OAKLAND, California – San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler and several of his players knelt during the national anthem ahead of Monday night’s exhibition game against the Oakland Athletics.
Right fielder Jaylin Davis and first base coach Antoan Richardson, both blacks, also knelt, with shortstop Brandon Crawford standing between them with one hand on each of their shoulders. Davis put his right hand over his heart as Richardson clasped his hands in front of him.
Kapler, beginning his first season managing the Giants after two disappointing years guiding the Phillies, did not discuss his plans to kneel in a pregame session with members of the media.
Kapler has been outspoken about social injustice and racial issues and the roles of athletes to help drive positive change.
Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016 to protest racial inequality and minority police mistreatment. He was criticized for years, but public sentiment has changed since George Floyd’s death in May.
Floyd, a black man, died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck while Floyd was handcuffed and said he couldn’t breathe.
Former A catcher Bruce Maxwell in 2017 became the first major player to kneel before the anthem since Kaepernick began his silent protest.
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