MILWAUKEE -- During nearly an hour of interviews after Brewers and Reds players collectively decided to direct attention to unrest in neighboring Kenosha, Wis., by opting not to play Wednesday’s game at Miller Park, the Brewers’ sentiment was best expressed by left-hander Brent Suter, who simply said, “Tonight wasn't the night for baseball.”

“Part of me is a little scared, you know?” Suter said. “We just refused to play a game. The fallout is immense. The biggest part is I'm really proud of our team and the Reds team for showing some solidarity for the issue.”

• Players united in message: 'Have to step up'

The teams are scheduled to make up Wednesday’s game as part of a doubleheader on Thursday starting at 4:10 p.m. CT. That will conclude the four-game series, the implications of which could reach beyond the walls of Miller Park.

“I don’t even know if we understand the broad scope of what this means,” Christian Yelich said. “Hopefully it’s using our platforms for good and to inspire change. We’ve seen some things that have transpired over the past few months that just cannot happen.”

The Brewers’ decision followed that of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, who refused to take the floor for Game 5 of their playoff series against the Magic. Here’s more of what the Brewers had to say Wednesday:

Manager Craig Counsell on the impact of choosing not to play:

“I think the statement they made was, ‘Let’s just have everybody take a second to understand something else that’s going on that’s more important than what we love to do.’ It’s selfless in that way. But it’s not small. Life is going to go on tomorrow and we are likely to play baseball tomorrow. But a decision was made today that I think is going to change a lot of these guys, and hopefully help put a spotlight on some things happening.”

Yelich on the Brewers’ afternoon meeting:

“We had the discussion and people took turns speaking about experiences, what this means, what we’re going through, what we were about to do. It wasn’t a decision we took lightly. I think the Bucks spearheaded it for us. They started the discussion. It gave us a conversation to have, and it was eye opening for us. We felt like it was the right thing to do. Guys were speaking personally about what it meant to them and what they felt like we should do. After listening to everyone speak, we asked who was in favor of not playing and who was in favor of playing, and it was a unanimous vote amongst the group not to play. … I spoke to Pat [Connaughton of the Bucks]. We had a couple of texts exchanged, and I just let him know we also were not going to play tonight and that we wanted to be united with them in what they started.”

Braun on the meeting:

“I started the conversation, and I’d say at least 7-8 different guys spoke passionately about how they felt about the situation, and unanimously as a group we all decided that we felt like the greatest impact we could have was by not playing a baseball game tonight, so that everybody could take the time to try to continue to educate themselves on what’s going on in our country. Hopefully we continue to try to have these difficult conversations and eventually elicit change.”

Suter on the realization that many people will disagree:

“That was part of our discussion, for sure. Not just the immediate fallout baseball-wise, but for our fans and just people in general that we might lose because of the stand we took. When you act in a way like we have today, a lot of times some people are going to not like you and write you off, but that's just as part of -- sometimes doing the right thing is doing the hard thing. We felt like tonight, doing the right thing was to shine the light on these issues and not just play and distract people from what's really going on. Especially it being right in our backyard. The shooting of Jacob Blake right in Kenosha is just so close to home.”

Braun on understanding systemic racism:

“For me and, I think, a lot of the other white guys in our organization, it’s been an ongoing educational process. I think there are a lot of things that have happened to minorities and African Americans specifically in our country that, frankly, we could not relate to. And as we’ve continued to ask questions and educate ourselves, I think we’ve all become more passionate about trying to do our part to encourage positive dialogue and change. I think some of that comes from talking to guys like Lorenzo Cain, talking to Devin Williams, talking to guys on the Reds today, having conversations with Amir Garrett about this -- and continuing to hear stories from people that have been through things that, being a white person, I have not experienced before.

Yelich on getting educated:

“I think it’s a huge step today. I’ve learned a lot, honestly, these last few months, just speaking to teammates, friends, people who have lived these things and gone through them. I just can’t relate to them on the same level. I haven’t experienced the same things they have. So, it’s been a really eye-opening few months. We talked about at the beginning of Summer Camp what these shirts mean. There comes a time where you have to live it, you have to step up.”

Suter on why it will be right to play Thursday if it was not right Wednesday:

“That was something we talked about in the meeting as well. When is the time to play? When is that line going to be crossed when we see the systemic reform that we need to play again? That was a road that a lot of guys agreed was just too hard to go down all the way. I can't tell you what would need to happen tonight to play tomorrow or whatnot, but all we knew was what we were feeling in our hearts: Tonight there was just too much pain, too much going on in our community tonight. It is a night of reflection and not a night to get distracted from the issues, but for us, ourselves, and our fans and everybody in the community to really take a look in their hearts and say, 'What can I do to be a part of the positive change in our community?' So, I don't have the answer for you on what would need to happen tonight for tomorrow. We just knew in our hearts tonight, especially with the Bucks spearheading the issue and taking a courageous stand -- we have to applaud them that they gave us the courage to make the decision today -- tonight wasn't the night for baseball. The Reds felt it. We felt it.”