MLB Great David Wells Slams Nike, Transgender Athletes In Women's Sports

Former Major League pitcher and World Series champion David Wells joined Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo on Mornings With Maria, and took aim at Nike for some of the company's marketing decisions in recent years.

Wells' feelings on the Swoosh came front and center at the New York Yankees' Old Timers Day earlier this month. There, the left-handed pitcher — who played for the Bronx Bombers from 1997 to 1998 and again from 2002 to 2003 — took a piece of tape and placed it over the company's logo on his jersey.

Then in an interview, he declared his disdain for the sportswear giant in terms that even the densest progressive could understand: "I hate Nike."

Wells explained to Nike that his disgust with the company began as it did for many people: with their support of ex-NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

"When Kaepernick took the knee, and you know, against our national anthem — and I'm a huge, huge military supporter; that's what my foundation is all about — for Nike to jump on board and reward this guy for that, you know, and the things that are going on. I told myself if I was playing in today's game, and we had Nike jerseys, I'd tape it up, I'd cut a hole in it."

Wells said that his tape job garnered laughs from others at Old Timers Day, and he even put tape on other players' jerseys.

"It fell off," Wells said. "It wasn't staying on very well. So, I have to find some thicker tape or some stickier tape."

Former Major Leaguer David Wells — who threw a perfect game in 1998 against the Minnesota Twins — ripped companies trying to politicize sports. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Wells Slammed Companies Politicising Sports And Pointed Out The Absurdity Of Men Competing In Women's Sports

Wells then slammed companies — like Nike — who appear dead-set on injecting sports with their politics, something that simply didn't happen with this kind of regularity in his 21-year Big League career.

"Now with these companies that are coming out and jumping on board and trying to change the game and put a lot of politics in the game," he said. "To me, I think it's confusing a lot of the players because they're afraid to speak up."

He argued that these companies are "putting a damper" on sports by forcing their politics on athletes.

Wells also discussed the Dylan Mulvaney/Bud Light fiasco before touching on the issue of men in women's sports. In particular, he had some high praise for OutKick's Riley Gaines, who hosts the Gaines For Girls podcast.

"Riley Gaines, I mean, she is so spot on when it comes to transgender (athletes) in sports; men playing women's sports. It's just you can't do that. It's not right and it's dangerous.

Wells highlighted this absurdity with a hypothetical scenario.

"If I was to say, I'm going to switch over and I'm going to go play women's sports, I'm gonna hurt somebody, especially if I'm throwing 95 (MPH)."

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