Outside the playbook

In the wake of Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, when corporations threatened to withdraw their business from the state, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is telling big business to “save your breath.” In other words: Bring your worst.

“Liberals have decided that if they can’t win at the ballot box, they will win in the boardroom,” read his New York Times manifesto on April 23, supporting his state’s legislative efforts.

If history is any guide, the corporate sports world could take him up on the offer. In March, sports magnates led by the NCAA expressed “concern” with Indiana, veiling threats to “examine” future events in the state. Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed similar legislation last year under pressure from Major League Baseball and the Super Bowl committee.

Jindal wants to pass the Marriage and Conscience Act in addition to his state’s 2010 RFRA, protecting citizens’ consciences on marriage specifically. Some voices say it’s better than a RFRA, because critics cannot say it endorses “no gays allowed” signs in restaurants. Others say Jindal is “doubling down” on his state’s “anti-gay” laws.

The current slate of NCAA Final Fours, All-Star games, and particularly Super Bowls is rewarding cities participating in the new stadium boom. Yet, as Jindal pushes the bill in the last month of the legislative session, he acknowledged the potential power of corporate pragmatism as the LGBT movement invokes civil rights language.

Big sports exerted similar pressure on legislatures during integration, particularly in Louisiana, where racial segregation following Brown v. Board of Education met the national scene in the Sugar Bowl.

After Georgia Tech defeated integrated Pittsburgh 7-0 in a controversial but largely uneventful 1956 Sugar Bowl, the Louisiana legislature banned state schools from playing integrated teams. Pittsburgh pledged to boycott future Sugar Bowls, while others rejected basketball or football invitations with Louisiana. The legislature refused to back down, largely downgrading the Sugar Bowl to a regional event until integrated Syracuse agreed to play LSU in 1965, after the Supreme Court invalidated laws segregating teams and stadium seating.

Of course, the reason for those laws, as some Southern politicians publicly moaned, was that 60 minutes of equality on the field could affect perceptions of equality off the field. Such a disrespect for human dignity is where “Jim Crow” comparisons to RFRA architects and their intentions die. But that hasn’t stopped many from promoting the opposite perception.

Going to Texas

The Los Angeles Angels traded Josh Hamilton back to the Texas Rangers on April 27 as the troubled player rebuilds his career. Hamilton admitted to a cocaine relapse earlier this year, the last straw in a strained two-year relationship with the Angels. He told MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez that he’s taking five drug tests a week, “making changes” so he can “be OK after baseball is over.”

Hamilton also filed for divorce from his wife, Katie, in February. The couple often toured to talk about their faith and about staying strong against the lasting effects of his past addictions. The divorce filing has 34 requests, including prohibiting his wife from “hiding” their children. For now, he may only see his children with supervision, according to records ESPN obtained. On the baseball diamond, Hamilton expected to begin playing for the Rangers right away. Texas, Hamilton says, is “home.” —A.B.