All MLB teams to honor Black lives with Andrew McCutchen-inspired ceremony: report
According to a report Wednesday from ESPN’s Howard Bryant, all 30 MLB teams will hold a black ribbon to honor George Floyd and other Black people killed by police:
League sources say all 30 clubs have been mandated to hold the black ribbon pregame ceremony, each team lined along the baseline, holding a black ribbon in honor of George Floyd.
— Full Dissident (@hbryant42) July 22, 2020
And, per Bryant, the idea comes from Phillies outfielder Andrew McCutchen:
Sources saying Nationals and Yankees will line up pregame traditionally along the first and third base lines, holding a black fabric in memory of George Floyd and Af-Ams killed by police, the brainchild of Andrew McCutcheon and his wife.
— Full Dissident (@hbryant42) July 22, 2020
Amid a spring and summer filled with nationwide protests over institutional racism and police brutality, athletes have been using their voices to address social issues with increased regularity, and baseball is proving to be no exception.
Former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler, for example, knelt during the National Anthem before an exhibition this week.
McCutchen explained in a USA Today op-ed last week why he won’t be kneeling during the National Anthem this year:
I think we all understand – we should by now understand – what the knee means, people who do take a knee. People are going to feel the way they feel about it. For me personally, it’s not something I’m going to do or to partake in. At the same time, anyone who does that, they have my support. If they feel like they should protest, that is what they’ll do.
Earlier this month, Phillies manager Joe Girardi said he would support his players if they used their baseball forum and visibility to protest:
It’s important as teammates and as organizations that we understand that players have a lot of different feelings and all of this affects them in different ways, and that we’re understanding and that we try to understand other people’s points of view.
The Phillies open their season Friday, July 24, against the Marlins.
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