AUSTIN, Texas — Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday sent a letter to the Texas Rangers declining the baseball club’s invitation to throw out the first pitch at the home opener in Arlington and assailing Major League Baseball’s adoption of “false political narratives” about Georgia’s controversial new election law.
Abbott also said he will no longer participate in any event held by Major League Baseball, and the state will not seek to host the All-Star game or any other MLB special events.
He was reacting to Major League Baseball’s decision to move the league’s All-Star Game from Atlanta in response to Georgia’s new election laws. Republicans such as Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who signed the law, say it is needed to prevent voter fraud. However, voting rights activists and Democrats, including President Joe Biden, say the law’s intended to suppress minorities’ participation in elections.
“Major League Baseball adopted what has turned out to be a false narrative about the election law reforms in Georgia, and, based on that false narrative, moved the MLB All-Star game from Atlanta,” Abbott wrote Rangers president and chief operating officer Neil Liebman.
“It is shameful that America’s pastime is not only being influenced by partisan political politics, but also perpetuating false political narratives,” the governor wrote.
Among other things, the Georgia law essentially bans mobile voting centers, reduces the time frame for requesting an absentee ballot, requires strict ID requirements for absentee ballots and makes it illegal for election officials to mail absentee ballots to all voters.
One provision makes it a crime for anyone other than an election worker to provide food or water to a person standing in line to vote. Major corporations and civil-rights leaders have objected strenuously to the new Georgia law.
Abbott had been scheduled to appear at the first pitch ceremony with frontline “heroes” from the COVID-19 pandemic response.
The Rangers quickly re-arranged things so that one frontline worker – a teacher – will throw out the first pitch to another, a nurse.
Asked for its reaction to Abbott’s withdrawal, the Rangers said in a written statement, “We are focusing on today’s home opener at Globe Life Field. Frontline heroes will be participating in today’s ceremonial first pitch prior to the game.”
Throwing out the first pitch will be Audrey Simmons, a teacher at Dunn Elementary School in Arlington. She will throwing to Sydney Maxwell, a nurse with Medical City Healthcare. Also participating in the ceremony will be Charlotte Crawford, a 40-year employee of Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. Crawford lost her husband, son and daughter to COVID-19.
Abbott, who began his political career in Houston and is an Astros fan, expressed admiration for the Rangers. His daughter Audrey, who graduated from the University of Southern California last year, worked for the Rangers as an event coordinator from June until last week.
Asked if Audrey Abbott’s departure was related to the Georgia election-law controversy, gubernatorial spokeswoman Renae Eze replied, “No, she’s starting a new job. ... She’s going to work for Universal Music Group” in Los Angeles.
In his letter, Greg Abbott said his boycotting of the Rangers’ home opener “does not diminish the deep respect I have for the Texas Rangers baseball organization, which is outstanding from top to bottom.”
Last year, all 30 Rangers home games were played without fans in the park because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While fans were permitted for the National League Championship Series and World Series, Monday’s game is the first at which fans will be allowed to attend a Rangers game at Globe Life Field.
The Rangers have opened their ballpark to its full capacity of 40,300 for Monday’s home opener and are requiring fans to wear face masks, except when actively eating and drinking. However, public-health experts have said the club’s mask mandate probably won’t be too effective, given that fans will be sitting in close quarters and doing a good deal of eating and drinking.
Sportswriter Evan Grant contributed to this report.
