This feature originally appeared in the 2020 Fall edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.



Much like for everyone else, life during the COVID-19 pandemic has been different for Tyson Ross
 
For the past 10 years, the Berkeley native and former right-handed pitcher for the Golden Bears has spent his springs and summers carving out a well-rounded Major League Baseball career. It includes an All-Star recognition in 2014, 44 wins and over 200 games pitched with five professional organizations, most recently Detroit in 2019 and St. Louis in 2018.
 
It seemed 2020 would be similar, as Ross signed a minor-league contract with the San Francisco Giants in January, setting him up for a return to the Bay Area. The deal would have enabled him to live at home in Danville with his wife, Ashley, and 16-month-old son, Jordan, and commute to San Francisco or even Sacramento, if he was assigned to the Giants' Triple-A affiliate.
 
But 2020 proved to be anything but ordinary.
 
After the MLB's Spring Training stopped in March due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus, Ross returned home, sought advice from medical experts and ultimately decided to opt out of the 2020 season. And while he was released by San Francisco following his opt-out decision, Ross has made the most of his open schedule by tackling a multitude of personal ambitions.
 
"It didn't take long to realize I had a lot of time on my hands," Ross said.
 
Among the tasks that Ross has put his time and energy toward is the completion of his American Studies degree at Cal. Ross, who ranks third all-time among Golden Bears with 271 career strikeouts, left school after his junior year in 2008 when the Oakland Athletics selected him in the second round of the MLB Draft. With the help of Cal assistant coach and 2003 graduate Noah Jackson, Ross was able to connect with an academic advisor and reboot the process finishing his remaining coursework at Berkeley, starting by taking five credits at Foothill College that will transfer over.
 
"Getting that degree at Cal is something I've always wanted," Ross said. "Making the switch back into student mode has been different, but it's something I want to finish in the near future."
 
Although he's 12 years removed from his days as a student, Ross has stayed in tune with Cal's student-athletes, particularly in the wake of recent acts bringing attention to social injustice and systematic racism in the United States. Ross commended the student-athlete-led content he's seen on social media, as well as the continued conversations that have been held regarding how change can be implemented.
 
"Those student-athletes are standing up for what needs to be heard," Ross said. "Athletes are so often told to shut up and dribble, but they have some of the most powerful platforms to create change within society. If you look at history, Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali and many others were not only iconic sports figures, but also individuals who went against the norm to make a difference for social equality."
 
Ross has been an agent for change, too. He joined the Players Alliance, a group of more than 100 current and former Black major-league players  – including fellow Cal baseball alumnus Marcus Semien – who have come together to create better opportunities for the Black community in baseball and other ventures.
 
"As Black players in the MLB, we make up one of the smallest demographics in the league," Ross said. "There are huge issues with that, because it's the same at the Little League level, the college level, every level. Each one of us have tried to tackle this problem individually, but now we're trying to do it together through a unified voice."
 
With the motive of invigorating Black baseball at the youth level, Ross also partnered with Coaching Corps, a non-profit in Oakland with the mission of increasing low-income communities' access to quality sports programming with trained coaches. Through educating voluntary youth coaches on how to be positive influences, Ross said Coaching Corps will develop the youth level into a more beneficial sports experience.
 
"We were elated when Tyson reached out wanting to support our equity work in the Oakland community to provide kids with sports mentors they can look up to," said Robert Marcus, Coaching Corps' Director of Government and Community Engagement. "The economic devastation due to COVID-19 is anticipated to severely limit the opportunities for youth to play and reap the benefits of organized sport and this impact will be felt even more profoundly in our Black and Brown communities. Tyson's collaboration will be instrumental in raising awareness about the need for an equitable return of organized youth sports, and the need for caring, consistent, and empathetic community members to become coaches for youth now more than ever."
 
Ross has additionally worked with the Players Coalition, an organization founded by NFL players Anquan Boldin and Malcolm Jenkins with the goal of educating athletes across all sports to use their platforms to push for social change on the legislative side. Alongside the Coalition, Ross is advocating for the California Racial Justice Act, which would prohibit the state of California from seeking criminal convictions based on racial or ethnic motives. Ross also helped in a Coalition campaign that ultimately removed police officers in Oakland public middle schools.
 
While Ross didn't make an impact on the wins and losses of the shortened 2020 MLB season, he found ways to make a bigger difference in the Bay Area and beyond during this unique year.
 
"There's such a great history of Black baseball in the Bay Area, specifically Oakland," Ross said. "Everyone wants to be Steph (Curry) and there's nothing wrong with that, but you have guys like Marcus Semien out there balling on the baseball field, too. We need to inspire that next generation of local heroes. The best thing I can do right now, and moving forward, is find ways to give back to the game and the community that made me."