Athletics catcher Bruce Maxwell was cheered by the home Oakland crowd on Monday in his first at-bat since becoming the first Major League Baseball player to kneel during the playing of the national anthem.
Maxwell began kneeling during the anthem before Saturday's home game against the Texas Rangers and has done so in every game since. Teammate Mark Canha has stood next to Maxwell with a hand on the kneeling catcher's shoulder for each game as well.
"My decision has been coming for a long time," Maxwell, the son of a U.S. Army veteran, explained after Saturday's game.