would sniff disdainfully at Americans in Mexico who don't understand Spanish. They are essentially forgiven for not speaking Mexico's official language.
So, it's pretty safe to assume that the ballplayers wish they had command of English. The challenge is learning the language. Even the most adept at assimilating a new language take years to become fluent in English.
It's worth noting that in Mexico, a great many American expats speak "restaurant" Spanish only. They get by here because--surprise!--lots of Mexicans have good command of English.
In my experience, it's inconceivable that a Mexican would sniff disdainfully at Americans in Mexico who don't understand Spanish. They are essentially forgiven for not speaking Mexico's official language.
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So true. There are entire colonies of American undocumented immigrants in Mexico who neither speak Spanish nor pay taxes
San Miguel De Allende comes to mind.
San Miguel De Allende comes to mind.
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For several reasons, learning another language, like Spanish, ought to be more common in the USA. Sitting next to foreigners on airplanes gives me a chance to attempt humor. Anywhere in the world if you find an adult who speaks only one language, chances are it’s an American. One South African who smiled at that joke said he’d heard a version of it before, but never from an American.
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Very very good. The players have a guy they can relate to, and who gets some of the untranslatable stuff that happens with then, as it happens in every culture. Very cool.
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It's bizarre that the reporter speaking Spanish is rare enough to warrant an article. Even if the % of Spanish-speaking players weren't so high, it should still be considered one of the hallmarks of an educated person to speak 2 languages.
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This reminds me of one of the fun things I saw before a Yankee game a few years ago. It was a few days after the end off the Little League World Series and the Japanese team had won that year. They were on the field at the Stadium before the game and a Yankee was addressing them - without an interpreter. It was Alfonso Soriano using his third language; it took me a minute to remember that he had played several years in Japan before he became a Yankee. But of course he was talking to a group of children, not a TV audience or a reporter's recording device.
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Tengo muy buen dominio del español. ¿Puedo trabajar yo también ahí?
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The Great Discoveries owed a lot to people capable of speaking more than one tongue. Being bilingual is good. Being a polyglot is even better.
With the knowledge of a new language comes progress in culture, in addition to better understanding of common social problems. I am not sure about this, but some experts say that learning other languages is a fine investment in terms of mental health.
With the knowledge of a new language comes progress in culture, in addition to better understanding of common social problems. I am not sure about this, but some experts say that learning other languages is a fine investment in terms of mental health.
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Does that also apply to non English speaking people living and working in the US?
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It would indeed be wise if more multilingual reporters interviewed them for their issues.
The strong hostility often expressed against recent immigrants and visitors who do not yet speak well in American, which by the way, is definitely not that closely related to English to be a dialect, greatly slows down acquisition.
In my experience in training military who have immigrated to America, it was best to find american movie roles for them to privately memorize, including walking, arising, sitting, entering a room, exposition, anger, sorrow, concern. . . .
(That has also been done by many of the top army translator, listeners, and interrogators along with foreign born actors.)
The strong hostility often expressed against recent immigrants and visitors who do not yet speak well in American, which by the way, is definitely not that closely related to English to be a dialect, greatly slows down acquisition.
In my experience in training military who have immigrated to America, it was best to find american movie roles for them to privately memorize, including walking, arising, sitting, entering a room, exposition, anger, sorrow, concern. . . .
(That has also been done by many of the top army translator, listeners, and interrogators along with foreign born actors.)
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Yes, indeed. Why would one miss the opportunity to learn a new language in loco? Immersion is a fine strategy in this regard.
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Disappointing disappointing that the NYT does not expect it reporters et al to gain a use of Spanish which is now the second language in the US. But since the editors are likely single language why expect a bit more. But in sports??
Never understood why Hillary never sought to learn Spanish. Arrogance perhaps. But remember the effect of a few words, long ago, in Berlin.
Never understood why Hillary never sought to learn Spanish. Arrogance perhaps. But remember the effect of a few words, long ago, in Berlin.
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Yes, but the guy in Berlin actually said he was a pastry. It could have been a more embarrassing mistake. To use one's second or third language as a political speaker you should be pretty fluent, a competency that is hard to accomplish without taking time away from a chronically busy schedule.
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Hillary's running mate Tim Kaine is fluent in Spanish. Guess it didn't help enough.
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These men are playing an American sport, making American dollars, in America, and may not be learning the language of America -- English?
So while I can understand their propensity towards their native tongue, it is this lack of assimilation that has contributed to the current feelings regarding immigration.
So while I can understand their propensity towards their native tongue, it is this lack of assimilation that has contributed to the current feelings regarding immigration.
