Multiple members of the Tampa Bay Rays refused to wear gay pride logos during a recent game.
During the Saturday matchup between the Rays and the Chicago White Sox, the team decided to put the rainbow flag logo on their uniforms to celebrate Pride Month, but not all the players were having it, according to TMZ. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
Rays pitchers Jason Adam, Jalen Beeks, Brooks Raley, Jeffrey Springs and Ryan Thompson all refused to wear the logos on their uniforms.
Today, we wear our #Pride on our sleeves pic.twitter.com/bcOLJNhx6Y
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) June 4, 2022
Adam said the following when explaining the decision him and his teammates made, according to the same TMZ report:
So it’s a hard decision. Because ultimately we all said what we want is them to know that all are welcome and loved here. But when we put it on our bodies, I think a lot of guys decided that it’s just a lifestyle that maybe — not that they look down on anybody or think differently — it’s just that maybe we don’t want to encourage it if we believe in Jesus, who’s encouraged us to live a lifestyle that would abstain from that behavior, just like (Jesus) encourages me as a heterosexual male to abstain from sex outside of the confines of marriage. It’s no different.
My biggest question here is why do sports teams feel the need to get involved in social issues at all? Fans want to watch the game.
We don’t want to be lectured about guns or any other issue going on in America. Leave that to cable TV. We’re just trying to have a few beers and cheer on our team.
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Having said that, it seems like the backlash has been minimal from what I can see online, and that’s a bit unexpected. Generally speaking, if you step out of line, you’re in big trouble.
At the end of the day, people have to do what they’re comfortable with, and clearly, these five players weren’t comfortable with wearing the logo for religious reasons.
You don’t have to agree with them, but there’s also no need to tear their heads off. Let’s engage in interesting debates and discussions. Let’s not launch personal attacks at each other.
Just people showing their #Pride pic.twitter.com/jtdgHJSLOO
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) June 4, 2022
Let us know in the comments what you think about the decision the players made!