When Gabe Kapler resumed his peaceful protest in Philadelphia before Tuesday night’s 7-4 extra innings win, he did so knowing he has the backing of upper management.
Speaking with local media Tuesday afternoon, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi expressed both personal and organizational support for Kapler, who is protesting inadequate. gun safety laws by not standing for the national anthem before games.
Zaidi got choked up when describing his feelings on Kapler’s stance.
“The one thing I’m more sure about Gabe Kapler than anything else is he cares,” Zaidi said. “I mean, he cares about the players in the clubhouse, he cares about the people he works with, he cares about this organization, he cares about our fans and he cares about the community.”
Kapler’s protest began in the wake of the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas in which 19 students and two teachers were killed. The 2021 Manager of the Year wrote in blog post that he wouldn’t participate in the national anthem until he feels better about the direction of America. He didn’t appear on the field for the anthem for three games in Cincinnati, then stood for Monday’s Memorial Day before unpausing his symbolic gesture Tuesday.
“I’m just thankful every day that I get to work with somebody who cares that day,” Zaidi added. “I may not agree with everything he says or does on a personal level. That may be true of other people. But his passion, his thoughtfulness and his conviction over the last few days, those are the same traits that made him the Manager of the Year last year and made him such an effective leader for our team and our organization.”
Zaidi made it clear that the organization values the playing of the national anthem, and its connection to the tradition of baseball. Many historians point to its playing in 1918, during World War I, as one of the first instances of including the patriotic tune in American sport. During World War II, the song played before every baseball game; wartime was particularly delicate for MLB because many players served.
MLB and the Giants are in “lockstep” on considering the national anthem an important tradition and the team will continue to play it before games, Zaidi said. However, the Giants simultaneously respect Kapler’s — and other members of the organization’s — right to stand up for their beliefs.
Kapler announced that he donated to two charitable organizations on Memorial Day — Everytown and Heart & Armor. The former is dedicated to ending gun violence and the latter deals with veteran health. The Giants have been involved with Everytown in the past, Zaidi said, and are seeking other ways to help enact change specifically in the gun control space.
Not everyone in the organization is committed to the cause. Zaidi’s comments come with the backdrop of a contradictory actions from the Johnson family, the majority owners of the franchise. Charles B. Johnson, who remains on the board, has donated significant sums of money to far-right politicians and causes — including pro-gun agendas.
Greg Johnson, Charles’ son and the Giants’ current chairman, told Zaidi that he supports the organization’s partnership with Everytown, according to Zaidi. Zaidi otherwise didn’t comment on how Greg or his father may have reacted to Kapler’s decision to flaunt the national anthem.
Kapler told reporters in Philadelphia that he appreciates the support from Zaidi and the organization.
“It means a lot to me,” Kapler said via the San Francisco Chronicle. “Any time you take a position on any matter that you want to be a part of a change on, it’s helpful to have the support of the people you work with every day.”
“The landscape is ever changing, and it’s nuanced,” Kapler added. “These issues are not black and white, and they require a lot of thought and lot of action. I don’t know if it makes sense to answer questions on a daily basis whether or not I come out for the anthem. I think what makes more sense is to recognize that peaceful protests of any kind around important issues of gun control and in particular gun safety remain very important to me, and I’m going to continue to express my thoughts on those.”