After throwing his helmet in a benches-clearing fight, Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras became the first-ever Red Sox player ejected in back-to-back games. Not many fans seemed to have an issue with that, though, given what they heard Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli say to him.
“Sit down, boy,” Cavalli shouted after striking out Contreras. It was loud enough that the broadcast’s cameras picked it up, prompting Contreras to make his way to the mound.
After the dust settled, two Red Sox players, one National, and Red Sox manager Chad Tracy were all ejected. Cavalli was not among the ejections, and would go on to have the best start of his career.
For his part, Cavalli initially denied that he said “boy.” He also pointed to a first-inning brush-up, where the two bumped into one another as a reason he was upset with Contreras. Still, everyone heard him say it clearly, and many took a white pitcher using the term “boy” at a minority to be a racist comment, even if it wasn’t his intention.
Washington Nationals Executive Paul Toboni on the Language Cade Cavalli Used
GettyWashington Nationals SP Cade Cavalli
Despite the initial denial from Cade Cavalli that he said “boy” at all, it appears the Washington Nationals organization seems to have backtracked on that idea. In particular, President of Baseball Operations Paul Toboni and Cavalli himself addressed the incident.
“I’m extremely torn up about the way that things were perceived,” Cavalli said, per The Athletic. “Obviously, there was no ill intention behind that. It hurt my heart, knowing that, if there’s a 13-year-old black kid in D.C. that sees that — that looked up to me and thinks that he perceived it in a way that wasn’t intended the way that it came out, and then he’s not looking up to me anymore. That hurts my heart. It’s really tough. I’ve learned a lot. The intention was perceived different than what my heart is and who I am as a person, my character.”
The Nationals don’t believe that Cavalli was intentionally using racist language. Therefore, there’s not going to be any punishment coming internally for him. Given that umpires didn’t eject him, it’s not likely MLB has anything for him, either.
Cavalli would also go on to acknowledge that there is a very negative racial history to the use of that word. He also tried to explain that it’s been a common phrase he uses while competing, regardless of the competitor.
Even with that, Toboni acknowledged that intent doesn’t always matter. This may be one of those situations.
“A big part of it for me is it doesn’t matter if your intent is okay,” Toboni said. “Because the bottom line is that there are folks around Washington DC, around the country, that might receive it differently than you receive it.”
Boston Red Sox First Baseman Willson Contreras on the Comments
GettyWillson Contreras being held back during a fight with the Nationals
After the game, and with some time to collect his thoughts, Willson Contreras was asked about what led to the fight. He’d admit that it wasn’t about what Cade Cavalli yelled but the fact that he did yell. Things escalated from there.
“Not really,” Contreras said. “I think it was more like the fact that he yelled whatever he said. Because, prior to that, I was talking to [Nationals catcher] Keibert Ruiz, you can go ask him, about how good Cavalli is. I was like, ‘He has good stuff,’ even asking if he was a trade guy or a farm [system] guy, and then he struck me out on a good pitch. I was walking back to the dugout, then he did what he did. The rest of it was history.”
Contreras would be asked directly if he thinks the comments that Cavalli made were racist. However, given that he is Venezuelan and not American, there is a different context for him to the language, and he chose not to answer that.
“To be honest, I don’t know,” Contreras said. “I’m Venezuelan. I don’t know if he’s racist or not. I’ll let MLB handle that.”
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