The sports world was shaken on Wednesday by protests in response to the recent shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The upheaval began when the NBA Milwaukee Bucks refused to play their playoff game against the Orlando Magic. Shortly thereafter, Wednesday’s remaining NBA playoff games were canceled. After that step, the Milwaukee Brewers as a team did not choose to play their scheduled home game against the Reds on Wednesday night. The Reds in turn voted not to play, meaning the Brewers will not be forced to lose.
Twelve of MLB’s originally scheduled 15 games were played on Wednesday, but other teams and individual players came in protest at the Brewers. Here are the three matches that were not played:
MLB published the following statement on Wednesday evening:
“Given the pain in Wisconsin’s communities and beyond the shooting of Jacob Blake, we respect the decisions of a number of players not to play tonight. Major League Baseball remains united for change in our society and we will allies in the fight to end racism and injustice. “
Earlier on Wednesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN tweeted that the Mariners were ready to decide against playing their road game against the San Diego Padres. Passan noted that the Mariners have the most Black players from any current MLB roster, and indeed decided not to take the field in San Diego:
Seattle veteran Dee Gordon tweets that the team’s decision not to play was unanimous.
CBS Sports HQ analyst Jim Bowden reported that the Giants and Dodgers would also not play as planned Wednesday night. Giant manager Gabe Kapler strongly suggested that his team could choose to play earlier in the day.
While most MLB games were played on Wednesday night, some players chose to sit out in protest while their teams played. That group included Cubs veteran Jason Heyward, who decided not to play after a conversation with manager David Ross. Jordan Bastian of MLB.com said so Heyward encouraged his teammates without playing him against the Tigers.
Matt Kemp also released the following statement before his Rockies teammates took the field against the Diamondbacks:
Prior to the Cardinals’ home game against the Royals, the club issued the following statement about Dexter Fowler and Jack Flaherty:
The protests stemmed from the shooting of Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, by police in Kenosha, which is about 40 miles south of Milwaukee.
According to video, police shot Blake in the back several times as he tried to enter his car. Blake remains hospitalized in serious condition, and family lawyers say he is now paralyzed. Blake’s shooting comes after weeks of unrest and protest following the murder of George Floyd, another Black man, by Minneapolis police. Tensions surrounding the Blake protests were tragically heightened when a Illinois teenager allegedly shot and killed two Protestants on Tuesday night.
Wednesday’s events would already dominate the conversation in MLB, and the non-uniform responses to the Blake shooting and the Bucks’ decision not to play will undoubtedly increase and intensify this dialogue in the coming days and weeks. .
