MLB's First Player Just Took A Knee During The National Anthem

Bruce Maxwell, catcher for the Oakland Athletics, just became the first major league baseball player to take a knee during the national anthem in Saturday’s game against the Texas Rangers.

The team released a statement on Twitter shortly after.

“The Oakland A’s pride ourselves on being inclusive,” the statement read. “We respect and support all of our players’ constitutional rights and freedom of expression.”

The political statement came a day after the president criticized athletes who protest during sporting events.

But Maxwell was undeterred.

He tweeted several times on Saturday in regards to the issue, saying it was about “just complete inequality .” He also wrote that no one should be “surprised if you start seeing athletes kneeling in other sports now.” 

″Inequality is being displayed bigger than ever right now as our president shows that freedom of protest and speech is not allowed,” Maxwell tweeted hours before Saturday night’s game.

MLB.com’s Jane Lee tweeted a statement from Maxwell later in the evening, responding to negative comments he received for his protest.

“I get nasty DMs and everything, but that also shows what’s wrong with this country,” Maxwell said. “People think athletes should shut up and get their money and play their sport, but no matter how much money we make, no matter how many touchdowns we score, no many how many home runs we hit, it doesn’t mean we aren’t people. Our paychecks don’t silence us.” 

Trump’s comments came after NBA star and Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry said he would not be attending the team’s visit to the White House. The president later rescinded the invitation and caused an uproar.