Atlanta Braves fans are already unhappy because their team was beat by the St. Louis Cardinals 13-1 in Game Five of the National League Divisional Series on Wednesday. But the angriest members of the Braves fanbase might be the local politicians in Georgia.
They did not like the fact the foam tomahawks, long a trademark for the team and its fans, were removed before the game. Georgia House Majority Whip Tom Kelley tweeted out what happened to the Braves was karma.
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“This. Is. Painful. Have to feel this is karma for the unjustified and rash decision to do away with foam tomahawks,” he wrote.
Nick Ayers, Vice President Mike Pence’s former chief of staff who is from Georgia has the same reaction as Kelley.
“Maybe don’t ban the tomahawk chop next time?” he tweeted.
So why did the Braves take out the tomahawks? It has been something the team had for its fans since 1991 but it has caused controversy too. Cardinals pitcher Ryan Helsley said he was offended by Braves fans doing the tomahawk chop.
“[It] just depicts them in this kind of caveman-type people way who aren’t intellectual,” Helsley said, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “They are a lot more than that. It’s not me being offended by the whole mascot thing. It’s not. It’s about the misconception of us, the Native Americans, and it devalues us and how we’re perceived in that way, or used as mascots.”
When the Braves heard this quote, it led to them releasing a statement.
“Out of respect for the concerns expressed by Mr. Helsley, we will take several efforts to reduce the Tomahawk Chop during our in-ballpark presentation today,” the Braves said in a statement. “Among other things, these steps include not distributing foam tomahawks to each seat and not playing the accompanying music or using Chop-related graphics when Mr. Helsley is in the game.
“As stated earlier, we will continue to evaluate how we activate elements of our brand, as well as the overall in-game experience. We look forward to a continued dialogue with those in the Native American community after the postseason concludes.”
It’s hard to say that this was the reason the Braves lost. The game was over in the first inning as the Cardinals scored 10 runs before the Braves went up to bat for the first time. though. And with baseball’s history of superstitious behavior, it isn’t a surprise that some went there.
The 10 runs scored by the Cardinals are the most for any team to score in one inning in postseason history.
