With racial issues in the United States coming to the forefront in the sports world, Major League Baseball players generally have been absent from the growing chorus of athletes who have publicly spoken out about problems they may see in the United States, and Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones thinks he knows why.Baseball is a white mans sport, the Orioles star told USA Today Sports.We already have two strikes against us already, Jones told the newspaper, so you might as well not kick yourself out of the game. In football, you cant kick them out. You need those players. In baseball, they dont need us.Though Jackie Robinson broke baseballs color barrier in 1947 by playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers, MLB has had an issue with the dwindling number of African-Americans playing the game. Only 8 percent of the league classifies as African-American, according to the newspaper, with a total of just 69 black players being on the Opening Day rosters of the leagues 30 teams.Baseball is numbers. Its 8 percent black. I didnt make that up, Jones later told the Baltimore Sun. In football, basketball, the numbers are in the 60s and 70s. These arent made up numbers. It just is what it is. Im part of the 8 percent.Players from the NFL, NBA, WNBA and NWSL have all taken a public stance in one form or another to voice their displeasure with what they see as racial issues within the country. Some have worn shirts that read Black Lives Matter while recently many NFL players, led by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, have resorted to taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem.He believes in what he believes in, Jones said of Kaepernick, according to USA Today Sports, and as a man of faith, as an American who has rights, who am I to say hes wrong?Kaepernick is not disrespecting the military. Hes not disrespecting people who theyre fighting. What hes doing is showing that he doesnt like the social injustice that the flag represents.Since his decision to not stand for the national anthem became known during the preseason, Kaepernick has been widely criticized, something that Jones believes doesnt add up.Theres somebody on the 49ers team that commits an act like that, accosts a 70-year-old man and his kid, and nobodys talking about that, Jones said, referring to Kaepernicks now former teammate Bruce Miller. But they talk about Kaepernick doing something that he believes in, as his right as an American citizen. People need to talk more about that guy than Kaepernick.Hes not receiving the ridicule and public torture that Kaepernick is facing. Is Kaepernick hurting me? No. Is he hurting random people out there? No. I support his decision.At the end of the day, if you dont respect his freedoms, then why the hell are we Americans? Its supposed to be the Land of the Free, right?Ive seen Kaepernick called the N-word just because hes being sensitive to what has happened to African-Americans in this country, Jones added. Its crazy how when people of color speak up, were always ridiculed. But when people that are not of color speak up, its their right.A five-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove winner, Jones is the Orioles 2016 Roberto Clemente Award nominee. The award recognizes a player who best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field, according to MLB.Jones is also involved in the leagues RBI program that seeks to get more inner-city children playing the sport.At the end of the day, black men have fought for this right. Indians have fought for this right. White people fought for this right. Mexicans have fought for this right. Japanese have fought this for this right. The United States was not just made up of one race, Jones told USA Today.So lets just not say that in America, only one person can say something. We all have input because America has always been a country that has united everybody.Though Jones, whose father and brother have both served in the military, says he will always stand for the anthem, he notes that a professional baseball player could always sit out The Star-Spangled Banner.No one has done it, yet, Jones said. But thats the key word here: yet. Nike Air Force 1 Australia Mens .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Nike Air Force 1 Australia Cheap . -- The proud fathers huddled near the Dallas Stars dressing room, smiling, laughing and telling stories while wearing replica green sweaters of their sons team. http://www.wholesalenikeairforce1australia.com/ . Tracey comes to the Blue Bombers after spending over a decade with Queens University. Most recently he was the schools assistant football coach. Air Force 1 Sale Australia . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. The promotion boasts 14-straight years of business and is operated by MFC president Mark Pavelich, who is often overlooked in this country for the foundation hes established for MMA in Canada. Nike Air Force 1 Cheap Australia . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. For the sixth season in a row, ESPN.com is ranking the top players in the NBA. Who will be the best player this season?To get the final ranking, we asked our expert panel to vote on pairs of players.LeBron James vs. Stephen Curry. Russell Westbrook vs. Kevin Durant. Damian Lillard vs. Chris Paul.We asked, Which player will be better in 2016-17? To decide, voters had to consider both the quality and the quantity of each players contributions to his teams ability to win games.Well roll out the rest of our top 200 players over the next two days. If you want to get involved in the discussion or just follow along, #NBArank is the Twitter hashtag to use. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook.On to the list ...11. Karl-Anthoony TownsTimberwolves | C | @KarlTownsLast years rank: 752016-17 projected RPM: 1.dddddddddddd50Insider profile:?Before his 20th birthday, Towns served notice of his potential to the league with a 28-point, 14-rebound effort in his second NBA game. After the No. 1 pick of the 2015 draft was unanimously named Rookie of the Year, I made the case that hes the best prospect at his age since LeBron James. ?Read more ?#NBArank 11-2011: Karl-Anthony Towns12: Blake Griffin13: DeMarcus Cousins14: Draymond Green15: Kyrie Irving16: Klay Thompson17: John Wall18: Kyle Lowry19: Giannis Antetokounmpo20: Andre Drummond ' ' '