Dodgers manager Dave Roberts calls treatment of Adam Jones at Fenway Park ‘completely unacceptable’
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts spent only a few months as a member of the Boston Red Sox, but his legacy in franchise lore is unquestioned. His stolen base in the fourth game of the 2004 American League Championship Series aided the club as it completed a historic comeback and ended an 86-year championship drought. He has fond memories of the city, and the reception he receives at Fenway Park tends to be glowing.
Roberts is also the son of an African American father and a Japanese mother. He reacted with restraint but disappointment when asked about the incident in Boston on Monday evening, when fans hurled peanuts and shouted racial epithets at Baltimore outfielder Adam Jones.
Like Roberts, Jones is a black man who was raised in San Diego. He condemned the actions of the hecklers afterward. Roberts spoke about the situation before the Dodgers’ game Tuesday against San Francisco.
“I have great history and great memories of the city,” Roberts said. “And I know Adam is a great advocate of the game, and a great man. For him to be treated that way by a small group of people, by an individual — overstepping the lines of friendly, competitive banter — is unacceptable. Very disappointing. To reflect an entire fan base, let alone a city, because of a certain group or an individual, is being ignorant.”
He added, “For Adam, I applaud him for bringing it to light again. I think change occurs when things are talked about and brought to the table and brought to light. I applaud him for that.”
Roberts has said he broke down in tears when the Dodgers traded him to Boston in the summer of 2004. But he said he never worried about how he might be treated by the fans based on his race.
“It wasn’t race-driven, it was just more of how bad a player I was,” Roberts said. “That’s what major league players sign up for. I wasn’t a superstar player like Adam. They didn’t need to get on me too much.
“For the particular individuals who feel it’s OK, with free speech, to say those type of things, completely unacceptable.”
The fans at Fenway greeted Jones with a standing ovation before his first at-bat Tuesday. The Red Sox organization had already issued an apology. “Our entire organization and our fans are sickened by the conduct of an ignorant few,” team president Sam Kennedy said in a statement.
Twitter: @McCulloughTimes
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