Former Oakland Athletics catcher Bruce Maxwell, who became the first MLB player to kneel during the national anthem in 2017, has signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets, reports Tim Healey of Newsday. The contract is pending a physical and COVID-19 intake testing. Maxwell will be added to the club's 60-man player pool.
Maxwell, now 29, was the first MLB player to join a movement revived by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick to protest police brutality and racism. Maxwell is African American and his father is a military veteran. Here's what he said about his decision to kneel back in Sept. 2017:
"The point of my kneeling is not to disrespect our military. It's not to disrespect our Constitution. It's not to disrespect our country. My hand was over my heart because I love this country. I've had plenty of family members, including my father, that have bled for this country, that continue to serve for this country. At the end of the day, this is the best country on the planet."
Maxwell was arrested on a felony aggravated assault charge in Oct. 2017. He later plead guilty to a lesser charge and was sentenced to probation and community service. In 2018, an anonymous executive told the San Francisco Chronicle, "It's the kneeling thing that might keep him from getting another job, not the arrest. Owners aren't going to want to deal with that whole anthem issue."
It was not until this season that other MLB personnel began kneeling during the national anthem. Giants manager Gabe Kapler became the first manager to kneel during the anthem last week. Dodgers star Mookie Betts and Yankees outfielders Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks knelt during the national anthem this season, among others.
Maxwell appeared in 33 games as a rookie with the A's in 2016. He was their primary backup catcher in 2017, hitting .237/.329/.333 in 76 games. Maxwell spent most of 2018 in Triple-A and all of 2019 in the Mexican League. His new Mets contract is his first job with a major league organization since being released by the A's after the 2018 season.
The Mets have three catchers on their MLB roster (Tomas Nido, Wilson Ramos, Rene Rivera) plus three more at their alternate site (Patrick Mazeika, Ali Sanchez, David Rodriguez). Maxwell will provide additional depth at a position where there is no such thing as too much depth.