#Giants’ Jaylin Davis explains pregame kneel vs. A’s

San Francisco Giants’ outfielder Jaylin Davis is upholding his vow to use his platform for good, and started by explaining the significance behind why some players took a knee during the national anthem on Monday night.

“I want to first come out and say that the decision I made to take a knee last night has nothing to do with how I feel about the flag or the people that are serving and have served our country (such as both of my grandfathers),” Davis said in a statement posted to Twitter. “I believe that the only way anything is going to change is by keeping the conversation going about racial injustice and not letting it get pushed to the side.”

Davis was one of several Giants — including players Austin Slater, Mike Yastrzemski, coaches Antoan Richardson, Justin Viele and even manager Gabe Kepler — who took a knee before beating the Oakland A’s 6-2 in their exhibition game. Photos and videos of the team members kneeling quickly went viral across social media platforms, and even grabbed the attention of the president.

Early Tuesday morning, Trump tweeted, “Looking forward to live sports, but any time I witness a player kneeling during the National Anthem, a sign of great disrespect to our Country and our Flag, the game is over for me!”

Farhan Zaidi, the President of Baseball Operations for the Giants, expressed support for the team in a statement issued after the game.

“We’re proud of our players and staff for continuing to participate in the national conversation about racial injustice. We support those who knelt peacefully to protest racial injustice and those who stood to express love of country. We do not see these as mutually exclusive sentiments and believe the freedom to express both is what our country is about,” the statement said. “As an organization, we reaffirm our denouncement of acts of discrimination and violence against members of the Black community and our pledge to work together with those who seek to end racial justice in America.”

The MLB also shared the video on Twitter, and defended those who decided to kneel.

“Supporting human rights is not political,” the MLB Twitter account responded to a critical fan. And after another person wrote in a tweet that kneeling during the anthem disrespects both the military and the flag, the league responded, “It has never been about the military or the flag. The players and coaches are using their platforms to peacefully protest.

Today, Davis told reporters he wasn’t sure if he would continue to kneel, saying the MLB and the Giants “have some other things planned, too.”

The Giants match up with the A’s again for a final exhibition game on Tuesday night prior to Opening Day. The Giants kick off their shortened 2020 season against the Dodgers on Thursday night at 10:08 p.m Eastern.