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We claim to have a World Series, so maybe the world has a right to speak their best language?
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It's an international sport, arguably played better in other countries. Like many sports, it also is a vehicle for kids who may not have other viable options to prosper. Add to that the better players (especially in Latin countries) get drafted to MLB organizations as young as 16 and where's the opportunity to learn a second language? How much time and effort do you think it takes to be one of the best in the world at something?
As previous commenters have said, Americans travel the globe and expect to be understood only speaking English. Please miss me with the 'doing American things, making American money on American soil, speak American' mentality.
As previous commenters have said, Americans travel the globe and expect to be understood only speaking English. Please miss me with the 'doing American things, making American money on American soil, speak American' mentality.
Wow, some of the of the negative comments here just showed how xenophobic America really is. Yeah, go ahead and castigate people for not immediately knowing the language upon arrival. I'm sure all of these guys try to some extent to learn English, but have you every tried to learn a language? It ain't easy. It takes years and years to learn it well enough to speak comfortably and feel like you can express yourself adequately. And that is the case if you are good at learning languages. Some of these guys may not be. Does that mean they don't have a right to be heard and understood?
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Richard Frauenglass is really right. Being a polyglot is great but immigrants from Spanish-speaking countries in the U.S. are a nation inside of another nation, and that's probably the main problem with resolving immigration issues. Yes, immigrants always have done this, but the size of the Spanish-speaking population is the difference, and it's exacerbated by the online world of living in your own bubble. There's nothing wrong with more integration.
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The dearth of spanish speaking baseball reporters is a very unfortunate situation. Hearing the life stories and nuanced perspectives of Latin players would open a window on a part of the world that we know much too little about.
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I will be interesting to see if Latino ballplayers will bother to learn English at now
that they have translators. It certainly has not worked about very well with the Japanese players. Ichiro, Tanaka etc.
In the past, pre-translators, Latinos did in fact learn English................they had to. Omar Vizquel, Pedro Martinez and countless others came here from poor backgrounds played ball and learned English. Pedros English is so good now he is a commentator on one of the sports channels.
I realize the points made in the article and am ok with translators but please,
this is theUnited States of America, if you want to live here, work here, make millions of dollars here..........learn the language
that they have translators. It certainly has not worked about very well with the Japanese players. Ichiro, Tanaka etc.
In the past, pre-translators, Latinos did in fact learn English................they had to. Omar Vizquel, Pedro Martinez and countless others came here from poor backgrounds played ball and learned English. Pedros English is so good now he is a commentator on one of the sports channels.
I realize the points made in the article and am ok with translators but please,
this is theUnited States of America, if you want to live here, work here, make millions of dollars here..........learn the language
13
How many Americans working in China, Russia, Japan, Saudi Arabia, or even France manage, or even try, to learn the language of those countries? Even after living and working and making money there for years they remain monolingual. I would guess that the percentage of people around the world who strive to learn English is much higher than the percentage of Americans who make the effort.
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Interestingly, Ichiro speaks Spanish. Bet you didn't know that!
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You have to realize the differences between the two people. The Japanese like Americans are quite xenophobic. They prefer to stay as Japanese as possible. Latino are a lot more flexible. Here in S.Fl a large portion of people are latino. While some could go their entire lives not learning a lick of English, most learn to adapt and to speak their minds.
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I'm still wondering about the point of this article, or the relevance. Latino players speak Spanish, and they're more likely to speak to reporters in their native language.
Somehow the Times turns everything into a racial issue.
Somehow the Times turns everything into a racial issue.
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This is about language, not race. Latin America is multi-ethnic and multi-racial (as is the U.S.) and the two dominant languages (that most people, of all races speak) are Spanish and Portuguese.
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Yeah? I'm still wondering how communication between people in the same business can be "created" by the Times.
You're both right. It is about language and culture, and the Times is obsessed with identity politics.
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What about the expert and otherwise well-regarded Clemson Smith-Muniz, a native of Puerto Rico who was college sports editor of the NY Daily News three decades ago -- and has since covered with distinction major league basketball, football and baseball teams for a variety of outlets? As disclosure, he's a friend of mine (and my successor as Boston Celtics beat writer for the Hartford Courant in 1982). But the friendship is why I know of his pioneering and enduring contributions as a Hispanic-American sports journalist.
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The two oceans that gave us our start as a new country conspire to keep us ignorant of the world.
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Joe, I thought it was about the fact that most beat writers assigned to baseball are monolingual in a bilingual environment.
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What's wrong with feeling more comfortable in being amongst people who speak the same language you do?! And it has nothing to do with ignorance and nothing to do with racism!
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