Jackie Bradley Jr. reportedly won’t play Thursday night. What Ron Roenicke said about the Red Sox’ plans to support him.
"Whatever Jackie, whatever the players feel like is right to do."
The Red Sox will meet with center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. to discuss racial injustice and the wave of protests occurring in professional sports, according to interim manager Ron Roenicke.
Appearing on MLB Network Radio on Thursday, Roenicke addressed the protests, teams boycotting games, and his support for whatever the players feel is right.
“We talk about equality yet there isn’t equality … You read the Constitution and how it was written and you know, it’s not equal for everybody,” he said. “So whatever Jackie, whatever the players feel like is right to do, I know Chaim [Bloom] is certainly behind all of this, and our organization, too. [Team president] Sam Kennedy has addressed it and it’s just not going away until we do something about it.”
With that, Roenicke also said that he respects those who have decided to either protest, or speak up against racial injustice.
“When this first came up, and I started reading comments from people in this game I really respect – in Torii Hunter coming out, Dave Roberts coming out, and Jackie sent out an e-mail to myself and what he was going to send out to the team … I respect these guys so much. I saw C.C. Sabathia going with his family walking in a protest … these are people that I respect immensely and when I read similar comments and some of the stories, you know, as a white American, it really bothers you that we have these freedoms in our country and yet the same freedoms don’t apply to everybody, and that’s a shame.
“This has gone on too long and I remember reading Dave Roberts and his last comments and he said ‘Something good needs to come out of all of this,’ and that really hit me because he’s right. If we go through all of this and nothing changes …”
“It’s not going away until we do something about it.”
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Ron Roenicke says the @RedSox organization is consulting with @JackieBradleyJr on a course of action regarding racial injustice protests: pic.twitter.com/N036xVJulZ
— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) August 27, 2020
The team’s decision to consult with Bradley Jr. is timely, given the recent wave of protests in major league sports as a response to the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man who was shot in the back seven times by a police officer in Kenosha, Wis., on Sunday. The NBA, WNBA, MLS, and MLB all postponed games on Wednesday after players opted not to compete.
Bradley, who is the only Black player on the Red Sox, will reportedly not play on Thursday against the Toronto Blue Jays. On Wednesday night, Bradley expressed that he felt a “responsibility” to address racism, and said he’s spoken with his mother and former Virginia State Trooper, Alfreda Hagans, about it.
“I am the only Black person on this team,” Bradley said. “So I kind of feel like it’s my responsibility to address it in certain situations just so people can see what I feel and the things that I think about. I can take it on.”
“I think voices are being heard,” he added. “Hopefully changes are being made and we just have to continue to grow, continue to push forward and try to be better as individuals and together as well.”
The team is also considering the option of not playing at all, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Boston Red Sox players have strongly considered not playing tonight’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays to protest against social injustice, sources tell ESPN. The teams are talking currently and have offered one another support regardless of whether they decide to play or not.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 27, 2020
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