A Donald Trump supporter who refuses to accept the official results of the 2020 presidential election has been banned in all 30 Major League ballparks after being ejected for unfurling ‘Trump Won’ banners at several games this season.
Dion Cini, 52, has been seen hanging his banners at New York’s Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, Boston’s Fenway Park, and Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park. In each instance he says he was ejected, but claims he was told he would be permitted to return.
However, Cini received a June 11 letter from Major League Baseball banning him for several recent violations of the fan code of conduct. A MLB spokesman declined to comment on the letter, but DailyMail.com has confirmed its authenticity.
Two supporters of former President Donald Trump display a ‘Trump Won, Save America’ banner during the fourth inning of a double header game against the Toronto Blue Jays during their MLB game at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx on May 27. One of those men, Dion Cini (right in red plaid) has now been banned at all 30 Major League Stadiums
Police officers at Yankee Stadium eject Dion Cini with his ‘Trump Won’ banner back in May
Dion Cini, 52, has been seen hanging his banners at New York’s Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, Boston’s Fenway Park, and Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park. In each instance he says he was ejected, but claims he was told he would be permitted to return. However, Cini received a June 11 letter from Major League Baseball banning him for several recent violations of the fan code of conduct. A MLB spokesman
Dion Cini sells Trump apparel at his own website, and is encouraging MAGA supporters to buy the gear and display it at major public events
Cini, a New York native, responded to his indefinite suspension by urging his Twitter followers to attend MLB games to unfurl their own ‘Trump Won’ banners, which he happens to sell online. Previously, Cini was reportedly banned at Disney World for holding up a ‘Trump 2020’ sign on a ride.
‘Mr. Cini,’ read the letter that he posted on Twitter. ‘During the course of the past several weeks, you entered Major League Baseball stadiums in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia for the purpose of conducting ‘flag drops.’
‘This activity is prohibited at each of these stadiums, and your fan code of conduct violations resulted in your ejection from each of them. A review of your public statements indicates that you intend to continue this behavior at other Major League Baseball stadiums, and that you are encouraging others to conduct themselves likewise.
‘For these reasons, and effective immediately, you are hereby banned from all Major League Baseball stadiums and facilities, indefinitely.’
Cini has gone so far as to instruct his Twitter followers on how to sneak a banner into a stadium.
‘MLB tips,’ he tweeted Tuesday. ‘Bring water bottles in small tote bag. Flag folds small, stuff pants, wear belt. Duct tape attach to bottles with loop, zip tie to flag. Setup in bathroom when you get in. Only metal on body is phone and hat cam, put in tray. Even my belt is plastic.’
Cini and his accomplice are ejected from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx on May 26
ans display a banner reading “Proud Boys Did Nothing Wrong” as police officers talk to them during the seventh inning of the game between the Miami Marlins and the Colorado Rockies at loanDepot park on June 8 in Miami. Dion Cini is not believed to be involved with this incident
One spectator appeared to follow in Cini’s footsteps in Miami on June 8, displaying a banner that read ‘Trump Won, Take Back America’ at a Marlins game.
Cini, who first hung a ‘Trump 2020’ at a Yankees Game in 2018, said he has the support of the former President.
‘After I did Yankee Stadium three years ago, which is Trump’s favorite stadium, he called, and he tweeted, and he Instagrammed, and he said, ”Thank you, please don’t stop,”’ Cini told Business Insider. ‘I’ve interacted with the Trump family multiple times. I’m not directly part of the Trump Organization, but they know who I am, they know what I’m doing, and they like it.’
Cini believes he wasn’t initially banned permanently because many MLB club owners are republicans: ‘The people at the top are conservatives.’
Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden, who held a 306-232 electoral college advantage while winning 51.3 percent of the popular vote.
Since then, Trump and his supporters have claimed voter fraud cost him the election, but have been unable to provide compelling supportive evidence. Trump even suggested he really won in a ‘landslide’ and encouraged followers to attend the infamous ‘Stop The Steal’ rally on January 6 in which mobs of angry conservatives stormed the Capitol to demand the results of the election be overturned.
Cini has gone so far as to instruct his Twitter followers on how to sneak a banner into a stadium. ‘MLB tips,’ he tweeted Tuesday. ‘Bring water bottles in small tote bag. Flag folds small, stuff pants, wear belt. Duct tape attach to bottles with loop, zip tie to flag. Setup in bathroom when you get in. Only metal on body is phone and hat cam, put in tray. Even my belt is plastic.’
Cini has been able to sneak banners into games in Philadelphia, New York and Boston