Giants manager Kapler kneels with players

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler and a handful of players took a knee during the national anthem prior to the team’s “Summer Camp” exhibition game against the Oakland Athletics Monday night.

Kapler, outfielders Jaylin Davis, Mike Yastrzesmki and Austin Slater as well as first base coach Antoan Richardson were the Giants who did not stand for the anthem. Shortstop Brandon Crawford stood behind Davis and Richardson while placing his hands on their shoulders.

In June, Davis wrote a widely shared blog post detailing some of the racial discrimination he’s faced during his career. In it he writes, “Unless we all find a way to openly talk and genuinely listen to each other about racism, we have no hope of rooting it out.”

The anthem protests, revived following the death of George Floyd, have grown more popular in the time since they were first introduced by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in 2016. A Yahoo News/YouGov poll found that 52% of Americans now believe it is “appropriate” for professional

athletes to kneel during the national anthem, compared to 36% who find it inappropriate and 12% who are unsure. In 2016, only 28% of respondents said they approved of the protests, with the other 72% opposed or unsure.

Monday night’s game was the first of two exhibitions for the Giants before Thursday night’s regular season opener versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. None of the players who knelt during the anthem Monday announced any plans for a demonstration in advance, and it is unclear if the protests will continue through the season.