Fans Outraged At Tampa Bay Rays For Sitting Out Game

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Neither the Tampa Bay Rays nor the Baltimore Orioles took the field for Thursday night's scheduled game at Tropicana Field. Both teams said not playing the game was their way of standing up against systemic racism.

This Major League Baseball protest comes in the wake of widespread protests around the country after a Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer shot a Black man, 29-year-old Jacob Blake, on Sunday. Blake was shot seven times by the officer during a response to a domestic dispute.

Many professional sports have sat out games this week as a protest. NBA teams led the walkouts on Wednesday, canceling playoffs games.

The Rays released a statement Thursday night: "Like the Orioles, our team struggled with the decision of whether to play this evening. The decision was made not to play, and we stand firmly with all those fighting for social and to end systemic racism."

The first witness video of Blake's shooting has been seen across the U.S. and around the world. In that video, police are seen following Blake around his SUV, grabbing him by the shirt and opening fire on him as he enters his car while his children were apparently seated inside.

A new video of the incident, which can be seen here, has surfaced and shows a different angle. Footage shows Blake breaking free from that struggle and beginning to walk away from officers around the front of his SUV. The video footage shows a child standing nearby watching, and multiple women later standing feet from where the incident unfolded.

Steven Carney, a 95.3 WDAE Rays host, was at the Trop on Thursday night getting ready to cover the game as he and other reporters expected the teams to take the field.

Carney reported on WDAE's website, "Thursday looked like any ordinary day of a game at Tropicana Field. Both the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles took batting practice and ground balls on the field. The music was upbeat, and things looked to be on track for a 6:40 first pitch."

"But about 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the game, things began to change. The upbeat music was replaced with Bob Marley's classic civil rights anthem 'Get Up, Stand Up,' and the video boards were replaced with a black background with three words in white: Justice. Equality.
Now."

Upset Rays fans expressed their opinions on the team's Facebook page after the game was called off. As of Friday morning, more than 2,000 comments were posted, a mix of people expressing frustration at the teams and giving them support.

Lynn Weatherholtz Broom of Winter Haven posted, "You have just lost major fans! There was nothing racial or socially unjust about what happened in Kenosha to Blake! Sports teams should learn that they are there for entertainment purposes only, not to educate or inform us based on opinions and not facts!"

Many commenters said they are no longer Rays fans, and some said they have completely stopped watching baseball and will stick to hockey, while others are boycotting the Rays because of Thursday night's decision.

Colby Cole of Clearwater posted, "The incident happened on Sunday. You played three games after that. Where was the outrage then? Oh, wait you can't think for yourselves, it's a mindless mob mentality. I was without sports for months, yet you're seriously making me strongly consider boycotting my favorite team why would they do this? What does canceling sports accomplish? I don't even know what to say anymore."

Many posters said they hope the Rays go bankrupt.

Other fans supported the Rays' decision, such as Valerie Patterson, who posted, "I support the Rays and all the others that have made this decision to stand up for what is right and what needs to change. Rays Up."

Related: New Video Shows Kenosha Police Struggle With Jacob Blake

The Rays and Orioles aren't the only teams who chose not to play Thursday night. Other teams that participated in the protest included:

• Oakland Athletics vs. Texas Rangers
• Colorado Rockies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks
• Boston Red Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays
• Philadelphia Phillies vs. Washington Nationals
• Minnesota Twins vs. Detroit Tigers

Commissioner of Baseball Robert D. Manfred Jr. said he supports the MLB players for their decisions to address social injustice

“Over the past two days, players on a number of Clubs have decided not to play games," Manfred said. "I have said both publicly and privately that I respect those decisions and support the need to address social injustice. I have not attempted in any way to prevent players from expressing themselves by not playing, nor have I suggested any alternative form of protest to any Club personnel or any player. Any suggestion to the contrary is wrong.”

The comments from Rays fans and former fans can be viewed below:

— Includes reporting by Patch Editor Scott Anderson.