Rays Donate $100K to Groups for Social Change, Want Justice for Breonna Taylor

The Tampa Bay Rays announced Friday that they have committed $100,000 to six organizations focused on fighting systemic racism in the United States.

It's part of the MLB club's Racial Equity Grant Program, which was created in the wake of the killing of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, while in Minneapolis Police custody in May.

The program was launched to "build power within communities that have been historically overlooked and purposefully disadvantaged because of systemic racism." The Rays plan to make $100,000 in annual donations to "support anti-racist organizations and leadership."

"Finally, we are reminded of the words of Jackie Robinson: 'Life is not a spectator sport. If you're going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you're wasting your life,'" the team said in a June statement. "While our hearts may be broken, we aren't giving up."

The Rays, who open their coronavirus-shortened 2020 season Friday against the Toronto Blue Jays, used the occasion to seek justice for Breonna Taylor:

Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was killed by Louisville Police in March while they executed a "no-knock" search warrant as part of a drug investigation while she was in an apartment with her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker.

MLB teams involved in Thursday's Opening Day games took a knee for a moment of silence while holding a black fabric to symbolize racial equality.