In a Petco Park without fans, players and coaches of the Padres and visiting Arizona Diamondbacks collectively clutched a long black ribbon before Friday’s season opener in support of the Black Lives Movement.
All but a handful of Diamondbacks knelt during Morgan Freeman’s narrated message of unity, while Trent Grisham was the lone Padre who took a knee during the pre-national anthem moment of reflection. All players and coaches on the field were on their feet throughout UC San Diego Health Care worker Marvin Calderon Jr.’s rendition of the anthem, the sort of choice rookie Padres manager Jayce Tingler said his players would be free to make.