(Credit: AP Photo/Eric Risberg) Two American pastimes — protest and baseball — joined forces on Saturday when Oakland A’s catcher Bruce Maxwell took a knee during the pre-game national anthem of a MLB game. It was the first sign of protest in baseball since then-49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick introduced it to the NFL last year. Maxwell, an African-Amiercan from Alabama, ensured that MLB would not go a full season without a demonstration.