Following the lead of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, who went on strike rather than participating in their postseason game against the Orlando Magic, the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers decided not to play on Wednesday night as a response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis.
The MLB’s strike appears to be more isolated than the strikes in the NBA, WNBA, and MLS — the Giants and Dodgers are joined by the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds, as well as the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres, who also declined to play on Wednesday night. MLB’s other Bay Area team, the Oakland A’s, opted to proceed with their matchup against the Texas Rangers.
Prior to the scheduled first pitch, Giants manager Gabe Kapler said he had the « utmost respect » for the Bucks and other teams who are « refusing to be silent about issues that are bigger than sports, » adding that « racism and police brutality are issues that we aren’t going to be silent about either. » Soon afterward, Dodgers infielder Dee Gordon tweeted that his team had unanimously decided not to play.
There are serious issues in this country. For me, and for many of my teammates, the injustices, violence, death and systemic racism is deeply personal. This is impacting not only my community, but very directly my family and friends. Our team voted unanimously not to play tonight
There was a lengthy period of uncertainty before the game was officially called off though, and now uncertainty remains about what comes next. The MLB put out a statement expressing support for players who chose not to play « tonight, » but made clear that Wednesday’s games are only « postponed » — the same unilateral language the NBA used to co-opt, perhaps successfully, the sports-wide strike pro athletes started earlier in the day.
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
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