St. Louis Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak has ordered “Christian symbols” to be removed from the pitcher’s mound at Busch Stadium after some fans were offended by the images that members of the stadium grounds crew had been carving into the mound before games.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “in recent weeks, the grounds crew had carved a cross and a No. 6 (in honor of the late Stan Musial) on the back side of the mound.”
After Mozeliak heard complaints from some fans who were offended by the cross and what they interpreted to be a Christian fish symbol and saw a report in the Post-Dispatch, he ordered the grounds crew to remove the images last Friday.
“Once we learned of it,” Mozeliak told the Post-Dispatch. “I did contact the grounds crew and just asked that they don’t.
He added, “It’s just not club policy to be putting religious symbols on the playing field or throughout the ballpark. I didn’t ask for the reason behind it. I just asked for it to stop.”
One fan, Michael Vines, said he was “shocked” when he saw the “inappropriate” images because he said Busch Stadium is “a place of hallowed ground not just for Christians, but for Cardinal fans of all religions, including none at all.”
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.