Former Major League Baseball star Johnny Damon is all about athletes visiting the White House whenever they win a championship. And while a fair amount of athletes have declined the invitation to the White House in the past because of President Donald Trump, Damon is a firm believer of all athletes accepting the invitation for one reason. TMZ caught up with the former New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox outfielder and he explained why it’s good for players to talk to Trump.
“That’s one of the things you wanted to do when you won the World Series was go to the White House, regardless of what political affiliation you may or may not have,” Damon said when talking about the Washington Nationals players who chose not to go to the White House. “I think it’s a great thing and if you do have an issue, that’s the greatest time to talk about the issues that you see and try to make things work.”
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Damon went on to say he’s happy the majority of Nationals players met with Trump because it’s a good opportunity to discuss any issues they’re having. He said, “I’m glad the Nationals went there. I’m glad there was a great support for the president. I hope other teams elect to go in the future so they can talk about the issues that are bothering them.”
The Nationals, who defeated the Houston Astros in the World Series, were more than happy to visit the White House because they were celebrating their first championship in franchise history. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told USA Today that they had no political agenda when they visited Trump.
“We weren’t trying to make a political statement, whatsoever,” Rizzo said. “We just thought that the honor and the tradition of champions being invited to the White House and the office of the president, and especially us being the hometown team in their backyard two miles away from the capital, is something that should be done. Obviously, each player could make their own decision whether they wanted to attend, but most of the players were excited by it.”
Damon knows what it’s like to visit the White House as he won the World Series when he was a member of the Red Sox in 2004 and as a member of the Yankees in 2009.
