Mookie Betts: MLB 'Did Not Do a Good Job' with Response to Black Lives Matter

Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts criticized how MLB handled its response to the nationwide protests against police brutality, systemic racism and social inequality. 

"I think baseball did not do a good job with that," the 2018 American League MVP told reporters on Monday.

MLB issued a statement on June 3 saying it "has zero tolerance for racism and racial injustice." The league added it was "committed to engaging our communities to invoke change" and "will take the necessary time, effort and collaboration to address symptoms of systemic racism, prejudice and injustice, but will be equally as focused on the root of the problem."

A group of Black players collaborated to issue a video statement supporting the Black Lives Matter movement:

Yahoo Sports' Liz Roscher noted that MLB waited until after several players and teams had publicly acknowledged the protests and expressed support for the movement to end systemic racism, police brutality and racial injustice.

Former Oakland Athletics catcher Bruce Maxwell, who knelt during the national anthem in 2017, recounted his experience a few years ago to relate how MLB handled the situation this time around.

"Knock me if you want, but I think MLB finally came out and said something because so many people were hounding them to say something," he said, per the San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser. "It doesn't shock me they were the last sport to say something. When I did my thing, my team supported me at the time, but MLB didn't really back me."

Bleacher Report's Scott Miller spoke to an active player who said MLB officials "were questioned by all the Blacks in the game" and that some Black players had wondered why MLB waited until after other prominent U.S. sports leagues had released formal statements.