Brewers, Reds follow the lead of protests by NBA players

All the decisions by players not to play came three days after the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police in Kenosha, Wisc. Kenosha is 40 miles from Milwaukee.

Reds reliever Amir Garrett wrote on Twitter he was proud of the Reds and the Brewers, who will make up the game Thursday as part of a doubleheader that will start at 5:10 p.m.

“We were able to come together and make a decision not to play,” Garrett said. “We stand in solidarity today and I am very proud. We need change, and we need it now. #BlacklivesMatter”

The Brewers and Reds, who scheduled to play in Milwaukee in the third game of a four-game series, made the decision hours after the Bucks walked off the court before a NBA playoff game against the Magic in Orlando. Two other NBA playoff games were also cancelled. The WNBA cancelled games. At least one other baseball game, the Seattle Mariners vs. San Diego Padres, was also cancelled.

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Brewers pitcher Brent Suter, the team’s union representative, said, “Our team and the Reds felt that with our community and our nation in such pain, tonight we wanted 100 percent of the focus to be on issues that are much more important than baseball.”

On Instagram, Reds reliever Jesse Biddle wrote, “Reds fans, we will play tomorrow, but tonight, pray for Jacob’s family and reflect on the impact we all have on this world. Every word you say matters, every statement you make matters, every decision you make matters and every Black life matters.”

Reds manager David Bell said Wednesday afternoon he heard there were going to be discussions about the status of the game.

“There’s clearly things that are going on that are so much more important than what we’re doing,” Bell said. “I mean when we’re here, this is everything to us. We continue to prepare to play right now, but it’s devastating, and my heart goes out to everyone affected by it. We’re all affected by it.”

According to reports, Brewers players held a meeting late Wednesday afternoon. That followed the decision by the Bucks.

“Some things are bigger than basketball,” Bucks senior vice president Alex Lasry wrote on Twitter. “The stand taken today by the players and (the organization) shows that we’re fed up. Enough is enough. Change needs to happen. I’m incredibly proud of our guys and we stand 100% behind our players ready to assist and bring about real change.”

Two other NBA playoff Game 5s were then postponed: Rockets vs. Thunder and Lakers vs. Trail Blazers.