Black Anderson told reporters on Saturday that White Donaldson called him “Jackie” (Robinson) in a rude way many times during the game.
“He was trying to call me Jackie Robinson, like’What’s wrong, Jackie?'” Anderson said after the match on Saturday. “I don’t play that way. Nobody cares today, but he commented and it was rude. I don’t think it was required. It wasn’t necessary.”
In the fifth inning of the match on Saturday, the benches of both teams were cleared after a verbal confrontation between Donaldson and White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal on the home plate. Donaldson appeared to point to Anderson, who was playing on the field, and both benches were cleared. Anderson had to be detained by his teammates. Both teams were warned, but no one was kicked out.
In a locker room interview, Donaldson admitted that he called Anderson “Jackie” during the game, but denied the racist intentions.
“We’re not trying to start a brawl,” Donaldson told reporters after the match. “Obviously, he thought it was rude, so if so, I apologize because it’s not what I was trying to do.”
Donaldson said it was a joke between the two players and said he had previously made a joke after Anderson interviewed Sports Illustrated in 2019.
Michael Hill, senior vice president of field operations at MLB, said Donaldson’s discipline was due to “inappropriate comments.”
“MLB has completed the process of talking to the individuals involved in this case. There is no dispute over what was said in the field,” he said.
“Regardless of Donaldson’s intentions, comments to Anderson were rude and poorly judged, especially in the context of previous interactions. In addition, Donaldson’s remarks were a factor in the bench clear. I guarantee the case between the teams and the discipline. “
Earlier this month, two players collided with a third attempted pick-off tag, and Anderson made an exception to Donaldson’s tag.
According to the league, Donaldson has appealed for his suspension, which was scheduled for Monday. The league states, “Discipline will be suspended until the process is complete.”
However, according to the team, Donaldson was put on the Covid-19 injured list.
The White Sox had a day off on Monday.
Jacob Lev of CNN contributed to this report.
Source: www.cnn.com
