The Dodgers have the best record in baseball after defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks, 3-1, on Sunday. They are 33-14, in first place in the National League West standings and have a three-game lead over those pesky San Diego Padres.
The Dodger have won four games in a row, are 6-1 in their past seven games and 13-2 in the past 15 games.
On the field, the Dodgers are making a statement as the best team in baseball.
Off the field, it’s a different story.
After a deadly mass shooting in Texas, where 19 children and two adults were shot and killed in an elementary school by an 18-year-old gunman, the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays took to Twitter to post some sobering statistics about gun violence.
On Thursday, the social media handlers for the Yankees and Rays posted about how gun violence has affected the country instead of the game.
Here is a sample of what was posted:
“Access to a gun triples the risk of death by suicide.”
“About 4.5 million women in the U.S. today report having been threatened with a gun by an intimate partner.”
“Each year, more than 4,100 Latinx people die from gun violence in the U.S. and 13,300 are shot and wounded.”
“58 percent of American adults or someone they care for have experienced gun violence.”
“Firearms were the leading cause of death for American children and teens in 2020.”
“Every day, more than 110 Americans are killed with guns and more than 200 are shot and injured.”
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Gabe Kapler, the manager of the Giants, decided he was not going to be on the field during the national anthem before games, a protest to the gun violence in America, particularly the killings in Texas.
Kapler posted Friday on a blog on his lifestyle brand website, that he was disappointed in himself for not making some sort of protest earlier.
“When I was the same age as the children in Uvalde, my father taught me to stand for the pledge of allegiance when I believed my country was representing its people well or to protest and stay seated when it wasn't. I don't believe it is representing us well right now," Kapler wrote.
"... Every time I place my hand over my heart and remove my hat, I'm participating in a self congratulatory glorification of the ONLY country where these mass shootings take place. On Wednesday, I walked out onto the field, I listened to the announcement as we honored the victims in Uvalde. I bowed my head. I stood for the national anthem. Metallica riffed on City Connect guitars.”
Kapler said he didn’t want to be disrespectful to military members and veterans, and the victims of the Texas killings, in the moment, but later regretted not acting on his instinct to protest.
"My brain said drop to a knee; my body didn't listen. I wanted to walk back inside; instead I froze. I felt like a coward. I didn't want to call attention to myself. I didn't want to take away from the victims or their families.
"... But I am not okay with the state of this country. I wish I hadn't let my discomfort compromise my integrity. I wish that I could have demonstrated what I learned from my dad, that when you're dissatisfied with your country, you let it be known through protest. The home of the brave should encourage this."
The Dodgers are playing like the best team in baseball on the field. But they could take a few lessons from the Yankees, Rays and Giants on how to be the best team in baseball off the field.
There used to be a time when the Dodgers were the leaders in this area.
They broke the color barrier in baseball by adding Jackie Robinson to their roster in 1947.
They embraced Fernando Valenzuela, the Latino community in Los Angeles and all his mania in 1981.
They brought Hideo Nomo from Japan and made him a star in the United States.
The Dodgers never used to shy away from making waves and standing up for social justice.
It made them easy to root for because they always showed some things are bigger than baseball, until last week.
The Dodgers struck out last week when they had a chance to hit a home run.
Dodger starter power rankings:
- Tyler Anderson
- Tony Gonsolin
- Walker Buehler
- Julio Urias
- Ryan Pepiot
The Dodgers start a three-game series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates, followed by a four-game weekend series against the New York Mets.
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