The professional baseball season starts this week, but first there are some preseason games happening ahead of the coronavirus-delayed season. One of them involved the San Francisco Giants, who carried on a trend that Colin Kaepernick will appreciate:
Members of the @SFGiants kneel during the National Anthem. #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/QbvAvCZiEs
— MLB (@MLB) July 21, 2020
San Francisco players and some coaches (including manager Gabe Kapler) kneeling during the National Anthem sparked some criticism:
The national anthem is sang for our military not our law enforcement firstly. You kneel you're disrespecting your military. Yes black lives matter, kneeling for the national is showing complete lack of respect for out men and women fighting for your freedom
— Mike Grozier (@MikeGrozier) July 21, 2020
But whoever was manning the MLB Twitter account had the talking points manual at the ready:
It has never been about the military or the flag. The players and coaches are using their platforms to peacefully protest.
— MLB (@MLB) July 21, 2020
One more example:
pllllleeeeaaaseeee stop posting things like this. yes black lives do indeed matter. but it’s a polarizing topic. keep politics out of baseball!
— Jayson (@jayson_nyy) July 21, 2020
Supporting human rights is not political.
— MLB (@MLB) July 21, 2020
It’s so “not political” that the MLB Twitter account sounds like it’s published straight out of the Left’s talking points manual.
Here’s one more:
Clayton Kershaw is speaking up. pic.twitter.com/bfKiS89nxS
— MLB (@MLB) July 20, 2020
Quit bringing all this political bs into sports! You are there to play a game not to be a politician, play the game.
— Zettle_7 (@JacobZettle) July 20, 2020
Supporting our players and supporting equality is not political.
— MLB (@MLB) July 21, 2020
Well, yeah, it might be just a little political at this point. But maybe the MLB isn’t worried since the stands are going to be empty anyway for a quite a while.
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