SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners did not play against the San Diego Padres Wednesday evening after agreeing "unanimously" to postpone the game in light of a recent police shooting of a Black man in Wisconsin, according to a statement from the team and players.
Major League Soccer has announced that the remaining five matches scheduled for Wednesday would also be postponed. The Seattle Sounders were set to face L.A. Galaxy.
The decision came just hours after the NBA announced all three playoff games on Wednesday were postponed after the Milwaukee Bucks decided to boycott their matchup with Orlando over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man in the team's home state.
Blake is paralyzed following the shooting in the city of Kenosha, Wisconsin, about 40 miles south of the Bucks' arena.
Dee Gordon, of the Seattle Mariners, posted on Twitter Wednesday shortly after the team's decision.
"There are serious issues in this country. For me, and for many of my teammates, the injustices, violence, death and systemic racism is deeply personal," Gordon wrote. "This is impacting not only my community, but very directly my family and friends. Our team voted unanimously not to play tonight."
The Seattle Mariners tweeted a team statement Wednesday evening.
"The Seattle Mariners respect the team's decision to not play tonight's game. The Seattle Mariners stand with our players as they speak out with their words and actions against social injustice," said the statement.
According to a tweet by Jeff Passan, a sportswriter for ESPN, the Seattle Mariners have the most Black players of any team in Major League Baseball (MLB).
