No Escaping COVID-19 as Major League Baseball Starts Season

Major League Baseball launched its COVID-19 delayed season on Thursday but reminders of the pandemic were everywhere, from stadiums devoid of fans to Dr. Anthony Fauci throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in Washington.

In a first for MLB’s Opening Day, players from all four teams in action took a knee before the national anthem, while ‘Black Lives Matter’ logos were stenciled onto the bases and patches sewn onto the sleeve of uniforms.

After the Nationals welcomed the New York Yankees, the Dodgers hosted the San Francisco Giants in Los Angeles with both teams following the lead of their counterparts on the East Coast by taking a knee while holding a 200-yard swath of black cloth.

But while the Yankees and Nationals all stood for the anthem, some players in the second game, including Mookie Betts, who signed a 12-year $364 million deal with the Dodgers earlier this week, continued to kneel, with some of those standing placing their hands on their team mates’ shoulders.

Kneeling has become a symbol of protest in the 🏆Sports world with many athletes across the globe having united in solidarity behind the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis.

“Today, and every day, we come together as brothers. As equals, all with the same goal – to level the playing field. To change the injustices. Equality is not just a word. It’s our right!,” tweeted MLB.

WILD PITCH

From players wearing face masks to mandatory testing, the new reality thrust on baseball by the coronavirus was unavoidable despite high-tech efforts to provide a comforting facade with the soothing sounds of a packed ballpark piped into the television broadcast.

The coronavirus has claimed over 143,000 U.S. lives, with the country surpassing more than 4 million cases.