MLB Commissioner Defends Tomahawk Chop at Braves Games: ‘We Don’t Market on a Nationwide Basis’
The Atlanta Braves will host Game 3-5 of the Major League Baseball World Series later this week and on the sport’s biggest stage, the team’s fanbase will undoubtedly partake in its controversial tomahawk chop gesture.
Prior to Game 1 of the World Series in Houston, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred met with reporters, where he defended “The Chop” and the Braves name, citing the organization’s work with local Native American groups.
More from MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred talking on possible work stoppage, politics intersecting sports & more. #WorldSeries #ForTheH pic.twitter.com/Wsw3ikPmX3
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“It’s important to understand that we have 30 markets around the country. They’re not all the same,” Manfred said. “The Braves have done a phenomenal job with the Native American community. The Native American community in that region is wholly supportive of the Braves program, including “The Chop.” For me, that’s kind of the end of the story. In that market, we’re taking into account the Native American community.”
Some Native American groups have deemed “The Chop” offensive, even St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ryan Helsley, a member of the Cherokee Nation, previously called the gesture “disrespectful.”
But according to Manfred, he’s only concerned about what Native American groups in the Atlanta area think about the gesture. The Braves play their home games at Truist Park in Cobb County, a predominantly White suburb of Atlanta that apparently demands “The Chop.”
Commissioner Rob Manfred says the Native Americans in the Atlanta Braves’ region are essentially OK with the Braves. Even if that were true, does #MLB have an obligation to be respectful to all Native Americans? Many, after all, think the Braves’ perpetuate racist stereotypes. pic.twitter.com/rMw0srXp0S
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“We don’t market our game on a nationwide basis,” Manfred said before the start of the World Series. “Ours is an everyday game. You’ve gotta sell tickets every single day to the fans in that market. And there are all sorts of differences among the clubs, among the regions as to how the game is marketed.”
Debate surrounding the Braves moniker and “The Chop” has heightened after the Cleveland Indians announced their rebrand to the Guardians. While Manfred is correct about Major League Baseball’s popularity being very regional, marketing as such by ignoring national attention seems counterintuitive to growing the sport.
