As this editor noted earlier, The New York Times decided to pick up on four members of the San Francisco Giants either not wearing their Pride hats or scrawling Bible verses on them on Pride Night at the ballpark and make it a national news story. The Times followed up by reporting that Major League Baseball had issued a warning that similar behavior would not be tolerated.
Local news affiliates in Philadelphia have the makings of their own mini-scandal. According to NBC10 Philadelphia, the York Revolution opted to forfeit its game on Pride Night after players refused to wear uniforms with a rainbow design.
York Revolution declined to play its Pride Night game in Pennsylvania and opted to forfeit after players refused to wear uniforms with a rainbow design. https://t.co/V5miXVCECr
— NBC10 Philadelphia (@NBCPhiladelphia) June 18, 2026
NBC News thought that was a story worth picking up nationally:
Minor league baseball team in Pennsylvania cancels Pride Night game after players refuse to wear jerseys with rainbow sleeves. https://t.co/TSZzIqdJoE
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 18, 2026
Someone has posted a proposed Community Note explaining to NBC News that the York Revolution is a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, and an independent league not affiliated with MLB clubs. So no, it's not even a minor league team.
David K. Li reports for NBC News:
Revolution president and GM Ben Shipley said his manager told him on Tuesday that less than nine players — the minimum number needed to fill out a lineup card — on the 28-man roster were willing to play in Thursday night’s uniforms.
It led to an unprecedented team meeting in which Shipley said he was unable to talk players into wearing the rainbow sleeves.
“I’m disappointed that we’re at this point and I recognize the players’ plight and their unwillingness to cross their line. I also think tolerance is not acceptance,” Shipley told NBC News on Thursday.
“I was just asking for tolerance from the team and they were unwilling to navigate that with me.”
Li is a senior breaking news reporter with NBC.
Good for the baseball team. They're having a healthy and normal reaction to this propaganda.
— John Hawkins (@johnhawkinsrwn) June 18, 2026
America is healing.
— MAZE (@mazemoore) June 18, 2026
So reading these comments, it’s not enough to leave LGBT Community alone as they used to ask. Now you must be compelled to actively celebrate them, regardless of your principles, or else, huh?
— Chris Cypert (@MrChrisCypert) June 18, 2026
No thanks.
I’m gay, and I don’t understand why anyone thought forcing players to wear something they didn’t want to wear was a good idea. The point was never to compel participation. It was to let people live their lives without being forced into a category or viewpoint.
— 200divesL8r (@200divesL8r) June 18, 2026
Good for them.
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) June 18, 2026
They are not a Minor League Baseball team.
— The Strait of Hormuz (@straitohormuz) June 18, 2026
They are an unaffiliated team from a league that has a loose connection to MLB therefore not bound by a firm contract.
This is like saying a little league team refused to play do to ice cream not being provided.
“Unfortunately, several of our players have refused to wear the scheduled Pride Night jersey…”
— John A. Monaco (@johnamonaco) June 18, 2026
Why is that “unfortunate”? The team would rather vice-signal than support its own players? Gross.
Knock me over with a feather. This is an NBC story?
— John Oregon Deplorican (@JohnC32116200) June 18, 2026
NBC News is now covering York Revolution and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs ball games as breaking news.
Good, tired of this nonsense. It is 2026.
— Atomic Mullah (@Atomic_Mullah) June 18, 2026
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