Jonathan Lucroy, a former Major League Baseball player, recalls standing up during the national anthem: "I gave them the finger."

During the 2020 season, Jonathan Lucroy, a former MLB star catcher, shared his experiences with the anthem-kneeling controversy in Major League Baseball.

During the summer of racial tension following the murder of George Floyd, players knelt during "The Star-Spangled Banner." However, Lucroy denied the request to kneel, stating that he was asked to do so. Despite not disclosing the team he was on, Lucroy spent the 2020 season with the Boston Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies.

"On Tuesday, during an interview with Charly Arnolt on "OutKick the Morning," he stated that he had posted about it on Twitter the previous day but didn't want to get specific and call out teams or individuals, as that wasn't his intention."

In general, teams want you to stay neutral and not be politically polarizing. They don't want you to lean a certain way or be politically charged. However, I was with a team that told me to kneel for the anthem, and I gave them the finger. I will never do that, no matter what. There is nothing you can do to make me do that.

"We were instructed by a team to receive the vaccine. If we did not receive the vaccine, we would be unable to see our family for three months. This directive came from the CDC and was then communicated to the MLB, which was not responsible for the decision. However, the kneeling during the anthem was a significant issue for me. This occurred several years ago and sparked my interest in the ongoing culture war."

In a post on X earlier this month, Lucroy discussed the anthem-kneeling issue.

Lucroy, drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers out of Louisiana-Lafayette in the third round in 2007, played 12 seasons with nine different teams, most of which was spent with the Brewers.

In 2014 and 2016, he was an All-Star and hit .274 with 108 home runs.

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