Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Walls clarified on Tuesday that his celebration inspired by Donald Trump’s reaction to a campaign incident was not meant to endorse the Republican presidential candidate. He also indicated he likely wouldn’t repeat the gesture.
After hitting a double against the New York Yankees on Sunday, Walls pumped his fist and shouted “Fight! Fight! Fight!” in a manner similar to Trump’s response to an incident during a campaign event. Walls explained his perspective on the incident, noting the inspiration he drew from individuals who show resilience in challenging moments.
“I think it’s pretty inspirational when any person, in the blink of an eye, their life could be taken from them,” Walls said before the Rays faced the Toronto Blue Jays. “They don’t really know what’s going on in the heat of the moment. To immediately stand up and show strength, to me, speaks pretty loudly.”
Walls emphasized that the gesture was more of an inside joke among teammates, and he doesn’t anticipate doing it again.
“That was kind of more of a joke that we have with guys in the locker room,” he said. “Joke may not be the right word. It was kind of just something that we had together that we thought was kind of funny, that we thought would be all right. I don’t really see that going much further than that. I don’t foresee myself doing it again.”
Regarding his political stance, Walls chose not to disclose whom he intended to vote for in the upcoming election, mentioning President Joe Biden’s recent announcement about not seeking reelection.
