Former Boston Red Sox All-Star Kevin Youkilis said he witnessed racist behavior by fans at the team’s home stadium, Fenway Park.
And in one case, he lit into a fan over it.
“There was one incident where a fan came running down and was being extra harsh towards one of our Black players,” he told Fox Sports Radio on Tuesday.
“I just got fed up and I stood up and told him to ’Shut the F up, and if you don’t like it get out of here,” he said. “I will never forget that moment because I was boiling. You could see the tension, and it wasn’t the same tension that was towards a white player.”
Visiting players have long complained of racist taunts and behavior from Boston fans.
Former MLB star Torii Hunter said earlier this month that he had a no-trade clause in all of his contracts to keep him out of Boston.
“I’ve been called the n-word in Boston more than 100 times,” Hunter said on “Golic and Wingo” on ESPN Radio. “All the time. From little kids, and grown-ups sitting right next to them didn’t say anything.”
In 2017, the Red Sox apologized to Adam Jones of the Baltimore Orioles after he endured racist abuse from fans. After the incident, then-Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia said Fenway was the only MLB ballpark where he heard fans use the racial epithet.
“We know. There’s 62 of us,” he said, referring to the number of Black players in the majors at the time. “We all know. When you go to Boston, expect it.”
The Red Sox shared a message on Wednesday acknowledging racist behavior by fans and vowing to do more to stop it:
Youkilis, who retired in 2014, spent most of his 10-year major league career with Boston, where he was a three-time All Star and played on two World Series champion teams.
He now runs a brewpub in Northern California and has a podcast on beers and baseball called Greek God of Hops.