#BoycottMLB trends after players kneel during anthem. Others have said they will, too
The coronavirus stole a portion of Major League Baseball’s 2020 season and with its much-anticipated arrival in the middle of summer, a curtain of controversy rises during its prologue.
Before the start of Monday night’s exhibition game between the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants, new Giants manager Gabe Kapler took a knee alongside his players during the national anthem in Oakland.
President Donald Trump took aim at the players who took a knee on Twitter on Tuesday morning.
Soon afterward, the hashtag #BoycottMLB set the social media website on fire.
During a Zoom interview following the game, Giants outfielder Austin Slater, who was among the players taking a knee, expressed his feelings to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“I’ve been taking time to educate myself over the past month about social injustice towards people of color in this country,” Slater said. “Simply put, things need to change. Every person, no matter their skin color, have the fundamental right to expect the same experiences and treatment free from prejudices in this country and around the world.”
Shortstop Brandon Crawford showed support by placing his hands on the shoulders of Jaylin Davis and first base coach Antoan Richardson, who both were kneeling.
“I chose to stand because (my wife) Jalynne’s brother was in the military when he was younger, and standing for the flag and what it is supposed to represent is a big deal for them, so it is for me too,” Crawford told the Chronicle. “That does not at all mean that I don’t support the movement, or condone police brutality or inequality. I talked to Jaylin about putting my hand on his shoulder to show my support for him and the movement while still standing for the flag because of family being in the military. He was good with it and appreciated it.”
Giants President Farhan Zaidi released a statement on Twitter, supporting those who took a knee.
The Giants aren’t the only MLB players who have said they will take a knee in solidarity with those opposing police brutality.
Recently, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jack Flaherty, who has been outspoken about his support for the Black Lives Matter movement, said that he believes MLB players should kneel.
“It’s not a political thing, it’s literally a human rights thing,” Flaherty said on Matt Holliday’s podcast “Table Forty.” “If that is something that is looked down upon, if it’s looked down upon to advocate for human rights in that way, I don’t really understand that. I think everybody is starting to come together.”
Flaherty is one of 130 players who joined the Players Alliance, a group that was put together by Detroit Tigers outfielder Cameron Maybin after the death of George Floyd.
Philadelphia Phillies manager Joe Girardi has also spoken out on his players possibly kneeling during the anthem.
“I think that we will probably see some things,” Girardi said to The Philadelphia Inquirer. “Because everyone has different feelings when it comes to what’s going on in our country. I think it’s important that we understand each other, and that we respect each other, and we respect each other’s point of view. Because isn’t that why we live in this country? That’s what I’ve always thought. So whatever they do, I support what they do.”
Only one player in MLB has taken a knee during the anthem to protest racial injustice. Former A’s catcher Bruce Maxwell took a knee in 2017 and was widely criticized, something that Flaherty regrets.
“Nobody really had Bruce’s back, back then,” Flaherty said on “Table Forty.” “Guys were unsure about what was going on and how to come together and how to do it the right way. I don’t know what to say to Bruce. All props to Bruce for what he did and standing up for what was right. It’s a special thing that he did.”
This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 10:21 AM with the headline "#BoycottMLB trends after players kneel during anthem. Others have said they will, too."