Major League Baseball came back in full swing in April, in the wake of threats of a labor lockout. The players and MLB were able to come to an agreement and the games have been going on every day since, and will continue deep into the fall. On Thursday, the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays played in Florida. It is the first of a four-game series that will continue through the weekend.
Normally, the social media account of a baseball team, or any professional sports team for that matter, will post throughout the day, adding in game highlights, promoting players, and advertising special nights to encourage fans to bring the kids to the ball, buy things, and enjoy the game. On Thursday, both the Yankees’ and the Rays’ Twitter accounts chose to do something different: They both acknowledged the gun violence earlier this week in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers lost their lives to murder. The teams also posted in acknowledgement of all the people lost in Buffalo, and to gun violence in our country every year.
Both the Yankees and Rays Twitter accounts began the night by posting:
It reads: “In lieu of game coverage and in collaboration with the Tampa Bay Rays, we will be using our channels to offer facts about the impacts of gun violence. The devestating events that have taken place in Uvalde, Buffalo and countless other communities across our nation are tragedies that are intolerable.”
The Rays also pinned this card up at the top of their account:
"We all deserve to be safe -- in schools, grocery stores, places of worship, our neighborhoods, houses and America. The most recent shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde have shaken us to the core.”
Both clubs proceeded to tweet out data and facts about gun violence and its ties to domestic violence, as well as phone numbers for people to get help for issues related to violence and mental health. These are just the facts, and both clubs made sure to leave links to source their material. Most people lauded the decision and have been supportive. The few trolls, contrarians, and gun-fetishists have an uphill battle as they attempt to politicize what are simply facts.
That’s good work.
